#bts lyrics analysis

[boosqoowoo]

BTS and the usage of Blue

Blue [bluː]

[adj] of a colour intermediate between green and violet, as of the sky or sea on a sunny day; [adj] (of a person or mood) melancholy, sad, or depressed; [noun] blue color or pigment [verb] make or become blue

My favorite color is blue and my favorite people are BTS. Thus this made perfect sense to me when I decided to analyze the usage of ‘blue’ in BTS’ lyrics over the years.

I have made a Spotify playlist of the songs mentioned below, so you can listen to them while reading this case study.

Starting with the song that inspired this deep dive, Blue Side uses the 2nd definition of blue: melancholy but goes one step further.

In 2018, J-Hope released Blue Side (Outro) as part of his mixtape, Hope World. In his March 2018 V Live on Hope World, J-Hope said that he had made the song three years ago after making 1 VERSE. He was really into the “blue vibe” — some feeling that wind and sky would bring. Although he didn’t begin with a big agenda when writing this song, he said this song brings him back to the days when he was naive and clueless — “blue sky and wind that are full of good memories.”

In 2021, to celebrate the 3rd year anniversary of Hope World, J-Hope released the full version of the song Blue Side. In his note, he mentions, “The thought that I should complete Blue Side, I think, stemmed from such an emotion. I believe that there comes a time for one where they develop empathy for old days or old things and, subsequently, have a nostalgia. And it feels like now is exactly that time for me. Working on music, I let myself freely draw and paint my innocent, childhood self who was like a blank, white sheet of paper. Although I cannot go back, I needed a blue resting place where I can, embraced in its arms, comfort myself; where I can calm and cool my heated self down in many ways.”

If we interpret these words as such, he, who used to be as innocent as a blank piece of paper, is sharing about his past by painting a ‘blue resting place’ on the paper. This artwork is now his way of remembering his past. This artwork is his music, and this Blue Side is his story.

In this sense, J-Hope uses the word blue to describe the feeling of nostalgia and melancholy, but with the additional element of missing his old self. Listen to the song with the perspective of himself talking to his old self.

He starts the song by talking about missing his past self:

모든 게 변해버린 우리 사이 나 홀로 외쳐 blue With everything between us changed, I shout out alone, blue

*us = his current self and his past self

너로 인해 물들어 새파란 눈물이 맺혀 blue I get colored by you, my eyes get welled up with blue tears, blue 봄 여름 가을 겨울 항상 그 느낌 그대로 blue Spring, summer, fall, and winter, always in that same feeling, blue

*He is always thinking of his past self

돌아가고 싶어 아무것도 모르던 그때로 blue I want to go back to those days when I didn’t know anything, blue

*He wants to go back to his innocent, naïve and young self

And hence, he made this song, his “blue resting place”, his Blue Side:

차가움에 태양이 비추고 구름이 감싸준 blue The sun shines on the cold, the clouds embrace blue 하늘 바람 타고 지금 이 순간 그곳으로 blue Riding on the wind, right now, to that place, blue 지금 날 위로해 주는 내 마음의 blue Inside my heart, comforting me now, blue 파란 달빛 아래 나 홀로 blue Under the blue moonlight, I, alone, blue

And now, whenever he is feeling down:

어둠 속 내 아픔을 토해낼 때 When I coughed up my pain in darkness, 한숨으로 찬 공기가 죄어올 때 when my sighs froze up and tightened my throat,

He feels that he can go back to the Blue Side:

난 느꼈어 무지개다리에 파란 길만 걷고 싶단 걸 I felt, that, on the rainbow bridge, I want to walk along the blue path only. I’m singing my blues, Singing my bloom, Back in my room

And when he has to leave the Blue Side, he misses his old self, back when he didn’t know anything:

그립다 그 시절 파란 나와 가벼운 숨 I miss my blue self and my light breaths back in those days.

*In Korean, there is the term “새파랗게 어리다(young like deep blue)” meaning ‘young’ (=wet behind the ears, mostly used in a negative meaning). He emphasized the notion that young himself didn’t know much about the world by describing himself as blue which is similar to 새파랗다(deep-blue)

He ends by describing the dilemma he has. He has to go from his innocent, blue self (calmness) to now (passion), trading one for the other:

냉정과 열정 사이 그 무게를 재보지만 I try measuring the weight between calmness and passion

*냉정과 열정 사이 (between calmness and passion) is the Korean title of a 2001 Japanese Movie 冷静と情熱のあいだ (Calmi Cuori Appassionati).

However, at the end of the day, he wants to be in his Blue Side, even if his current self wants to continue pursuing his passions

지금 난 그저 파랗게 타서 죽고 싶다 but now, I just wish to die, burnt in blue 내 파란 꿈속에 널 담을래 아니라고 해도 내 눈 속에 In my blue dream, I want to contain you. Even if you say no, in my eyes 내 파란 꿈속에 널 안을래 안 된다고 해도 내 품속에 In my blue dream, I will hold you. Even if you say no, In my arms blue side, Back to blue side

In 2022, J-Hope released his album ‘Jack in the Box’, with a song Safety Zone. The song talks about his search for a safe zone in his hectic life.

난 왜 없는데? 어디 가면 있는데? Why is it that I don’t have one? Where should I go to find one? 게임마저 잘 보면 안전지대가 있던데 Even in games, when you look around closely, you’d find a safe zone 나도 가고 싶은데 where is that mindset? I also want to go, but where is that mindset? 내 심리 속에서도 있기는 한 걸까? Does such a place even exist in my mind as well?

Here, he considered the Blue Side he built previously.

어둠 속 안도의 한줄기 빛은 어디일까? Where’s the ray of light to relieve me in the darkness? 고즈넉한 home? 아니면 저 먼 blue 일까? Is it a tranquil home? Or the blue that is far, far away?

It seems that from 2021 to 2022, the Blue Side had gotten increasingly far away from him.

But 이 길을 선택하는 순간 있기는 할까? 나의 safe zone But the moment I choose this path, will it even exist? My safe zone

He has traded too much of his old self for his current self to chase his passion. The weight of “passion” is now heavier than the “coolness” (discussed in Blue Side), and he needs a new Safety Zone to replace his old Blue Side.

Besides using the color blue to refer to one’s old self, blue can also be used to refer to the ocean, definition 1. This in itself can have many meanings. First, in referring to old memories.

In Telepathy (2020),

자 떠나자 푸른 바다로 우리가 함께 뛰어놀던 저 푸른 바다로 Hey, let’s leave for the blue ocean, the blue ocean where we used to rome around together

괜한 걱정들은 잠시 내려놓은 채로 잠시 Meaningless worries, for a moment. Lay them down, for a moment 우리끼리 즐겨보자 함께 추억하는 푸른 바다 한가운데 작은 섬 Let’s enjoy it among ourselves, the little island in the middle of the blue ocean that we reminisce about together

In Euphoria (2018), Jungkook also reminisces and sings about someone being “the sun that rose again in my life, the return of my childhood dreams.” However,

모르겠어 이 감정이 뭔지 I don’t know what this feeling is 혹시 여기도 꿈속인 건지 Perhaps this is also in a dream 꿈은 사막의 푸른 신기루 Dream is a blue mirage in a desert

This leads me to my next point, where the blue ocean can be used as a comparison to signify the path before and after achieving dreams. The blue ocean is wide and vast, just like dreams. This is used in Whalien 52 (2015), which talks about the world’s loneliest whale due to its high frequency that no other whales can hear.

The song eludes to dreams, and working towards them.

내 미래를 향해 가 저 푸른 바다와 내 헤르츠를 믿어 I go towards my future. I believe in the blue sea and my hertz 어머니는 바다가 푸르다 하셨어 멀리 힘껏 니 목소릴 내라 하셨어 Mom said that the ocean is blue. She told me to raise my voice with all my strength to reach farther

In Sea (2017), a song RM made in 2016, the comparison is clearly shown.

내가 닿은 이 곳이 진정 바다인가 아니면 푸른 사막인가 Is this place that I’ve reached really the sea, or is it a blue desert?

Is the blue I see really the sea, or is it just a desert painted blue? In SUGA’S interlude, released in 2020,

Ey, 내 머릿속엔 파란색만 가득한 이 방황 Ey, in my head, these wanderings that are only full of blue 자기혐오들과 자만이 내 마음속에 살아 In my mind, living are the self-loathing and excessive pride 꿈이 가득한 난 자라 모든 꿈을 이뤘건만 I, full of dreams, grew up to have all my dreams realized but, 꿈은 꿈으로만 간직하는 게 더 낫지라는 생각을 동시에 하며 살아가고 있지 at the same time, am living with a thought that dreams are better when kept as dreams

RM also talks about being filled with blue in Trivia: Love (2018)

기분은 파랑, 파랑, 파랑 (머릿속은 온통 blue) My mood is blue, blue, blue (Inside my head, it’s all colored in blue)

V also used this imagery in Blue and Grey in 2020.

어디서부터 잘못됐는지 잘 모르겠어 From when it went wrong, I’m not really sure 나 어려서부터 머릿속엔 파란색 물음표 From when I was young, there’s been a blue question mark in my mind 어쩜 그래서 치열하게 살았는지 모르지 Perhaps that’s why I lived fiercely

The next line of the song brings us to the next usage of ‘blue’ to signify sadness, the common usage of “feeling blue”, definition 2. This was also prevalent in the previous example in Trivia: Love, where RM described his mood as blue. This is the main theme in Blue and Grey.

During the global press conference for “BE,” V said this track expresses gloomy and anxious internal emotions as the colors blue and grey, and although the lyrics can be dark, the guitar sound gives a warm feeling. He described himself as someone who experienced and knows burnout. While previously he absorbed it and suffered from it as a result, he thinks he’s grown now as he writes it out. He feels accomplished by writing a song that contains the emotions he feels from burnout, and it’s the thrill he gets after completing a song that helps him recover. This song is V’s Blue Side.

But 뒤를 돌아보니 여기 우두커니 서니 나를 집어삼켜버리는 저 서슬 퍼런 그림자 But, as I look back, standing here absently, that ferocious shadow that engulfs me 여전히도 파란색 물음표는 과연 불안인지 우울인지 The blue question mark that still exists, would it be anxiety or depression 어쩜 정말 후회의 동물인지 아니면은 외로움이 낳은 나일지 Could it be that humans are really the animals of regret or, is it just me who was created by loneliness 여전히 모르겠어 서슬 퍼런 블루 잠식되지 않길 바래 찾을 거야 출구 I still don’t know, the ferocious blue. Hoping I don’t get eaten away, I’ll find the exit

During Christmas 2020, V released Snow Flower, thanking ARMYs, and the frontline health workers. This song gives a shoutout to Blue and Grey further emphasizes the usage of blue as “sadness”.

