With their recent album release, K-pop group BTS (Beyond the Scenes) is telling fans to “Love Yourself.”
“Love Yourself: Her” is the fifth EP released by BTS and also includes a highly-anticipated collaboration with The Chainsmokers. Despite only being released this past Monday, the album has already broken sales and YouTube records.
“Love Yourself” incorporates EDM, pop, and contemporary R&B to create present a mature, multi-genre growth that’s reflected not only in the group’s music, but also their image.
The album begins with “Intro: Serendipity,” which presents a smooth, seductive mood. Despite the rest of the tracks relying more heavily on EDM, “Intro” does nothing to break the flow of the album. If anything, it’s a perfect introduction.
Next we hear “DNA,” the highlight of the album. The song beautifully paints a passionate love story with hard-hitting beats and their perfectly-timed drops, with whistling in the background to flawlessly bring the song together. With its blend of genres and musical features, “DNA” is the ultimate combination of previous BTS singles.
The album also dives deeper into societal issues that are present in modern Korean society. In an interview with Billboard, BTS rapper and main songwriter Rap Monster discusses the lyrics of “Go Go.” He explains their intent to emphasize the current generation’s struggle to reach for what it really wants, and hopes to relay the message of “pursuing what you want without regrets.”
Regardless, the song in the album that has garnered the most attention is “Best of Me,” the previously mentioned collaboration track with The Chainsmokers. From the first notes, the combination of styles of both groups is sublime, and at no point in the song do the groups seem to overlap each other.
“Love Yourself” is an triumphant fifth release, but not every track is as strong as it should be.
“Skit: Billboard Music Awards Speech” comes in at the middle of the EP, and while winning at the Billboard Music Awards is an impressive achievement for any artist, the speech feels a little out of place. Not only does it cut into the continuous theme of deeper lyrics and more soulful music, but also fails to contribute much to the overall effect of the EP.
“Mic Drop,” which follows the speech, also feels incompatible with the rest of the album. It’s one of two hip hop songs on the EP, the other being the album’s last track, “Outro: Her.”
However, unlike “Outro,” which contains emotional lyrics that are the ideal summary for the rest of the EP, “Mic Drop” brings nothing to the table. The song feels superficial and shallow.
Despite these minor flaws, “Love Yourself: Her” has definitely furthered BTS’ already rising popularity. At the rate in which BTS is capturing the attention of the world, they are well on their way to becoming the next global sensation.
