This review reflects the opinions of the author and not necessarily those of allkpop.

Track List:

1) Flash

2) Waves (feat. Simon Dominic & Jamie)

3) Who U Are

4) Runaway (feat. YUMDDA)

5) Movie (feat. Dvwn)

6) Night

Kang Daniel's newest mini-album, "MAGENTA" continues the artist's color-based theme following his release of "CYAN" earlier this year. Daniel released "Waves" featuring Jamie and Simon Dominic earlier last week, but has since followed up with his MV and title track, "Who U Are".

Overall, "MAGENTA" boasts growth in Kang Daniel since CYAN, however, I don't feel that "Who U Are" should have been the title promotional song because I felt that the impact of having a collaboration on "Waves" to be more powerful. "Who U Are" boasts a simple song progression that feels unsurprising, but still enjoyable, however, I felt that "Waves" was the track that left a bigger impression with its characteristic Latin flair and mix of talent.

"Flash" starts out the album as a melodic EDM/Trap-inspired introductory track, which, I feel does a great job setting the tone for what you're about to hear on the rest of the album. Daniel also has a number of collaborations on the rest of the albums as well beyond that of "Waves" including YUMDDA on "Runaway" a bouncy feel-good, reggae-inspired feel. Rising artist, DVWN also lent his vocals on "Movie". "Movie" gives the album a sort of balance that's needed after the upbeat and mid-tempo songs. The album ends on "Night" which seems to be conclusive to the album's diverse soundscapes and has a more classic K-Pop sound that showcases Daniel's soft Pop/R&B suited voice. Daniel definitely gave every genre a try on this album and I can appreciate the dedication to diversity on this new album for sure. 

One thing I really enjoyed and have to point out about this release is the very deliberate tracklisting of the songs. Every song seems to have extremely intentional placement and the energy of the track prior always seems to lead perfectly into the song proceeding it. A tiny detail, but an appreciated one, nonetheless.

MV REVIEW

Frankly, I preferred the music video to "Waves" over the MV to "Who U Are". The pre-released single, "Waves" just seemed to have a more complete-feeling video with dynamic shots and MV progression. In the case for "Who U Are," I didn't like how it was a singular shot on Kang Daniel for his performance bits. It felt like the lack of different scenes gave the video a low-budget feeling.

Though the MV's feeling and aesthetic visuals do really suit the bass-booming progression of the song itself, I can't help but feel that Daniel deserved a little more plot-wise. There was really no apparent plot to the music video beyond him dancing with his backup dancers in this dramatic setting. I would have loved to see a bit more developed of an MV, especially after getting such a good one with "Waves".

SCORE:

MV Relevance…..6

MV Production…..7

MV Concept……..7

MV Score: 6.7

Album Production…...9

Album Concept……...8

Album Tracklisting......10

Album Score: 9

Overall: 7.9