차가운 계절 속에 네가 오는 건 이벤트 In this cold season, you coming to me is a special event 내 blue and grey를 녹여줄 따뜻한 네게 To the warm you who will melt my blue and grey

In Fly To My Room (2020), During the global press conference for “BE,” Jimin explained that the song began from the question that the concept of “traveling” might change now that we cannot freely travel, and that BTS hopes the listeners enjoy the track, which contains the feeling of traveling one’s own room.

Get me outta my blues And now I’m feelin’ brand new

Of course, the usage of blue can just be… well… blue. Going back to the usage of the color blue to describe ocean, “blue sky” often comes hand in hand.

In Life Goes On (2020),

Yeah life goes on. Like an arrow in the blue sky 또 하루 더 날아가지 Another day will fly by

In Moon (2020),

꽃들이 피고 하늘이 새파란 별 정말 아름다운 건 너야 A star where flowers bloom and the sky is blue the one who is truly beautiful is you 두 눈을 감아도 넌 파랗게 내게 밀려와 Even if I close my eyes, you come to me, blue, like waves roll in In the full moon night 두 눈을 뜨고서 널 담아도 괜찮은 걸까 Would it be okay if I open my eyes and contain you in them

Speaking of Moon, the moon light is alluded to blue in 4 O’Clock (2017)

새벽은 지나가고 저 달이 잠에 들면 When the dawn passes and that moon falls asleep, 함께 했던 푸른 빛이 사라져 the blue light that was with me disappears But 지금은 눈 떠도 돼 But, for now, you can open your eyes 그 어느 영화처럼 그 대사처럼 달빛 속에선 온 세상이 푸르니까 Because just like some movie, just like some line, the whole world is blue under the moonlight

As discussed above, in Blue Side,

파란 달빛 아래 나 홀로 blue Under the blue moonlight, I, alone, Blue

Back to the sky. In Interlude: Shadow (2020)

가장 밑바닥의 나를 마주하는 순간 The moment that I face myself at the lowest, 공교롭게도 여긴 창공이잖아 it happens to be that I’m high up in the blue, cloudless sky

In Hope World's Airplane (2018),

그때 나를 다시 기억해 Again I remember myself of back then 메마른 땅이 날 불태울 때 When the barren land was burning me down, 저 푸른 하늘 보며 뛰었네 I ran looking at the blue sky 날고 싶었어 그 Airplane에서 I wanted to fly in that airplane

In I'm Fine (2018),

시리도록 푸른 하늘 아래 눈 떠 I open my eyes under the painfully blue sky 흠뻑 쏟아지는 햇살이 날 어지럽게 해 Sunshine raining down on me makes me feel dizzy 한껏 숨이 차오르고 심장은 뛰어 I breathe in fully, and my heart pounds 느껴져 너무 쉽게 나 살아있다는 걸 I can feel it so easily that I’m alive

In Ma City (2018),

자 부산의 바다여 Hey, the sea of Busan Say la la la la la 푸른 하늘아래 this sky line Under the blue sky, this sky line

In I Need U (2015),

하늘은 또 파랗게 하늘은 또 파랗게 The sky is so blue again The sky is so blue again 하늘이 파래서 햇살이 빛나서 It might be because the sky is so blue and the sun is so bright 내 눈물이 더 잘 보이나 봐 that my tears are more clearly seen

Notably, RM uses blue to describe a scent in Winter Flower (2020), while still describing the sky.

똑바로 들어 겨울아 네가 날 피운 거야 Listen well, winter. It is you who bloomed me 나 이제 내 가지로 파란 향을 피울 거야 Now, with my branches, I will emanate a blue scent 내가 알려줄게 다른 하늘이 있음을 I will let you know that there is another sky

Or other usages of the literal meaning of blue

In Serendipity (2018), blue mold here refers to penicillin, a type of antibiotic derived from Penicillium fungi.

넌 내 푸른 곰팡이 날 구원해 준 You’re my blue mold that saved me 나의 천사 나의 세상 My angel, my world

In Ma City (2018), where the members talk about their respective hometowns, Suga mentions the Samsung Lions. Samsung Lions is a professional baseball team based in Daegu, that Suga is a well-known fan of. Blue is the color of Samsung Lions.

대구에서 태어나 대구에서 자랐지 I was born in Daegu and raised in Daegu 수혈 받기엔 좀 힘들어 It’s a bit hard for me to receive blood transfusion 몸 속에는 파란 피 In my body runs blue blood

In Converse High (2015), talking about the rainbow

Alright 빨주노초파남보 [bbal-joo-no-cho-pa-nam-bo] Alright, red-orange-yellow-green-blue-navy-purple 니 발에 무지개는 shot like 람보 The rainbow on your feet is shot like Rambo, 날 저격해 탕탕 shout out wow wow shooting me tangtang shout out wow wow

In Moving On (2015), describing furniture.

벽지도 화장실도 베란다도 다 파란 집 Wallpaper, bathroom, and veranda were all blue 그 때 난 여기가 막 되게 넓은 집인 줄 알았지 Back then I thought this was really a huge house But 내 야망이 너무 커졌어 But my ambition has grown too big 그리 넓어 보이던 새 집도 이제는 너무 좁아졌어 A new house that used to look so big now feels so small

In The Truth Untold (2017), for flowers.

푸른 꽃을 꺾는 손 The hand that picks a blue flower, 잡고 싶지만 I want to hold, but 내 운명인 걸 it’s my fate

And of course, the song that is Blue (2023) by V.

What if I show you And make it all new Green, yellow, red, blue Whatever seems good to you But baby you're still blue, blue

All in all, I love that the word blue has so many meanings. It can be a noun, a verb, an adjective, a scent and so many more. And it is dear to me how BTS uses blue to talk about everything under the (blue) sky. My blue boys, I'll always be in love with you.

[astrolaurical]

RM’S CHAOTIC LOVE LIFE ANALYZED IN SONG LYRICS

This is all alleged and speculation. No relationships are proven true until confirmed by the idols themselves or their agencies. Do not take this personally or too seriously. This is just an extreme over-analysis of song lyrics and observations I have made about idol interactions from years of being a K-Pop fan.  This is a work in progress- RM has like a million songs and I am constantly going back and rediscovering new meaning in lyrics and adding to the song list. So buckle up, get a snack and a drink because I basically typed an 12 page thesis.

Indigo track-by-track analyses link

Favorite Girl (2012)- girl broke up with him over a letter in the winter

Thinkin Bout U- mentions red converse high girl

Coffee (2013)-bitter over breakup bc became idol?

Blanket kick (2014)- keep being/acting embarrassing around crush/gf and admits a lot of songs about her- possibly about yerin?

Miss right (2014)- maybe about yerin? possibly about wishing to be in ideal relationship but can’t bc idol

Where did you come from (2014)-superficial love 

Boy in luv (2014)- unrequited love and changing oneself to try to get her affections

Danger (2014)-unaffectionate/uncaring gf not putting her all in the relationship

Intro:what am I to you (2014)-relationship started out too intense so gf put up barriers and shut bf out

Converse high (2015), converse high (predebut) -song that I believe is about yerin from 15&

Run (2015)- giving your all to someone who doesn’t appreciate it

Hold me tight (2015)-knows breakup is about to occur but wants to rekindle feelings from beginning of relationship

I NEED U (2015)- how because of this girl, they are becoming ruined and they want out of the relationship. However, they cannot bring themselves to leave and begs her to break it off for him. They are going through hell because of this relationship yet they keep coming back.

Autumn leaves (2016)- refusing to move on from breakup

Love is not over (2016)-refusing to move on from breakup where girl clearly didn’t love him/ she was toying with him or realized that hookups don’t satisfy them bc only last the night and person only theirs when they are physically in the bed

Blood sweat tears (2016)- addicted to sex with someone

Dilemma (2016)- gf feeling like stranger as she becomes distant but rm still refuses to let go bc he loves her

13430 (2018)-galactic ode to lovers whose bond dwindles, eventually breaking aloof.

Fake love (2018)- “I’m so sick of this fake love” Pretty self explanatory. The same message will be repealed in “Her” and “Closer”.

Her (2018)- the person they are in love with doesn't know the real them, only the mask they put on

Truth untold (2018)- It speaks of the singer putting on a mask to see the one that they love. They create a facade to hide behind so the object of their affection doesn’t see their broken and damaged side. They are afraid that their love will leave them because of their hidden side. They have a love, but it is fake love because they aren’t being real and so because they did not have the courage to show their love their real self, they left. They are left sitting in their ruined dream reminiscing about what would’ve happened if things turned out differently.

Im fine (2018)- a little self growth yay! Went from “save me” to “I’m fine”

Euphoria (2018)- happiness associated with young love and new beginnings. There are some underlying tones of feelings of how their love is fake and not based on attraction

Waste it on Me (2018)- a hopeless and hopeful love affair. While one side of the relationship labels the concept of love as a waste, the other strongly advocates for the pursuit.

Jamais Vu (2019)- can never do right by gf so want another chance

Crying over you (2019)- breakup but each person is mature enough to let go of each other and sending wishes that their ex would find a better person whom perfectly fit for them.

TOMORROW X TOGETHER - 0X1=LOVESONG (I Know I Love You) (2021)- apparently RM had part in writing this song. He must have been loved up in his couple ring era because this song screams honeymoon stage. Clearly it didn't last based on the angry songs in this list that came afterward.

Young Love (2022)- We don’t know which of the members this viewpoint is about, so I will include this song just to be safe

SEXY NUKIM (2022)- you know the part I’m referring to… Girl you can keep it low While we do the ride I'll apply you tonight Ain't gotta DM 'Cause you heard about my team”

Closer (2022)- Namjoon, man. Will you ever learn your lesson?! You can’t replace sex with love! And you know it too. You’ve written like 20 songs about this very thing.

Change pt. 2 (2022)- MANS HEXED HIS EX LMAOOO. I WOULD BE SCARED SHITLESS.  “SOMEDAY A GREAT GRIEF WILL DO COME FOR YOU AND THEN YOULL KNOW IT TOO THATS ALL I CAN SAY TO YOU. YOU CANT LOVE SOMEONE LIKE I DO”

Smoke Sprite (2022)- Honey, what you doin' in my bed? Yeah, Uh, baby, welcome to my favorite place, yes→ RM said 2022 IS THE YEAR I LET EVERYONE KNOW IM NOT A VIRGIN

Dont ever say love me (2023)- “I wanna die when youre next to me” like man wants to breakup so bad because even when youre around him you give him the ick

WHO ARE THE SONGS ABOUT?

