When I read that Punch (real name Samuel Kim) would be collaborating with Silento, I was pretty excited. To say that Punch’s road to idolhood has been a little bumpy is an understatement. At first, Punch was signed to Pledis Entertainment and supposed to be a member of Seventeen, but was cut from the group. He soon joined Brave Entertainment and debuted with One (Kim Jae Won as the duo 1Punch. Unfortunately, 1Punch disbanded after eight months and One signed with YG Entertainment. I hoped that Punch finally caught a break.
Now “Spotlight” is finally out and my opinions are mixed. On the one hand, I actually like the song. It’s a fun, energetic dance-pop track and Punch’s voice sounds really good here. But on the other hand, I’m not trying to hate on Silento, but I don’t understand why he’s on the song.
It sounds like Silento is shouting more than rapping and the pitch of his voice doesn’t fit with the song or compliment Punch’s vocals. Hell, Silento’s voice is actually higher pitched than Punch’s!
I understand that Punch wanted Silento to be on the song. I also think Brave Entertainment is hoping that Silento will bring Punch more international fans, but the song would have been better if it was a solo thing.
It’s clear that Punch and Brave Entertainment are trying to appeal to an international audience and there aren’t many popular American artists that close in age with him (Punch is 15 and Silento is 18). Brave could have enlisted a K-pop artist that can sing or rap in English and has a large international fanbase. Rap Monster or Jackson Wang would have been a good choice. Seventeen fans would have loved to see Punch work with Vernon or Joshua. They didn’t even have to pick a K-pop artist if the goal was to go international. Tao has a strong international following and can speak English. A Punch x Tao collabo would have been so awesome!
Anyway, I think Punch has a lot of potential and “Spotlight” is just the beginning. The music video has gotten over 247k views in 2 days and the comments regarding his performance have been positive. Hopefully, Punch will be able to release a song that shows how talented his is.
