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2023. June VOL. 663
- 2023. June VOL. 663
- ENG
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2023. June VOL. 663
As a singer of wide-ranging genres including ballad, rock, jazz and R&B, Younha is a gifted singer with superior vocal skills and the ability to interpret lyrics. Since her debut in 2006, she has released many hit songs including ‘Password 486’, ‘An Umbrella’ and ‘Waiting’. She was once called the ‘Singer of Rain’ because she sang many songs about rain including ‘Rain & the Bar’, ‘Sound of Raindrops’, ‘A Shower’, ‘On a Rainy Day’, ‘Rainy Night’, ‘Dark Cloud’, and ‘Rain Song’. ‘Umbrella’ that she sang with Epik High is particularly popular. She sang it as a featured artist for Rain Song which is often played on the radio on rainy days. Perhaps this is part of the reason why she is one of the most popular collaboration artists for other musicians.
Recently, however, Younha has earned a new nickname of ‘Carbon Neutrality Singer’ for ‘Six Years & 230 Days’, a song included in her 6th album and its repackaged 6th album. Younha wrote the lyrics of the song herself, and I wonder what made her write the lyrics.
“My 6th album <END THEORY> is about my thoughts on the ‘apocalypse’. I picked two things on the end, and create a story by connecting them in each song. I got the idea from a news article to write the song ‘Six Years & 230 Days’. The article reads that we have about six years and 230 days left on the ‘climate crisis clock’. In the song, the end of the planet and that of the narrator’s relationship are connected in a metaphor. In this song, I wanted to get across the message that perhaps we have more days to live a barren life than days to live a furtive life, so I wish people could stop hating each other and start caring.”
Her songs have a story to follow. As you relish the notes and lyrics of her songs, a scene from space emerges vividly in your mind. This is why people say that Younha is a genre of her own.
On March 22, Younha participated in the production of a promotional video for ‘World Water Day 2023’. The video used ‘Journey of Water’, a song she released in November 2021 as the background music. She emphasized the value and importance of water in the song, drawing keen attention from the public. She wrote the lyrics of the song which is also included in her 6th album. The orchestra pop song features a dreamy piano and sentimental electric guitar riffs that highlight Younha’s powerful and dynamic voice.
“In the song, the water cycle is used as a metaphor for the ambition to be flexible, fearless, brave and trailblazing like water as we move forward. When I wrote the lyrics, I never imagined that the song would be played at such a big event. I was just grateful that my song helped people learn about the ‘journey of water’ at World Water Day 2023.”
As a songwriter and singer, she focuses on writing her own songs and singing them in her own style. Among all the lyrics she has written, which is her favorite?
“My favorite is the lyrics of the song ‘Bits of a Star’ on the 6th album. ‘The whisper of low-blowing winds/ the green sound of a song/ people who look like you/ I like this planet’, are phrases she particularly likes because they express the way she feels about the planet.”
She not only writes numerous songs and lyrics but also arranges them, and even produced the single <A Slow Mailbox> that was released in 2018. Her production ability reached its peak when she produced her 5th album <Unstable Mindset>, her 6th album <End Theory> and the repackaged 6th album <End Theory: Final Edition>, marking a turning point for her to grow from a singer to an artist.
It is no exaggeration when we say Younha is the ‘icon of resurgence’. After Suzy sang her song ‘The Street’ on the music show <Healing Camp>, the song resurged on the music charts, and ascended the charts at a fast pace. The singer IU sang ‘Waiting’, another song of Younha’s in the TV drama <Producers>, bringing the song back on a digital sound source chart. ‘Event Horizon’ that she released in March 2022 also resurged and topped multiple music charts. In addition, the song won the 37th Golden Disc Awards, the 32nd Seoul Music Awards and the 20th Korea Pop Music Awards.
“It was awesome to see my songs resurge in the music charts and do well. It’s like a dream come true and I keep checking the music charts. Every time I see my songs do well on the music charts, it makes me feel proud and happy.”
Working on her 6th album was like a journey to space for her, which caused her to develop a keen interest in the earth and environment. She is still highly interested in the climate crisis, including the rapid spread of viruses caused by changes to the ecosystem due to worsening climate change and abnormal weather events such as torrential rains, snowfalls and heave waves.
“We are now living in the era in which we find ourselves worrying about environment unless we proactively tackle environmental issues because the direct impact on the quality of our lives is a truly global issue that places the human race on the brink. Since the theme of my 6th album is ‘the end’, I have thought a lot about the environment.
We can’t avoid karma and fix all the environmental issues overnight. We have to start with small actions and form eco-friendly habits in our daily lives, making me think of even more aspects in our life. Going forward, I want to broaden my musical spectrum by incorporating a wider range of themes in my music.”
‘Event Horizon’ has been a mega hit, but she refuses to be complacent and is getting ready to set out on another musical adventure.