ANONYMOUS PRE-DEBUT CITIZEN

RM admitted to having a girlfriend in highschool during a 2015 episode of Problematic Men. He said it was a short-lived relationship because she had too many male friends and was causing him to be jealous. Speaking of 2015, notice how the other men are rushing him to try and slip up and admit that he is dating? Or admit that he would write a letter to a sweetheart? That goes into my theory about Yerin below, with the timelines matching up in 2015. RM is notoriously TOO honest and his Problematic Men hyungs knew it, with Namjoon probably gushing about his girlfriend at after-taping 회식, and were wanting him to slip up and spill on air. RM finally admitted that he would write a song for his crush on White Day (cough cough Converse High cough cough).

YERIN

While BTS has never had a confirmed partner since debut, Baek Yerin is the only rumored girlfriend RM has had tabloids write about. Yerin is the only one of the three women I’m the most confident about in this analysis that he has had a relationship with. I am fairly certain that RM has a crush on Hwasa, and that Chaeyoung has a crush on RM.

Yerin’s entire 2019 album “Every letter I sent you.” seems to be a reflection of the passionate love (and toxic) affair her and Namjoon had when they were around ages 18/19-20/21. It could be possible they dated even as early as when Namjoon was 16 if his earlier unreleased love songs are about her, as well. That’s highly unlikely, as Yerin is the same age as Jungkook, 3 years younger than Namjoon. 

Her songs often mention tons of sex, drunken nights, smoking, and fights. This sounds highly out of character for Namjoon (minus the sex and a little bit of drinking). There are rumors that some BTS members smoked, though it’s not confirmed who they are and if they still do. (Edit: Taehyung was officially confirmed to have smoked after pictures of him smoking at the 2022 Grammys were leaked. There were also numerous other occasions where he was holding a vape in his hand, but nothing as big as this “Grammys smoking scandal” went as viral. Jungkook is also confirmed to smoke after his vape was revealed in a Weverse live. Suga alludes to him being a constant smoker in his song “Haegeum”, and he does hold that cigarette like a seasoned pro… but the cig reference was mainly a call out to overprotective fans who think they they can tell other people what they can do with their bodies.)

They most likely had a karmic relationship- an intense but PAINFUL relationship that will rip you out and spit you out. Every hidden side of you is revealed through sex and intimacy, but it is so intense, that you cannot be with the person forever but you feed off of each other’s brokenness. I’m sure if you asked them about what they learned from that relationship, they would say they learned SO MUCH about life, love, and self.

It (allegedly) definitely seems like Namjoon broke up with her around 2015-2016 after the success of I NEED U, when BTS became busier and he had less time to spend with her. From the timeline of BTS songs, I would place their relationship anywhere from 2012-2015. While he was heartbroken for YEARS after this (see the above listed songs, the longest list off all 3 lyrics lists), he has now come to terms with it. It seems like Yerin has come to terms with it as well, as this blog post breaks down each song meaning beautifully. It seems like Yerin has found a box of diaries or love letters from this relationship and has written songs in chronological order of the entire timeline, from beginning to end, with the last song talking about her getting closure with viewing the memories and how the two were not meant to be.

Yerin states that “This album reflects memories, dilemmas, and thought processes I had from when I was nineteen to twenty three.” She is currently 24 years old Korean age (23 years old standard age at the time that I wrote this in 2020, she would be 26 years old in 2023 now). This would put the beginning of the album at 19 years old in 2014 to 23 years in 2018. The timeline does match.

Maybe its not our fault (2019)- how partners in relationship slowly started to drift apart

0310- sex cant save a relationship

It’s like I dont know myself (2017)- the more he probes the more she loses herself and him

Meant to Be (2019)- about namjoon 100000% id bet my life on it. Him saying they’re meant to be, he’s kind. 

Across the Universe (2015)- hes slipping away but shes clinging to him

Mr. Gloomy (2019)- talking about how hes so melancholy and loves rainy days (Namjoon forever rain)

Bye Bye My Blue (2016)- becoming resentful of Namjoon’s growing fame while her career is stagnant

“Cuz I’m afraid to say things I want to say. I push you away and make things uncomfortable”

CAN I BE U (2019)- most likely a response to I NEED U

His Ocean (2016)- NJ trying to get a deep connection but Yerin resisting. Namjoon also has a fascination with oceans and always mentions it in lyrics.

“I'm not good at emptying my heart. It's not as easy as it sounds. But why do you keep asking me to do something I can't? There's a lot that has built up in my heart. I can't get rid of it and I'm always frustrated”

Amy (2019)- apologizing for the hardships she put him through in the relationship and admitting she buys all their albums and that their Love Yourself campaign has helped her (allegedly)

Popo (2019) - saying how intoxicated she is with the man (his eyes, his scent, his voice). If the song is about NJ, I mean, same girl. The man in the song wrote her a song and played it for her.

“You'll never know How much your voice attracts me, boy. It's exceptional Especially When you're playing the song for me. I can't take my eyes away”

Datoom (2019)- Reflecting on how much they argued before they broke up

Not a girl (2019) - seoulbeats (linked above) sums up this song perfectly: “Yerin wanting to speak up for herself against a lover who doesn’t seem to truly be for her. There lies a misunderstanding between who he attempts to see her as, versus who she believes she truly is.”

“Can’t be what you want. I can’t be what you were. I can’t say I have done so many things but now. Can’t be good enough”

Newsong2 (2019)- "Want to be just like you once. Make it up if I do wrong. Ignore and leave the silence". Make up and brush it under the rug.

Point (2019)- insecure partner in love keeps questioning her love

London (2019)-partner is trying to idealize her and is not seeing her for who she is

HWASA

It does seem that Namjoon has a thing for Cancers, if my and others’ speculations about his dating life are true. Both Yerin and Hwasa are Cancer suns. While Namjoon’s Cancer Mars is in his 8th house and plays a predominant role in his life and relationships, it is clear to see why he is drawn to Cancer sun individuals. But remember, the 8th house is death and rebirth. Karmic relationships.

Hwasa and Namjoon do have a lot of similarities, from not only looking similar (face, tan, thicc), but to being criticized by fans and media alike (tan, ignorance. RM has apologized and grown from his mistakes. Still waiting on Hwasa’s genuine apology since she continues to appropriate… and do blackface). Both are also highly sexual beings.

While the man in her songs has characteristics that sound a lot like him, so do many other anonymous citizens of Seoul like Hwasa stated. She makes her ex sound like he was available whenever to come and see her, and RM being part of the biggest boy group on the planet doesn’t have much free time, even though his personality is very empathetic and giving. The only reason I included her is because a lot of other people seem to think there was something going on between the two, whether it was a FWB situation or brief one-month romance. I will admit I do not keep up with Mamamoo or Hwasa at all so these are the only songs I know by her. I have heard rumors that she has been in a steady relationship with a man like 10 years older than her and is in a prominent position, like a ceo or something? All alleged, of course. You can never really trust that stuff.

Twit (2019)- how Hwasa wants her lover to not be so passive, loving, and predictable, but take charge and surprise her. This song seems the most likely of Hwasa’s songs to be about NJ because Yerin and BTS’s songs about exes have mentioned the man giving so much of himself into the relationship that he loses himself. Hwasa fans speculate that Twit may be about Loco, as he was VERY chivalrous and swooned over her every time they worked together.

“You give me a lot, but why are you the only one feeling unhappy? Because you breathe only for me. You look so lonely”

Why (2020)- missing her ex, most likely the lover from Twit

“You're my hero. We have many similarities, like a mirror”

Kidding (2020)- sarcastic remarks to a cheating ex and his new lover. Not quite sure if this is about Namjoon because his natal chart doesn’t really have any aspects linking to cheating, but natal charts aren’t the end-all-be-all. Everyone still has free will, and he very well may have cheated.

“Of course you must have been busy. You two falling in love. It’s an old thing that’s thrown out after one use. You’re going to regret it soon. Isn’t it so ironic?”

CHAEYOUNG

Another slightly uncomfortable pattern in all of these alleged “exes” is that RM likes to date younger women, as every single “ex-girlfriend” listed here is younger than him. Namjoon was born in 1994, Hwasa in 1995, Yerin in 1997…. and Chaeyoung in 1999. Namjoon… dude. Chaeyoung is a Taurus, which vibes well with his Virgo sun. Namjoon also has his descendant in Taurus, which is what he looks for in a marriage partner. I don’t have any of the girls’ birth times, but standard 1200 time all results in negative match scores, showing that the majority of Namjoon and each individual girl’s natal chart did not sync well for a compatible match.

Whenever there are multiple fan videos of idol ships, take notice. Weed out the delusional ones but pay attention to ones that seem plausible after researching the K-Pop industry and how idols get away with dating. Idols have confirmed that looking at each other is a form of flirting when at award shows. And there are plenty of clips of RM and Chaeyoung doing just that. Chaeyoung has written her own rap lyrics but mostly it is about a crush and then immediately to heartbreak, so clearly the relationship didn’t last long. The song timelines from crush (2016) to regret (2018) show a brief interlude of happiness and touching (2017). My guess is that after pursuing RM for quite some time, he gave in and hooked up with her, but she wanted more and got her heart broken.

Precious Love (2016)- apologizing and asking scorned ex to come back

“I’m so sorry. Please come back. Do you still feel the same? Have you still not forgiven me? Have the scars I’ve given you Not healed yet? Or have you replaced me With someone else? Is there no place for me In your heart anymore?”

Daring Woman (2016)- she’s young but stop pushing her away

Eye Eye Eyes (2017)- describing a crush she has on someone. Mentions white tee shirt and jeans that he likes, possible reference to converse high

“Ocean-like eyes, I’ll swim in them. Yeah yeah yeah. Everyone knows his pretty eye-smile. I want it to myself. Yeah yeah yeah. Your heart is ice I’ll melt you” and “Do men like White shirt with jeans and most importantly long hair”

Missing U (2017) -ex promised her the world then broke her heart. A recurring theme throughout all 3 girl’s lyrics, hmmmm maybe the ex in Namjoon’s songs isn’t the problem, then?

“You promised me And I foolishly believed. But when you left, you had no guilt. But still I miss you. Miss you baby”

Sweet Talker (2018)- I have a very tiny suspicion this might be about more than one BTS member since Jeonghyeon was involved in the writing process. RM is known for choosing his words carefully, being a smooth talker when it comes to flirting and being a poetic genius.

“You seduced me with your sweet words. You made my heart beat with your clear eyes” and “Your words were as clear as the sky. Your words had no feelings”

The only confirmed relationship I know that Chae was in was with that scumbag tattoo artist that drew those lewd drawings of Chae giving him head and posted it for the world to see and she got so much hate because of it. Thank goodness they’re not together anymore.

