ferlinfie

Throwback Thursday

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rza4xuw6wus

Turn Off the TV is breakthrough in Korean mainstream music and Korean Hiphop music in many levels.

1) It's about sex... blatantly - Although many mainstream songs have been written and released about sex in Korea, all of those songs simply allude to sex. Turn Off the TV is the first song that went mainstream that talks about a guy's desire to have sex with a girl who doesn't want the same thing.

2) Proof of LeeSsang's creative independence - Gary said in his Asia10 interview that even Tiger JK, the founder of the label he is signed to, disagreed with the idea of writing a song like this when he brought it up. Proving their total independence, he went ahead with the production of the song.

3) Straight up, no poetry - One way that idol groups and other hip hop artists get away with talking about sex in their songs is by using poetry in their lyrics, Turn Off the TV rebelled against the practice and shed off the metaphors and symbolisms in their lyrics.

He says things like:
- I have dirty thoughts
- Don't play hard, you're the one who made me hard
- I become aroused

4) No justification - unlike other songs that directly justify the singer's desire to have sex with their overflowing love with their partner, LeeSsang doesn't even make an attempt to justify the guy's desire to have sex. The song talks about the girl's perfect curves, the red lips, and her unique scent. Although "love" is mentioned, it is only to establish that the girl and the guy are in a relationship but love is not used to justify the guy's sexual arousal.

5) The mysterious narrative - although the lyrics seem like a simple depiction of a guy who wants to have sex, it actually mimics the trajectory of a guy's thoughts that leads to sex. Kang Gary starts off by imagining what attracts him towards the girl before sliding off to imagining what he wants to do with the girl.

After two set ups, he creates a conflict with Tasha's rap who voices out her objection.

KG completes the conflict with the guy trying to convince the girl to agree with what he wants to do.

It's a simple but clever narrative that traces the both thoughts of a guy in a relationship and more common trajectory of a relationship about sex.

6) The perfect synergy between music and lyrics - Gil is probably one of the most underrated musicians of our era. Here, he again proves how he is able to complement the lyrics. With a straight up lyrics, bare of poetry, he keeps his music simple but not superficial. It seems that the song uses one beat althroughout. However, in almost every stanza, a second instrument comes in that plays the identical note of the base instruments. Like the lyrics, the music has two dimensions. There's the straight up instrument and then there's that second deeper narrative.

7) Getting away with 19+ Music Video - unlike the song, the music video is poetic.

LeeSsang, creator and director of the video, used stop motion. A video created by putting together one still shot after another to create the illusion of movement. LeeSsang used a lot of symbolisms to mimic sexual thoughts and actions. There is the use of the broom by the two men in the video while they move to complement the position of the girl. There is the use of a man to project arousal and a whole lot other symbolisms.

Kang Gary later said that the idea to talk about sex came about because he felt that it was one "reality" that no one seems to have the courage to talk about. He said in his 10Asia interview that sex happens in a relationship and whether people agree with it or not, it happens. The song is a mere reflection, not a moral position.

"As we grow older, the more comfortable we feel in talking about our thoughts. We don't really care about what people will think about us. Never mind poetry, never mind metaphors... this is what's in our mind and we want to talk about it," KG said.

Many conservative fans or those who really don't understand what hip hop is all about will not really why LeeSsang decided to come out with a song like Turn Off the TV. It's explicit and it "seems dirty". Maybe it is dirty, maybe it is explicit but it's also reality.

Whether or not people will accept it is not what LeeSsang is all about. Acceptance is not what music is all about. Acceptance is not what hip hop is all about. Music, Hip Hop and LeeSsang are all about challenging themselves as artists, the society as a norm and cold blooded expression of their truths.

Song: Turn Off the TV
Album: Asura Balbalta
Lyrics: Kang Gary (KG)
Music: Gil