since we're getting Intro: Persona to 70M views for namjoon's birthday here's an appreciation (and analysis) thread for the absolute excellence that is the song

as with any of his projects, namjoon poured so much thought and effort into making the song (see 14:50 on the MOTS: persona behind live for more) and it's only right that we recognize how amazing it is (and stream!!!)

the MOTS series is obviously heavily inspired by the theories of Carl Jung and particularly the book "Jung's Map of the Soul" by Murray Stein. the Persona is commonly described as the "mask" used to portray oneself to the world, as namjoon explains here (namjoon big brain ily):

i love the visuals of the music video in general but especially how cleverly they explore the theories of Jung and the general ideas of self (including the many variations and many parts of it), as pointed out by this great article: http://medium.com/@courtneylazore/old-school-bts-meets-jungian-psychology-in-rms-intro-persona-ef262002a749

it makes sense to start the first verse by introducing the question "who am i?" since it lays the foundation for the general theme of the song. namjoon also brings in the idea of many "selves" by referring to the "various beauties" within himself – first of many clever lyrics!!!

there are few takes on this verse but let's first appreciate namjoon relating this to the "social self" and how others perceive you. he's not necessarily calling himself a "dog" or a "pig" – he's sarcastically referring to things said about him (and the responses by "others")

one interpretation of the verse is that namjoon doesn't know what he is and others praising him ("put the pearl necklace on me") – who could equally be a "dog" or a "pig" – makes him uncomfortable. this interpretation comes from @doolsetbangtan on here: https://doolsetbangtan.wordpress.com/2019/03/31/persona/

this verse is also a subtle nod to their earlier song "Am I Wrong" and a possible reference to/wordplay on "casting pearls before the swine" (= to offer something valuable to someone, who doesn't appreciate its value) as noted by @BTSARMY_Salon on here: https://twitter.com/BTSARMY_Salon/status/1110926860018311169?s=20

in the next verse, one of the lines is used to incorporate the meaning of "purple" (= to love) into the song. @doolsetbangtan explains it really well here ( http://doolsetbangtan.wordpress.com/2019/03/31/persona/) and namjoon jokes about it in the behind live, as well, which is really precious :D

this verse refers Jungian theories (with "shadow" being one aspect of the personality) but the lyrics also support the idea that "shadow" refers to anxiety or anxious thoughts. namjoon stated in a 2018 interview that "anxiety is like a shadow" ( http://docs.google.com/document/d/1GVr1ov4ZDcGDO9dUbH8hHsR3cNJaKZtMXSyD0u6GVKY/edit)

the next verses represent his "shadow" talking, as suggested by the self-critical tone. this ties into Jungian theory (where "Shadow" in the very simplest terms is a dark, negative aspect to the personality), but also supports the "shadow" as anxiety interpretation, as well

the big one in this verse is the "but namjoon" part, which some have interpreted as a reference to haters. although not impossible (we know the man lurks on twitter), this could also just tie into the theme of the song by saying he's asking himself "but, who is kim namjoon?"

besides being really catchy (:D) i love how this part brings together so many references to their previous work: namjoon's UN speech ("tell me all your names" vs. "what's your name?"), the wings era ("do you wanna fly?") and the no more dream era ("where's your dream?")

"my name is R" is such a clever line because it brings into one the many aspects of his "self": Runch Randa (pre-debut), Rap Monster/RM (debut to today) and even the idea that he is 'real' as he states on the song "Voices" (목소리) on his first mixtape!!! just [chef's kiss]

these verses discuss so nicely the idea of multiple selves and affirm that you don't need to be one extreme or the other – there's room for pluralism (and more) within oneself, which is a really comforting idea. it allows for growth and development ("the direction" to keep)

i love how he emphasizes the "na" part in persona, which is also the pronunciation of 나 (na; me) that he used in the previous verses. i'm always impressed by his ability to effortlessly use the two languages (english and korean) to express his message and this is no different

the line "I just wanna give you all the voices till you die" is again a subtle nod to namjoon's UN speech and the message of "speaking yourself" () ++

in a similar manner, the line "I just wanna give you all the shoulders when you cry" reiterates the message of the love yourself era and particularly namjoon's speech, which urges us to "use bts" for self-love (and now, comfort) ++

and although the song marks the beginning of a new era, the last two lines are really just affirming that this era won't mark a departure from the general messages of self-love and comfort that are apparent in everything bts do. it will just offer a different angle on it <3

namjoon's lyrical ability and rapping skills will always leave me so, so impressed but the fact that he also looks like this while doing all of it??? whew

namjoon said in the behind live "If I can perform this live one day, I want to do it really nicely" and that he did!!!

i'm sure that there's lots more to cover with intro: persona but these are just some observations on it. this song obviously means a lot to him (second intro hello!!!) and it is such a testament to his ability as an artist ++

and to get the song to 70M views (and hopefully beyond!!!) would be an amazing thing to achieve for his birthday, so please go stream !!! for joon

(two corrections: on the 17th tweet the lyric is actually meant to be ”give you all the voices till **I die” not ”you die” and persona is actually his 4th, not his second, intro sorry about that - definitely wasn’t my intention to spread any misinformation <3)