This is where I had last stopped in my draft. It says the last edit was December 6, 2020 lmao. So some things I had previously said I may disagree with now but I'm leaving up as I like to see how my thoughts have changed over the years. For example, I now do not think that Chaeyoung or RM ever dated, and that she just had an extreme crush on him. I mean, girl same. Yerin I still believe 100% dated him as she broke formal speech on TELEVISION and called him a pet name. The only reason that wasn't a bigger deal is that both were unknown artists back in 2015. Hwasa, I am on the fence about. I see more reaction videos of Taehyung being the ass man that he is lusting over her than RM. I wouldn't let my buddy thirst over my girl but RM is pretty chill about it. Granted they are in public and being filmed, but even if he did talk to Tae about it, V still did it over and over. Weird, no? So that is why i lean more towards that Hwasa and RM probably didnt officially date, but maybe were just fuck buddies?

Now onto RM’s love life that DID make news:

COUPLES RING

I really wish I had kept a better timeline of him wearing that ring, sigh. The only things I can really find online of him wearing that ring started the whole “namjoon married” ordeal were around September 2020 when that infamous video of him taking it off before going on air surfaced, making it look hella suspicious. I definitely remember him wearing that ring for maybe the entirety of Dynamite promotions? The Dynamite era went from August 25, 2020- December 3, 2021 according to BTS Wiki. This was like peak COVID time and I was an essential worker so I admittedly wasn’t keeping up with BTS that closely and instead was just trying to make it through the day. He was talking about having kids a lot during this time too, and that one live of him showing off the baby shoes did not help his case that he is already married with kids. Namjoon did seem to get in on the joke though by trolling us and posting that photo of him and a little girl with her face covered.

There were also terrible rumors going around during this time that he was gay. Namjoon clearly has a very close guy friend and likes to take pictures with said best friend to preserve memories. To respect his non-famous friend’s privacy, he puts emojis over their face on the photos. Some of the emojis were hearts. Thus the shipping and speculation began. RM eventually stopped posting photos with this friend at all and then deleted all of them.

FIANCEE

June 24, 2022… the day when all Namjoon stans had a heart attack. News broke that he was engaged. So those couple ring photos must be true, we all thought. But alas! HYBE released a statement saying “RM’s marriage rumors are not true. We are currently taking swift action against malicious rumors started on YouTube.” Namjoon himself even posted on his instagram story saying “I don’t know her.” All is well, right? Then Indigo was released… and Namjoon really meant it when he said “I don’t know her.”

It is my belief that Namjoon really was engaged to be married to the person whom he shared couple rings with and who was the lockscreen on his phone. But, based on the lyrics from his songs in the Indigo album, we know that the relationship did not end well. Based on the lyrics in “Closer” and “Change pt. 2”, it seems like she broke his heart by either 1) cheating or 2) putting up emotional barriers and saying she didn’t have feelings for him. I will dissect all songs from the Indigo album in full in a separate masterlist and will link to it here.

According to the Sojang video posted on June 23, 2022, RM’s chaebol “fiancee” was going around bragging about being engaged to the idol. Once word got out about this, they had a huge fight about how she was just using him for his fame and not for his personality. This is where I kind of believe Sojang may have sources that are true. The BTS members have had tons of fake dating rumors and have never felt the need to personally respond and always just let their company handle it. Around this time, Jungkook was being “attacked” by Sojang for fake dating rumors as well and he never responded. But Namjoon decided to go to his personal instagram and type “I don’t know her” which could be viewed in two ways: he really has never met the person Sojang is claiming he was engaged to… or he never really knew the TRUE person who he was engaged to, only the mask they wore. And we all know that Namjoon loves being petty, passive aggressive, and cryptic… even more so when it comes to his exes apparently if his songs are anything to go by. He is straight up hexing his ex at the end of “Change pt. 2”.... The breakup has definitely scarred him. While I think he has been working on healing and that the Indigo album has helped tremendously, I do think that Namjoon is now way more reluctant to love than he once was. He has even said so himself on The Dictionary of Useless Human Knowledge that he used to see himself getting married (hmmm… I bet you did), but now he is unsure if he ever will. His long letter to ARMY recently on Weverse gives me hope that he will find love again when he is ready, and he admits so himself in that letter that he won’t go searching for it but will let divine timing take place and let the chips fall where they may.

[jindipity]

134340

This song is for the hopeless people who are confronted with feelings of loneliness and longing after their significant lover isn’t a part of their life anymore. You take the role of Pluto who was kicked out of the solar system the way you were removed from your lover‘s life. If you could, you would ask them why they left and pushed you away. Regardless of how your relationship ended, you stay in your lover’s life like your role never changed. Even though Pluto doesn’t have a name anymore, it‘s still revolving around the sun just like you. You don’t know if your lover still wants you in their life. Nonetheless, you can’t just discard them as they did with you. Once you were their star, someone important they valued the most, but now you‘re just a mere number. Every bit of warm light you felt on your skin came from your sun. Now that they‘re gone, it feels like you‘re drowning in your own darkness once again. Like Pluto, the planet as well as the god of the underworld, you were always dependent on the sunshine they gave you. Jealousy silently creeps up on you. Simultaneously embarrassed for losing your role, you blame their new love interest for the shift. Pluto lost its name due to a moon called Eris that appeared in the same orbit as the dwarf planet. However, last one could keep its own title instead of getting a replacement number like Pluto. You both have been replaced and are facing a less dignified role in your sun‘s life now. The hope that one day your loved one will understand how much they actually mean to you, doesn‘t leave your body. You selflessly put them above yourself and dedicated everything to them. As the sun left, Pluto’s -248 degree cold heart stopped beating; illustrating how extremely hurt you were when they abandoned you. However, you still miss your lover. Your world didn’t stop to revolve around them. You often reminisces the time when you both were together and each other’s home. But, just like Pluto will never reach the sun, you won‘t reunite with your loved one again despite the proximity. It drives you crazy how every day seems the same, yet everything feels so different since they‘re gone. Whenever you think you‘re doing better and moved on, the sun enters your life again and all the repressed feelings come back like a flooding. They‘re happy and smiling at someone else who isn‘t you. Without second thoughts you approach them and tell your loved one that you‘re doing okay even though your heart explodes inside you. Finally, you acknowledge your new status of a bare number and planet of darkness far away from the sun. The realization that your lover has forgotten about you, hurts you deeply. Yet, despite the heartbreak, you will always hold onto them and continue to orbit around your sun. 134340 resonates with all the people who have experienced emotional distance or the sense of being overlooked. It doesn’t only tell the story of Pluto but also makes you feel seen. While strangers won’t recognize your numerical sequence, friends and your favourite people will. At the end you didn‘t lose your spark nor your significance after a breakup. Unlike Pluto, you‘re able to alter your course, seek a new source of warmth, or be your own sun. You don’t have to orbit around one person your whole life.

Song requested by @taekritimin123

Check out my masterlist for more <3

[thoughts-on-bangtan]

Taehyung's beautiful "Rainy Days" (Song Analysis)

*taps mic* is this thing on?

Well...it's been a while, hasn't it? We've been silent but we are still very much around, still listening to the Tannie's music, watching all the content, still loving vmin and namjin, we watched all streamable D-Day concerts, the Disney+ movies, all of it, we've just basically been keeping our ARMY time to ourselves.

But then came Tae.

But then came Rainy Days. And we were lured back here to scream a little at what we've gotten.

And yes, before the inevitable anons come to try and discredit everything in this post, yes we are aware that (so far) Tae doesn't have any writing credits on the songs on Layover, Love Me Again and Rainy Days. But try as you might, no one can ignore just how vmin coded Rainy Days is and how specific some of the references are. Everyone picked up on it, regardless if they were a vminie, OT7 non-shipper, or even a xkooker. Posts crying about and pointing toward Park Jimin being the one were everywhere and honestly, I've missed moments like there.

So, Rainy Days, huh, let's talk about the vmin references, shall we?

First of all, can we talk about just how gorgeous and atmospheric Rainy Days is? And how very Taehyung it is? Because it just fits him truly so perfectly, just like Love Me Again does. I love how the soft mellowness of the song contrasts with the brutalistic architecture of the building shown in the MV, the old-school iMac, and the little Pomeranian acting as Yeontan. I did get tricked into thinking it was Yeontan until Tae did his live and told us, nope, that's Rocky, a doggy looking very close to how Yeontan does since he couldn't travel with Tae. We know Yeontan has health issues, so I should've guessed as much, but either way, it is absolutely adorable how much love for Yeontan is in Tae's debut as solo artist. Find you someone that'll love you as much and as deeply as Tae loves Yeontan. I'll wait.

I love the use of the iPhone sounds within the song, the notification tone as well as the typing sound, though it isn't very fitting (it also reminds me of vmin, how they enjoy FaceTiming, texting and calling each other) for someone who was the Samsung Galaxy ambassador ha ha. Wonder what Yoongi had to say about that.

But moving along to the lyrics, as well as two moments from the MV itself, there are a few vmin references that are hard to ignore. And they were "obvious" enough that basically everyone picked up on them.

The first little thing, and this one could very well be a reach, is this Little Prince/Jimin connection. In the MV Tae falls asleep watching TV and we're shown clips of a fox and a flower which immediately made everyone think of the fox and flower from the Little Prince, and then also the moment in the first season of In the Soop when Tae and Hobi went on their little trip and spotted a mural/poster for the Little Prince. Adorable.

Then in the second verse we have Tae singing the following line:

We can start again, open all the doors

The mention of doors made me perk up because it instantly reminded me of this line in Sweet Night:

That I still hope the door is open

So it feels like, if Rainy Days really is a vmin song, it would either play before Sweet Night, or after, when something came between them but Tae wanted a second chance, still had a hope that they could be together and that all things aren't lost yet.

Now this, who do we know basically laughs at anything and everything Tae says, who has mentioned time and again that Tae is the funniest, like in one of the RUN episodes he mentioned how Tae had been making him laugh all day as well's throughout the filming? That's right, our boy Jimin.

Don't believe me? Well, check out this thread and see for yourself.

Next we have the line:

You're my four-leaf clover

Do I really need to explain this one? In a BB or memories DVD, I don't remember exactly, we had a moment when Tae was looking for a four-leafed clover and Jimin, to surprise and make him happy, went and acted as though he'd found one for it (though it wasn't a real four leaf one) which made Tae happy anyway. Years later for their performance of HOME, standing in front of what appeared to be a reference to the Mirror or Erised, we saw vmin wearing matching four-leaf clover necklaces with Tae appearing next to Jimin as though he was what Jimin's heart desired the most.

