Lyrics stand at the core of any song, but in the fast-paced world of K-Pop, we usually don’t pay attention to them until after an addictive hook already has us humming along.
With lyrics becoming more and more convoluted lately thanks to the hook song trend placing emphasis on catchy beats instead of meaning, Sports Seoul took the time to highlight some lyrics that are worth mentioning and divided them into the following six categories.
◆ Lyrics that are sickeningly sweet:
The most representative lyrics of this category are none other than Orange Caramel’s “A~ing” and “Magic Girl.” Their lyrics are full of aegyo with lines like, “You said my lips were like jelly,” and use of a slew of onomatopoeia to amplify the cute factor.
TVXQ’s debut track, “Hug“, is also added to the list thanks to its innocent lyrics. “I want to be the bed in your room, I want to be your pet cat,” may sound embarrassing to some, but a lot are also of the opinion that they can overlook the lyrics for the boys’ beautiful harmonization instead.
◆ Lyrics that make you burst into laughter:
Norazo is known for their bizarre and comedic concepts. Every new song that they have released released has never failed to live up to their comedic hype — that is, until the release of their 2009 track,“Constipation.” The song was banned from a public broadcast network under the reason for being “disgusting.” How disgusting was it? The lyrics are seemingly about a man trying to let his love go, but it’s actually just all about constipation. “I’m pushing you out, the you inside of me. It may be difficult, but I’m going to let you go. It won’t be easy for me, but I’m going to do it. I won’t stop.”
There’s also the gagman group, UV, who are widely known for their modern yet comedic song concepts. They’ve been receiving much love for their playful spin on words throughout their lyrics, the most representative being, “I’m sorry I can’t be cool for you. We broke up as beautifully as we could, but I’m sorry I’m hanging on to you so dirtily.” Check out the music video in the link above for the full effect.
◆ Lyrics that move you to tears:
g.o.d.’s “To Mother” was the song that brought millions of children to tears when the group first debuted with it. The song features heartbreaking lyrics of a child cherishing everything his mother had done for him before she passed away. The lyrics aren’t sugar-coated and hit home hard. A part of it describes his mother gathering all the money she had to buy him a bowl of black noodles and another of his mother kneeling before policemen to beg pardon for a crime he had committed.
In tune with the concept, Def Conn released “Father” in 2007, which features lyrics on his personal feelings about his father. This soft hip hop track begins by stating, “This song is a story about my poor father, the one who thinks Def Conn is the greatest artist in Korea.” The song details all of the hardships and obstacles he had to go through in order to provide for his family.
◆ Lyrics that are scarier than horror films:
In 1996, Panic released a song that is still considered shiver-inducing even today. Titled “About the Three Sons of a Clown“, the track is about the death of a clown that had been tormented by his neighbors. To avenge his death, his remaining three sons put a curse on the town, forever enslaving them to cynical laughter, war, and sadness.
Outsider’s “The Tears of Pierrot” is about a Pierrot discovering that his wife sheds tears of diamonds. In a fit of blind greed, he begins to beat and assault his wife to acquire wealth through her tears and spends it all on drinking and gambling. Unable to take it, she eventually sheds one last bloody tear that turns into a red diamond and leaves it with him before committing suicide. The song’s theme is continued as a series with “The Tears of Pierrot 2” and “The Tears of Pierrot 3” in his 2.5th and 3rd album respectively, where the Pierrot attempts to undo his wrong by putting his life on the line to make a girl that looks like his late wife smile.
◆ Lyrics that are stimulating:
Hip hop’s bad boys, DJ DOC, didn’t earn that title for no reason. Like the rebellious rascals they’re known to be, they’re famous for speaking out on their anger and discontent through their lyrics. Their fifth album (2000) feature a number of songs that are heavily laden with swears, the representative being “LIE.” It lashes out against the media and their manipulative ways, similar to the album’s fourth track, “Pojori.” The album was eventually ruled unfit for minors.
Rapper E.via, or sometimes better known as the ‘female Outsider’, was hit with a ban on all three public networks for her track, “The Innocence of A Girl.” Unlike her sweet, ulzzang-like image, the rapper packs a mean punch in her lines that are anything but sweet. The track is a hate song against a boyfriend that left her for another woman, and features a slew of swear words and even a death threat.
◆ Lyrics that are convoluted:
T-ara’s known for being able to pull off both the cute and sexy charm, but the lyrics for their latest hits have made more than a few cock their heads in confusion. Their convoluted lyrics began with “Bo Peep Bo Peep“, which was somewhat understandable at first, until they went on to perform “YaYaYa.” About 90% of the lyrics feature nothing other than “Ah Ah Ah Go it Go it Ah Ah Ah Do it Do it“, which eventually led to the song being put on the chopping block for being so brain numbingly simple.
In contrast, hip hop artist JDEE managed to garner a mania fanbase with the confusing lyrics of his song, “Uh2KooYa.” The lyrics name a number of female celebrities like Baby V.O.X., Lee Ji Hye, andSugar’s Ayoomi, but no one knew exactly why. JDEE himself explained, “It’s not a song belittling women or a diss track against the singers listed. It’s about the shallow system of marketing and promoting everything but the actual content of music.”