Then in the MV we have a scene where Tae is in some kind of art room creating. Eventually he picks up a baguette, which points for originality, and uses it to paint a Vante art piece showing a painting that looks like an alien with its little antennas. And who reclaimed the alien "nickname" just a few years and and who is basically the only one who can still call him that? Exactly. Jimin.

Speaking of whom, further in the lyrics we get this line:

Those hurtful words

And sure, perhaps I'm delulu and reaching, whatever, let me have fun, but still that line reminded me of something. FESTA 2020 where Jimin spoke about how he was sorry for the things in the past, how they were buddies back then (I'm still waiting for him to elaborate on that one, they were buddies back then so, Jiminie, what are you now? Care to share?) and got into a lot of disagreements and how he now feels sorry for the harsh words he used with Tae. And Harsh words can very much be hurtful. So another potential reference?

At the end of the day, as I mentioned before, Tae doesn't have writing credits on Rainy Days but, as you just read, those things just fit a little too well to be just a coincidence, right? So perhaps, just like they'd done with Chingu years prior, maybe Tae sat down with the producers/lyricist and told them what he wants in the song?

And that would be it. We're both extremely excited for the rest of Layover, for the next 3 (!!!) MVs, and all the promo Tae mentioned he has planned (based on ideas and things he saw ARMY had mentioned wishing for) and if he'll have writing credits on any of the songs. But it is a little strange to me how Tae has been so outspoken about working on and writing songs for his mixtapes for years, how he'd shown us snippets from his songs, and yet now as we are getting his debut album, no writing credits (so far). Guess we shall wait and see.

[bisexualrapline]

wait okay anna and i are talking abt people pt. 2 and this exchange

reminded me so much of this for some reason

and now i’m convinced that blond agust d in daechwita represents that greed that yoon has talked about in so many different songs like that part of him that he feels like deep down inside chases success and money and recognition and black haired agust d represents the true yoongi whose primary love has always been making music and people pt. 2 really is a continuation of that universe. he “killed” his greed and is now free to share the music he truly wants to share free to try new things without worries of commercialization which is why we’ve now got this seemingly brand new soft agust d which is really just. Yoongi. it’s been yoongi this whole time. idk if i’m making any sense i just had to write this down somewhere so i remember it

[the-bangtext-is-rich]

Set Me Free Pt.2: on Mazes, Lies and Setting Yourself Free

Written by J.

Jimin’s Set Me Free Pt.2 is a powerhouse of a masterpiece. It is well anchored in BTS’ discography all while going beyond it and being fresh, unexpected and unique to Jimin and his journey. A perfect official solo debut for Jimin. ❤️

Read on if you’d like to explore these topics with me:

Set Me Free Pt.2 being anchored in BTS’s discography

Jimin’s journey from Lie to Set Me Free Pt.2

Anchored in BTS’s Discography

Set Me Free Pt.2 is anchored in BTS’ discography firstly because of the title itself: a nod to, as well as a continuation of sorts of Agust D’s Set Me Free. In Jimin’s words:

There isn’t a connection, and we weren’t trying to divide part one or part two. But since it turns out my song talks about freedom and moving forward, and SUGA’s song talks about some of the stories that come before, I thought it would be good to come after that.

Just like BTS’ Airplane Pt.2 is linked to J-Hope’s solo track Airplane, Jimin’s Set Me Free Pt.2 is linked to Agust D’s Set Me Free.

Next up comes the maze. Set Me Free Pt.2 uses the metaphor of the maze twice:

In the first verse:

I wandered into a maze

And in the second verse:

Still in a maze.

The metaphor of the maze is scattered across BTS’s discography:

RM in Louder than Bombs:

Every day a maze Wonder if this is my place

Suga in Answer: Love Myself:

Our lives are long, trust yourself when in a maze When winter passes, spring always comes

Without forgetting the song Love Maze itself! Jimin’s maze lyrics in this song:

Trapped in a maze of decisions Exhausted by all the different chaos We’ve wandered around, looking for the answer Lost in the maze, in the darkness

We love a motif that keeps popping up throughout various songs. It creates strength to the overarching storytelling of an artist and instantly brings meaning without having to go into detail each time. (See this post which talks a lot more eloquently about BTS motifs across their albums!) I love that Jimin ties his solo song into the BTS maze motif by bringing the maze in his own way. Not only does it create links between this solo song and BTS songs, but it also means army immediately knows the maze means difficulty. Indeed, the metaphor of the maze signifies darkness, being lost, going through hardships, etc. It can be nuanced in different ways depending on the context. (This powerful metaphor has not been lost on other k-pop artists. See for example Stray Kids’ Miroh (miroh, 미로, meaning “maze” in Korean) and Maze of Memories, TXT’s Maze in the Mirror, and (G)-IDLE’S Maze.) The maze in Set Me Free Pt.2 signifies hardships too. Jimin said the song wanted to express the ideas of “determination, passion, and overcoming”, and the maze represents the hardships that required determination and passion to overcome.

BTS explored darkness, hardships and overcoming them extensively throughout their discography, most recently and impressively through ON. This song has similar vibes to Set Me Free Pt.2, confirmed by Park Jimin himself: “I think you can feel the same vibe watching the “ON” performance as you will watching this performance. You’ll feel that feeling once again.” There is also clearly a shoutout to ON’s “Gotta go insane to stay sane” lyrics in Set Me Free Pt.2′s “Going insane to stay sane” lyrics. Parallels between ON/other BTS songs talking about overcoming hardships and Set Me Free Pt.2 are clear.

(Sidenote: see RM’s El País interview in which he talks about why overstraining/“working fucking hard” is such an important theme within k-pop/Korean culture.)

Darkness was also very much explored in Suga’s Interlude: Shadow. I can’t help but think that the voice distortions in Set Me Free Pt.2′s second verse may be a reference to Shadow’s third verse, which contain similar voice distortions.

The voice distortions in Set Me Free Pt. 2 come when Jimin is talking about hardships:

I got feel low Still in a maze But I got no time to break soul Just let me flow Hey fool, just get out of my way Shut up, fuck off I'm on my way

These are the darkest lyrics of the song imo. They show the darkness, dare I say the shadow, that Jimin has lived with and through. When Jimin addresses the “fool,” he could be speaking to his shadow, to his own self-doubts. The voice distortion accentuates the fact that he is talking about darkness, a dark side of himself.

Suga’s biggest voice distortions in Interlude: Shadow appear over these lyrics:

Yeah I'm you, you are me, now do you know Yeah you are me, I'm you, now you do know We are one body, sometimes we will clash You can never break me off, this you must know Yeah yeah can't break me off, whatever you do Yeah you'll be at ease if you admit it too Yeah succeed or fail, whichever way you flow Yeah you can't escape, wherever you go

This is also the darkest part of the song. Rather than talking to his shadow like Jimin, Suga is speaking from his shadow’s perspective. He is talking about how it’s impossible to escape his shadow always being part of him. Suga’s shadow is greed and ambition, whereas Jimin’s may be more akin to self-doubt, a self-doubt that has made him pretend to be someone else. This would explain why it would seem that while Suga is trying to accept living with his shadow alongside him, Jimin is working on setting himself free from his shadow.

I might be making parallels where no parallels need to be made. Playing with voices is common in the music industry in general, and very much in k-pop too. At the same time, both Set Me Free Pt.2 and Interlude: Shadow have both Pdogg and Ghstloop as songwriters and Ghstloop as a producer. And I think it’s interesting to think of discussions with one’s demons as being highlighted by voice distortions.

Lie, Set Me Free Pt.2 and Jimin

I cannot help but interpret Set Me Free Pt.2 as being linked to Lie. Musically, they both have a grand orchestral feel. Meaning-wise, they seem very linked as well.

Lie is all about the suffering that comes with having to live a lie. Here are the lyrics of the chorus, as a quick refresher:

Caught in a lie Find the me that was pure I can’t be free from this lie Give me back my smile Caught in a lie Pull me from this hell I can’t be free from this pain Save me, I am being punished

The lie in question is not specified and is left up to interpretation, which is amazing. Lots of people can find themselves in the lyrics in various ways.

At the same time, thinking about Jimin, the first thing that comes to my mind is this quote of his from this video when he talks about/to his younger self:

I think I wanted to appear like a strong man. Now... I don’t have to pretend. I can just be myself. Talk about myself without pretending anything. I realised that I was such an aspiring person and I realised how I’ve become better. I don’t look like I’m about to weep anymore. I don’t. That’s the difference as per my appearance goes. You were trying very hard. I was impressed and moved by you. I could feel how hard you were trying. I mean... Your eyes looked eager to show something. I felt somewhat sorry for you too. I was shocked a bit. Hurry up and be me soon. You will learn and realise so many things. Fighting.

The lie may indeed have been about him not being himself, him trying, pretending to be someone else, a “strong man”. This is something he has overcome, and Jimin affirms that he now feels free to be himself without having to pretend. With this in mind, let’s have a look at some of Set Me Free Pt.2′s lyrics:

Ah, yeah, ah, yeah I'm standing at the edge Not yet, not yet I won't look back Now yeah, now yeah Fly away, butterfly-y-y Finally free-e-e Look at me now (Me now) I won't hide anymore, even if it hurts Going insane to stay sane Raise your hands for the past me Now, set me free-e-e

Tears in my eyes at “Finally free”, “I won’t hide anymore” and “Raise your hands for the past me” (especially as in the MV Jimin is actually raising his hand while he sings this).

To me, one interpretation of the song is definitely about setting yourself free from the expectations you have bound yourself to (bearing in mind that these expectations are very often hammered into you by society). Setting yourself free from pretending to be someone else, from hiding yourself, from being blocked in your own prison, your own lie. Jimin has very much done this, as he clearly feels a lot more comfortable with allowing himself to be who he wants to be compared to the first years after debut. (I highly recommend reading these two excellent posts that go into great detail about this about how Jimin is the personification of the whole Love Yourself concept: “Jimin and his Journey with Gender Presentation” and “Jimin and his Journey with Food and Body Image”.)

The journey from Lie to Set Me Free Pt.2 is striking. In Lie, Jimin cannot seem to be able to escape the lie. He is crying for outside help, unable to save himself. “Pull me from this hell,” “Save me, I am being punished.”

In Set Me Free Pt.2, he has agency, and he has overcome his hardships himself.

Finally free Look at me now I won’t stop, even if they mock me.

Jimin has said that that’s what the song is all about:

“Set me free” means setting myself free, so I thought it was important that I be the one to set myself free — not someone else. In the end, I’m the one who has to set myself free.

The MV visually shows that he has set himself free as he ends up in an all-white outfit after having been in a black (and somewhat naked) outfit up until the end of the video.

Visually representing a light in the darkness, as he said is this song’s energy:

I would say the song has the energy of a light in the darkness. I wanted to express that kind of picture everyone has in their head — a ray of light coming into the darkness is the only thing you can see. If I had to say specific colors, I’d say black and white.

It’s one hell of a powerful message. That we can set ourselves free on our own, no matter the darkness of the maze, of our shadow. That in fact, we are the only ones who can set ourselves free. I don’t have the words to express how inspiring it is, how much of a privilege it is, to watch Jimin express this in such a musically and visually striking way as Set Me Free Pt.2.

In conclusion, Jimin places the song firmly in BTS’s discography by using the motif of the maze, talking about similar themes (overcoming hardships) and referencing ON and Interlude: Shadow (maybe). At the same time, the song is uniquely his at it is very personal to his own journey of setting himself free from hiding and pretending to be someone else.

Thank you, Park Jimin.

[aftaylorglow]

stay where you are

i feel like i'm pretty late to the closer hype, but here i am anyway.

when indigo came out and everyone was talking about how much they loved closer, i was just "eh." i thought it was a good song, but it wasn't my favorite from the get go. i love the sound of mono so naturally, i gravitated toward the slower songs on indigo.

but as i was listening to one of my playlists earlier tonight, closer came up on shuffle so i paused and just took it all in.

my god, what a song.

i'm sorry for being late namjoon! but this is truly an excellent song.

I get a feelin’ sometimes That I can’t get close enough to you I feel it most in the nighttime Even though that’s when I’m closest to you If I could be under your skin Closer than we’ve ever been We’d be closer than we’ve ever been

i think the universal interpretation for this song is that of intense yearning. how else would you describe wanting to be so close to another person you want to be under their skin.

but i think it's especially intense and heartbreaking because the lyrics point to the kind of yearning that's not reciprocated.

first, let's take the phrase "under your skin." [getting] under someone's skin is a popular idiom that means deliberately upsetting someone. this doesn't seem to be what namjoon intended for the song, especially since he's talking about being under someone's skin, not getting there.

still, it's interesting to think about the idiom because the subject of the song seems like someone who's drifting away.

I feel it most in the nighttime Me never on your timeline See you always in the limelight Keep me rollin’ in the deep Not a tease, no joke, I do mean it Don’t cease, baby don’t, why you floatin’? Wanna lock you up in my sight But you run away like fish, yeah

he is never on the subject's timeline. the subject is floating away—from him. so what does he do to get the person to look at him again? he ignites something in them. and sometimes, when people are desperate to be seen, they don't care what feelings they spark in another person. so if you think of namjoon saying he wants to get under the subject's skin, he's deliberately angering them so at least their attention turns back on him.

again, i don't think this is what he's saying in the song (it's pretty clear he meant so close he's inside someone), but i wanted to explore this tangent!

I keep you right next to me Only just in my dream I see you in red, blue, green Don’t wake me up from sleep I think I’m losin’ my grip Everything off the beam Why you showed up in my life Like this so sudden, oh god no

"i keep you right next to me, only just in my dream" evokes an especially acute kind of ache. in dreams, anything can happen—if he's not with this person anymore in real life, he could still be with them in dreams.

dreaming is doubly enticing to him because he sees the person in "red, blue, green." RGB is the color model primarily used to display pictures on screen. his dreams are vivid, realistic.

but the thing about dreams is that they're just that: dreams. they are fleeting, they are going to end. when you wake up from them, your reality doesn't change.

for dreams to be his last resort to keep this person beside him...my heart clenches painfully thinking about it.

Promised myself never again But you got me doing the same thing all over again

i love paul blanco's verse because it's a perfect complement to joon's verses and mahalia's chorus.

the singer wants to stop hurting. he's starting to learn his lesson. but one word from the subject and he comes running back. his pride is shot because he's at their beck and call. even after he's told himself never to put himself through the cycle of being used again, he's weak against them.

If love ain’t for us 이걸로 만족할게 (I will be satisfied with this) I don’t need your touch 너의 사랑이면 돼 (As long as it’s your love)

Trans cr; Annie @ bts-trans

like, just look at him. he's pathetic. he's satisfied with not getting the kind of love he craves, only the pitiful, bare bones resemblance of love that the subject deigns to give him.

(added commentary after rewatching the indigo live: joon literally said this song is pathetic, as in it's about a love/person you can't catch no matter what. which aligns with my interpretation so im pleased)

If this is all we can do Yeah just lookin’ at you There’s gon’ be no take two Stay where you are

let me just talk about how much i love the transition between paul's and joon's line. the gradual increase in the music's volume and joon coming in with "if this is all we can do" is so pleasing to my ears. a+ production from honne.

and i think it's how the music in this part sounds that makes the lyrics feel a hundred percent more impactful. it sounds as desperate as namjoon is, pleading for this person to stay where they are.

it's interesting to see this part as him begging in his dreams. in his earlier verse, he wants to keep the subject next to him through his vivid dreams. and in the outro, he keeps repeating "stay where you are" like he knows the person can't. because he's gonna wake up eventually and he will have to face the reality that this person has drifted away.

[jimin-jam]

Analyzing Jimin's song lyrics - "LIKE CRAZY"

Paragraph 1:

★ The opening lines express a sense of hope and the desire for a lasting connection. He fears the impermanence of everything but asks for trust.

Paragraph 2:

★ A new perspective is introduced, inviting someone to join in an experience free of negativity. Reasons and explanations are deferred, and he seeks companionship.

Paragraph 3:

★ The tone shifts as he mentions his departure and isolation. There's a sense of confusion and darkness clouding their vision.

Paragraph 4:

★ He becomes aware of listening voices, though their identity remains unclear. There's an attempt to relieve pressure and a mention of reaching for ambitious goals.

Paragraph 5:

★ He questions whether he will find himself again after going too far. This shows introspection and a fear of losing oneself.

Paragraph 6:

★ The desire to be "Lost in the lights" is emphasized, along with feeling out of control and the need to numb emotional pain.

Paragraph 7:

★ Each night brings elevated emotions, possibly through thrilling experiences, but emotions are kept in check or frozen, he wants to experience something

Paragraph 9:

★ The lyrics suggest the anticipation of a good night, emphasizing the potential for lasting togetherness.

Paragraph 10:

★ He feels alive, even if he seem to be wasting time, suggesting a focus on the present moment.

Paragraph 11:

★ The lyrics convey a sense of anticipation and fear that something will break him, and he wants to remain in a dreamlike state

[perchingominouslysmwh]

Do you ever think about the shoes jimin’s holding in spring day- cuz from what I can understand they’re representing someone who’s gone right? Like, it’s a metaphor for grief and throughout the mv he carries them around- and at first he’s doing it alone and then the others come and they get on the train to kinda ‘move on’ together but it still weighs him down- until they finally reach the tree and everyone goes with him to put the shoes on the tree like ‘you never walk alone’, ya know? So like, the grief’s gonna stick with you wherever you go and yet, you can grow with it? (like if you’re metaphorically growing with the tree at the end) And in a way it’s really comforting to me, like you don’t have to let go of someone you loved and lost completely, you can take them with you as you grow with the people you still have in your life

[5283]

i'm Noticing A Pattern here. compared to other kpop groups, why does it feel like #stray kids has mainly only 3 categories of posts which are fanfics, gifs and incorrect quotes. but like it's very disproportionate with other type of content... idk how to explain this observation accurately... oh and of course the 9x9 grid moodboards where only 1 picture is actually a skz member while the rest are just random whatevercore pics.

are there no stays on here that just vibe. and just talk about stuff. and share their excitements and opinions and insights and disappointments about skz or just in general. am i just unable to find them.

i guess please like/interact with this post if you want to vibe together idk, i'm really desperate in finding more blogs/people to follow </333 🙏

[onedreamseeker]

Agust D Tour Thoughts and Analysis

So I went to the Agust d Tour and one of the things that I really loved was the VCRs. They had so much storytelling and really added so much.

This is a Long one so please hit read more under the cut!

Specifically I want to talk I about the three names and how they’re presented in the video.

Yoongi, Exist in Memory

Suga, Lost in Memory

Agust D, The Chaser

Theres a lot these phrases could mean in relation to the names associated. Firstly, Yoongi, his real birth name, exists in memory. Yoongi (as well as a few other members of bts) has spoken extensively about who they are vs their stage personas. I really think all of these have to do with exactly that concept.

Yoongi could only exist in memory because while he is on stage he is no longer “just min yoongi” he is one of the other names he goes by:

Suga is The second name listed with the phrase “lost in memory” this could be a reference to the fact that while bts is seperated by the hiatus and military service, he can no longer fully identify with this name while on stage, because he is not physically with bts, Suga, his bts stage Name is Lost in Memory currently (this doesn’t necessarily mean he can’t be found however, once bts is fully reunited in 2025) which leaves us with:

Agust D, The Chaser, the Name he goes by on solo work. I think it’s so interesting to abandon the naming conventions of the other two names for this one, “in memory” is dropped entirely for just a moniker, “the chaser”. The moniker makes sense though, in almost every Agust D music video we see a version of suga chasing down and killing another version in a cyclical nature. The old Agust d Must be hunted down by the new Agust D in order to maintain a level of self awareness and balance. Agust D as a persona has often been shown to be yoongi at his most viciously hungry and greedy (for money, for fame, for power) he also is very closely associated with Yoongi’s traumas. I think this persona is very closely tied to the themes of cycles especially as they relate to trauma and how trauma can change you. Agust D’s Scar, as we See in the amygdala mv, is Self inflicted, which lends credence to the idea that Agust D is a representation of how the worst of yoongi’s traumas effected him negatively. How it might’ve changed his view of greed for success and fame. Which is why he has to keep killing the old Agust d to make room for the new one. It’s a struggling balance act to make sure yoongi the person is never overtaken by the things Agust D represents.

In the video shown at the concert Agust D is trying to Hunt down and kill Yoongi and Suga. I think this could be taken as the trauma and cycles of negativity that Agust D represents trying to infect and change Yoongi as a person or his persona as Suga the bts member.

At the end of the concert the last VCR shows Yoongi and Suga burning down the hotel that Agust D is in, presumably killing him. (Also hyyh reference anyone?)

I definitely think this correlates to Yoongi’s statement that the Agust D trilogy is complete and that we might not get music under the Agust D Name for a long time (if ever again).

Yoongi has talked a lot about himself as yoongi the person vs suga the bts member vs Agust d the soloist. And he’s talked about the conflict that comes from having so many different personas and the toll that takes on him.

To me the Agust D Trilogy as a whole is Yoongi rectifying with these three pieces of himself. And using his own music to identify and expose these darker parts of himself as Agust d in an attempt to bring these pieces closer as a single whole instead of completely seperate, as well as trying to become more honest and bare in his music as a way to understand how a part of him became Agust D and the trauma that made him who he is.

Not only do the albums follow this story but the entire layout of the concert does as well.

Firstly the setlist:

The setlist Starts with Haegeum, a song about freedom and retaliation against oppressive systems and each song after peels back these layers of the persona we know as Agust D, he speaks about his early struggles as an artist and in childhood, poverty, hatred experienced from others, into more self reflective songs like People and moonlight, where he investigates his life in comparison to other’s, his creative process etc.

He examines himself as BTS’s Suga in the next section, playing songs like shadow, the cyphers, ddaeng. The persona and feelings he has as a member of the biggest and most successful group in the world.

The second to last section of songs all from his new album explore some of the most deeply personal topics yet, a personal letter to the next generation of musicians in snooze, political ideology in Polar Night. Ending with amygdala and DDAY. The first being an exploration of his trauma and the second a rallying cry to move forward anyways.

The concert ends on The Last, one of his most vulnerable and emotional songs where he goes into detail about his mental health history, Including a possible reference to a suicide attempt.

Everything about the structure and story of the setlist is about peeling away layers, understanding the different pieces of himself to become more whole.

The set design Is another fantastic example of this.

In the beginning of the show, during haegeum, the stage is big and blocky and whole, it stands above the crowd.

More towards the middle of the concert, as he performs bts songs, The stage has started to peel away, and now looks more like a cross shape

This next picture is nearing the end, during amygdala only one piece of the stage remains and you can see two other pieces being lifted away.

This is during The Last, at the very end of the concert. The entirety of the stage has been lifted away revealing all the wires and props and equipment of the underbelly. Yoongi stands at level with the crowd now. Not above as an idol but face to face, as himself. It’s so remarkably powerful I was in tears at it.

In conclusion of this long long post analyzing the Agust d albums and tour,

I just wanted to say that I am in genuine awe of Yoongi’s emotional storytelling, and his art. The three albums, the detail of the setlist, and even the stage design all come together to express his deeply moving story of learning to understand yourself and your trauma and deciding to move forward towards the future as your whole self, flaws and all. It is so profoundly beautiful and impactful and I can’t thank him enough for choosing to share his journey with us through his music and art.

[doodletae]

"still life" by rm - mini lyric analysis

I'm still life, but I'm movin' Just live now, goin' forward, yeah A still life that does not stop, keep my flower blooming again

finally time for me to ramble about kim namjoon's stellar wordplay and lyricism :D

already namjoon sets up the seemingly paradoxical nature of this song with that first line "i'm still life, BUT i'm movin'." the word "still" can refer to something's continual action, like "life is still happening", but it can also be used as an adjective, like something is calm and peaceful. when a river is still, it's not moving.

so in the first line, namjoon presents the statement "i'm still life, i'm still living and existing and life is pretty stationary right now" then juxtaposes it with "but I'M moving, i'm the one going forward." yet then he says "a still life that does not stop" implying how no matter how "peaceful" a still life may feel it's always moving through time

Still nonstop life Shall my flower bloom again

you're always moving and your external world is always moving too, so it's easy to feel you're trapped in the same mundane routine everyday. it's a "nonstop still life" and you're just racing to catch up to where you were ten seconds ago. and let's not even start on how this is perfectly visualized in the still life mv where namjoon is on a train, meaning even if he stays still, he's still moving forward with the train, and if the train stops, he's confined to that space for how far he can move forward. i knew the mv would slay, but i didn't know it was gonna be a whole freakin artistic metaphor so props to the producers behind that one.

also super cool how namjoon mentions flowers in these lyrics and he asks "shall my flower bloom again", probably referencing his title track "wildflower". if the wildflower is supposed to represent him, then it's like he's wondering if this nonstop still life will allow himself time to grow and develop.

OKAY ONE MORE THING.

Gimme no name 'cause I'm untitled (Oh, yeah) My life is on display, still life, still life

I want to escape the frame of this canvas (Oh-oh)

a big theme in indigo is about namjoon grappling with his identity in the midst of all these expectations people have about him and namjoon ingeniously introduces the metaphor of a painting to describe this. he mentions how he is "untitled", a moniker often given to pieces of art that don't have a name (which is also how he describes himself in "wildflower"). the term "still life" can be used to refer to "still life drawings" which are what the name implies: drawings of inanimate objects in the natural world. if namjoon sees himself as a "still life", he is quite literally trapped on a canvas in a painting where nothing moves. one might also speculate that he no longer wants to be seen as just an "artist" or be identified only by his "art" since heaven knows that literally describes the last 10 years of his life. it calls back to "Yun" where he sings "i want to be a human before i do some art"; namjoon is perhaps trying to reclaim his status as just another human being living life amidst all these people throwing all their expectations onto him.

The shadow cast over me by yesterday and tomorrow

also the way the line "the shadow cast over me by yesterday and tomorrow" perfectly encapsulates both a person's regrets about the past and their worries about the future, like *chef's kiss* brief and brilliant poetry

I just calmly livе errtime (Oh-oh) 24/7, yeah, baby, I’m on timе I just live every minute and every second of today

and also i love the subtle imagery implied in "baby, i'm on time", which could literally mean he's punctual, but i get the picture of him standing on top of time, like maybe on the second-hand of a clock, so that he's moving forward with time itself and not pausing to think about the past nor worry about the future. he is fully in the moment.

okay that's it for real.

[thebtseffect]

Here's my essay posted on And Philosophy, a website for a book series that examines popular culture topics in relation to philosophy. This is an expansion of my ethics of care project~

[starburstfloat]

Thoughts on Namjoon's lyricism and Instagram notes cause I love him

Namjoon's notes post from his Instagram story a few days ago has really stuck with me

If you'll notice, he wrote this down on May 8 2017. I was wondering what it reminded me of.

And then I remembered Always, the track that shocked us all when it dropped on January 1st 2017, a song we thought would welcome in the new year with light and optimism and instead was a song about his suicidal mentality a few months/years prior

And then thinking of the shocking numbness of Always reminds me of everythinggoes from mono, which seemingly nods back to this time when he became indifferent to living and instead found solace in recognizing the inevitability of pain - in fact, urging listeners to seek it out, to feel their own lungs burning, because if you have pain you have life, and that pain is explicitly better than numbness:

While it may be unrelated, the notes he posted in his story feel like a callback to his darkest times and ultimately a nod to the fact that he has revenge over his past self by pulling through. He made it.

I got kind of emotional looking at the simplicity of the words

"true revenge is to be strong. to survive. to protect."

It really is. And I love him. That is all :')

[btsandfriends]

A Lyrical Dive into select Jimin's Solo Songs in Preparation for FACE

As a nerdy liberal arts major who loves lyrics way too much, I wanted to shine a spotlight on Jimin's creative talents in songs ahead of the release of FACE in a week.

Jimin talked a lot about feeling nervous about producing or writing solo tracks, and it's true that compared to the rapline he's got less experience. But I do think he and the fandom can undersell his talents there.

For me, Jimin has two calling cards: the first is super duper catchy melodies with a strong hook. The second is deceptively simple lyrics that unfurl if you look more closely at them.

People look at the simplicity of his lyrics and don't realize it's a deliberate choice to 1) make them honest and universal; 2) protect Jimin's very-cherished sense of privacy (many of his songs are about personal moments); 3) make critical use of poetic word choices and lyrical progression.

I'm a lyrics-driven person so I'll look most closely there, but I'll add anything additional that I observe.

Also, a deep dive into his solo songs show that they actually touch on many of the themes FACE will purportedly touch on: mainly "fronting his true self" and negotiating between his various artistic selves. So read this if you want to prep for the album! xD

He's got quite a few solo songs so I will be focusing in only on the songs that Jimin creatively contributed too, just because I find those most interesting. That term's a bit clunky, but I use it because to cover songs where he is credited as writer (eg Lie) or producer (eg Friends) or we've been told he came up with concepts for (eg Filter).

[For that reason, VIBE, Serendipity, With You. which are his solo songs but which he just sang, are not included. BTS songs where he did contribute but I have nothing particularly interesting to say like the bridge of Di-sease or a segment of Blood Sweat and Tears, I also did not include. But they're great!! Please listen to them!]

tldr on each song discussed below if you don't want to read the full thing with all the evidence lol:

Lie

about hiding your true self, however, he's vague about what the lie is about

simple lyrics but with key evocative imagery, like the snake to first represent temptation than the lie itself

performance-driven - best understand with the accompanying dance, particularly his plodding steps and the blindfold, like he's been captured and dragged down by the lie

Promise

first flash of Jimin's talent for catchy pop melodies in a solo song

about being kind to yourself, shedding perfectionism and 'facing' who you are and want to be, but from a compassionate rather than confrontational place

lyrical assist from Namjoon, who takes his simple evocative lyrics and pushes them further by inverting/progressing their meaning over the length of the song (notice the light->night shift and how it deepens the song's meaning). We can expect the same in FACE!

Friends

another super catchy pop melody! This time with a dramatic bridge and back choir, which I'm sure will come back around in FACE

linear narrative storytelling in the lyrics, which I adore adore adore

freaking cute as all get-out with the specifics of his friendship with Tae - we might not see this in FAC, because I assume he'll lintend for those songs to be more abstract and universal, whereas this is basically a dedication to their specific friendship. But I hope we do get some specifics, because he picked some really fun images/anecdotes (dumpling? driving? drinking?).

Christmas Love

Another pop melody with a super catchy hook! This song makes me so happy

Simple lyrics with some nice turns-of-phrases (sobok sobok, personification of snow), as I expect from Jimin

This song makes me happy

Filter

'Sexy' sound but dark lyrics about his relationship to fans and his public image. This is like Pied Piper or Louder than Bombs, where you're like, did you have to hit that hard? Now I'm sad

Lyrical progression - from a Jimin helplessly trying to meet audience demands to a Jimin and audience frenzily running through a kaleidoscope of filters to Jimin being empowered enough to just be like 'you'll take what I give you and like it' xD (and also audience and artist collaborating to create something new). It's really really cool

Performance-driven - I'm sure you've seen the Filter performance from the MOTS One concert. It adds a lot of meaning to this song

Boiling down all that? Here are the Jimin calling cards that I would expect to see from FACE:

Musically: Addictive, catchy melodies, with strong hooks and dramatic bridges

Lyrically: Deceptively simple lyrics with imagery and word choices that evolve over the course of a song; narrative progression and/or storytelling from verse 1 to outro

Meaning/Content: ruminations on whether a true self exists and how it is suppressed evolved or liberated through time, fame and the relationship between the artist and their fans. Some of this meaning will be expressed through dance and performance. The songs will be good by themselves, but will not be fully understood until viewed within the performance

Before we start:

Please do make sure to read the lyrics as you listen to each song!

I'm going to link to my translation from my preferred translator doolset but feel free to use anybody, or turn on English subtitles in the video! But to me it's really important to read them because I think you're missing half the song if you don't. And it'll be easier to actually understand and feel my point, especially the parts about lyrical progression, if you experience the lyrics with the song and backing instrumentation. So sync them up, okay?

Seriously, just press play and read the lyrics alongside the videos.

In roughly order of release

Lie (Performance with lyrics) (Translation by doolset)

This song is all about being trapped and desiring freedom... which is quite similar to what we've been told about FACE and Set Me Free Pt. 2, isn't it? (wink). I expect Lie to serve almost as the "prequel" to FACE, in the sense that in Lie he's still trapped and there he's successfully freed. RM said in Wings Behind its about his perfectionistic tendencies, but at other times Jimin's dodged what the "lies" specifically are (Q: "What is lies about?" A: "Lying" *bright smile*, I kid you not lol). So I think there's a probably more personal struggles here not discussed.

The song itself doesn't tell us either, in-line with Jimin's preference for simple but evocative lyrics. But there is imagery of temptation ("Smooth like a like a snake" - my favorite lyric in the song due to syncopated delivery and alliteration actually bringing to mind a snake); putting on a front that you must now commit to ("I'm here the same me as before / but the overgrown lie is trying to swallow me"); and fear of the truth being discovered ("Caught in a lie" - by whom? By the audience or oneself?). We might get more clarity on what Lies was referring to with FACE.

I'm not like, a musics major but I understand that the instrumentation does some interesting things to highlight the song's meaning too, specifically when it shifts from a major key to a minor key to showcase discordancy, that the speaker is lying.

Anyway, all signs point to you need to listen to Lie to properly prepare for the EP's themes!

Promise (song) (Translation by doolset)

Ugh, I loveeeeee this song and always have. This was the song that first crystallized for me Jimin's talent for melodies—it was an unofficial release, so the production is relatively simple, but that hook!! So good.

What do we get when we look at Promise's lyrics?

Jimin has actually spoken quite extensively about what the song is about. Put simply, it's about loving yourself—about being kinder to yourself and letting go of an unhealthy perfectionism that actually move you farther from the person you want to be. The "you" and "I" in the song are the same person, the speaker is talking to themselves. And if you're thinking "Huh, that sounds like it's about facing himself, but compassionately?"—EXACTLY. Yes this was in 2017 and Jimin was clearly feeling the theme hard that year, but I suspect he's still thinking about it (especially since Promise is being released officially). We know FACE is exploring similar themes of facing who you want to be, but my prediction is that it won't be from just a confrontational lens, but a compassionate one like we see in Promise.

Promise is also interesting because Namjoon helped Jimin write the lyrics while in tour, and we know from the FACE tracklist that Namjoon is credited songwriter on three tracks out of six. So, looking at a Jimin song Namjoon assisted on can help us figure out what to expect creatively from FACE there. And Namjoon keeps Jimin's short and simple but romantic lyrics (in the genre sense, not the platonic/romantic sense), but pushes their poeticism a bit by developing or inverting the central imagery so there's a sense of movement to the lyrics. Jimin calls this out specifically himself, noting that he was so happy with Namjoon's suggestion to change the last repetition of this lyric:

I want you to be your light, baby you should be your light ---> I want you to be your night, baby You could be your night

Basically, Namjoon thought you can't always just shine, it's important to also give yourself "the night"—to rest. You yourself should also be your own refuge. And of course it rhymes too.

It's just so so lovely I love that Namjoon understood what Jimin wanted to say and enhanced it while keeping true to it. I feel so at peace knowing that Jimin collaborated with Namjoon on this album, I trust Namjoon with Jimin completely.

Friends (song) (translation by doolset)

I freaking love this song!! (I know I've said this with every song, but like Jimin songs are just like, fully my jam)

He produced this one himself so we can look at the backing track and think about what elements we might see on FACE. Catchy pop melody? Check. A slowdown, dramatic bridge? Check. Also, he makes quite liberal use of a choir in this song, which we didn't see in other songs but really goes with the drama, so my darkhorse prediction is that we might see one of FACE's song use a choir as well.

The lyrics itself are what I've come to expect from Jimin - simple but evocative. What I find most interesting about this one is that it's actually a narrative story told in linear fashion, since Jimin is talking about his and Tae's relationship. It starts from the beginning of their relationship and ends at their seven year anniversary looking into the future (staying forever even after the cheers die down ;_; ) . BTS actually does this in a fair number of their songs (for example, Young Forever), but amongst Jimin songs I think only Friends is like this. But I love love it.

It's also very specific - in a way I hope I've shown you most of Jimin's other songs aren't. Like, he talks specifically about the dumpling fight, about the moment of meeting and thinking Tae's a weird alien (fondly), about driving together and drinking together. Super specific imagery. But of course the song content is different. It's not about his personal mental growth, which he probably wants to both obscure and make universal. This is a celebration of Jimin and Tae's relationship, and so they talked about a lot of stuff we as fans know about them.

[That said, I do want to note I think he probably didn't put everything important about his friendship in here (in fact, we know he didn't - he told us in a vlive he couldn't get into specifics about the dumpling fight and their make-up because it's private). The mentions probably still leave a lot of things out]

Anyway. I'm probably biased because I'm a writer and I love stories but I think storytelling is what really sets BTS apart. It would also work quite well with the concept of FACE I think, a song that traces who Jimin is through his various evolutions - from that bboy look near debut to his softer image starting in 2016 to his more "mature" self now in 2022.

So: I suspect one of Jimin's FACE songs will tell a linear narrative in its lyrics. But I think those lyrics will be less specific than what we got with Friends. Which is fine by me. Manifesting.

Christmas Love (song) (translation by doolset)

Oh hey, it's another pop melody with the catchiest hook! Who would've guessed we'd see one of Jimin's calling cards! xD

[I will note this is an unofficial release though, so the instrumentation is relatively simple, I expect the official releases will have fancier instrumentation - Jimin did say he basically did all of it in 48 hrs]

This is a short, sweet song so I'll also keep my analysis short and sweet. You can look at the lyrics and also see it shows Jimin's other calling card - simple, straight-to-the-point lyrics but with an interesting poetic turn of phrase embedded somewhere. In this case, it's the use sobok sobok (an onomatopoeia slash mimetic word unique to Korean to express the sound of snow gently collating) and his personification of snow (he's welcoming it like a person).

Filter (song) (translation by doolset)

Jimin didn't write this one but I definitely remember while binging all the MOTS7 Behind content that Jimin came up with the song's concept and discussed extensively with the songwriters about what we wanted to express and then they wrote the lyrics (in a similar process to what Jimin and Tae did with Friends' lyrics, where they wrote out all these long stories to a songwriter and then she turned them into lyrics, sounds like). That involvement means that while he's not a credited songwriter I'm still looking at it to see what we can expect.

This is a very performance-driven song, so I highly recommend you look at the performance (Consider that he looks at both a male and a female mannequin, then changes into a vibrantly colored suit that combines elements traditionally male and female tailoring).

But here's what I find interesting about it from, a lyrics perspective:

It sounds sexy and slinky, but it's actually a rather dark song about living up to expectations of fans - Jimin is talking about becoming whatever the audience wants just so he can receive their love, in a rather plaintive way ("Please look at me now")

This song also shows lyrical progression - moving from sort-of passive transformation driven by the needs of the audience ("Let me know your type", and the lyric I quoted above) to a sort of frenzy in the middle where who he is and what the audience wants is up for grabs and it seems insatiable ("What do you think, are you getting the idea?" "Is it not enough yet?" "Look at me who turned into a child all of a sudden") to the very end where he knows the audience so well that he is now able to take active control of his image to create something transcendent ("I'm a brand new filter that you have never seen before" "try entrusting yourself to me")—partially in collaboration with the audience ("We will become a new us")

The lyrics are actually quite... private? Like, he never goes into any particular details about what sort of "filters" he feels like he's offering, or what's underneath it. Is it about his behavior? His styling? His personality? Who knows. We get the gist, but we don't know the details. Some lyrics put you in a specific time, place, and experience. These don't. They float as a universal struggle and mindset. This isn't a criticism, just an observation. I think it serves two purposes, to make it easier for others to connect with and to keep his privacy about his specific struggles here.

Jimin has actually said he wants to show a more "mature" side of himself through FACE—and I think the closest approximation that we have to that, amongst the songs he's creatively contributed to, is probably Filter. Where yeah, it's sexy, so mature in that sense, but also dark, so mature in that sense too.

And the concept of a "filter" is quite similar to the concept of a "face" right? What face do you show the world? How much control do you have over it? How do you "face" the various versions of yourself, in a career where you do need to deploy various "faces/filters" to keep an audience entertained? ARMY joke a lot about Jimin's duality, but I do think it can create pressure and an identity crisis like Jimin sort of expresses here. But the song actually ends on a rather empowered, positive note. So anyway!

Christmas Love actually came out after Filter but I'm ending with Filter because I'm expecting Jimin to pick up almost exactly where Filter dropped off in FACE, in lyrics, sound, and concept.

[And seriously, I hope like with Friends we see him play with lyrical progression again, I love it so much ;_;]

So. Boiling all that down. Here's what you can look forward to on FACE. If I was a gambling person, I'd put a bet on it xD

Musically: Addictive, catchy melodies, with strong hooks and dramatic bridges

Lyrically: Deceptively simple lyrics with imagery and word choices that evolve over the course of a song; narrative progression and/or storytelling from verse 1 to outro

Meaning/Content: ruminations on whether a true self exists and how it is suppressed evolved or liberated through time, fame and the relationship between the artist and their fans. Some of this meaning will be expressed through dance and performance. The songs will be good by themselves, but will not be fully understood until viewed within the performance

I hope this helped you understand Jimin as a creative writer better and please look forward to his album! I can't wait to see where he is now, the very latest stage of his development. From everything so far, it's going to be great.

-Q

[ratherbefangirling]

We need to talk about Filter more

Like it's so dark and delicious

Like which me do you want... its lethal but also so dark like you want a part of me and not the 'real' or 'whole' me

Also like I can be your genie how about aladdin

Genie trapped in lamp answers the wishes of the owner whether he wants to or not and is otherwise trapped in his lamp

And Aladdin faked himself to be a prince to fool Jasmine