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In honor of Valentine's Day, I wanted to share a #BTSDeepDive analysis of one of the purest love songs
@BTS_twt has blessed ARMY with...Telepathy!+
warning...this will be a long thread
credit: @thuyaleelee
#Telepathy
#BEEssentialIsComing
#MusicTranscendsLanguage
@BTS_twt has blessed ARMY with...Telepathy!+
warning...this will be a long threadcredit: @thuyaleelee#Telepathy
#BEEssentialIsComing
#MusicTranscendsLanguage
We first heard about Telepathy back in the 2004** BTS (+ENG) Log (ON) that aired on 5/11/2020.
RM suggested a song based on the member's telepathy with each other that's been built up over the past 7 years from songs, interviews and concerts.+
RM suggested a song based on the member's telepathy with each other that's been built up over the past 7 years from songs, interviews and concerts.+
This idea evolved from telepathy between members to also include telepathy between BTS and ARMY. You can see this from Jimin's Interview for the WeVerse magazine.+
The origin of the song title reflects this concept in a poetic way...+
Jin echoes this thought when he introduced the song in at the BE Global Press Conference. It's a sad reality that BTS and ARMY can't meet, but BTS is happiest when they meet with us. You can see Jin's intro in this video from 19:21 to 20:03+
In Jin's WV interview, he talks about how memories of touring and seeing ARMY feels like a dream.+
Suga's Notes also had a dreamlike quality - it's almost feels like he's singing late at night or early in the morning when you're half awake, dreamy and introspective.+ https://twitter.com/BigHitEnt/status/1355893615109632005?s=20
Let's dig into the meaning behind the lyrics. Then we'll circle back and go over the music production.
This song is one of the purest love songs with a simple and unfussy message.+
This song is one of the purest love songs with a simple and unfussy message.+
During this pandemic, the monotony of each day makes many of us turn towards BTS for comfort. It's amazing to see that BTS feels the same way about ARMY. In this intro, we can know w/certainty that it's not delulu to know we hold a special place in their heart and bring them joy+
I love how Verse 1 starts with Suga checking in on us. This isn't the early days in a relationship where people are on their best behavior.
Yoongi's using a casual Korean way of greeting..."there's nothing bad happening, right?" to ask how we're doing.+
Yoongi's using a casual Korean way of greeting..."there's nothing bad happening, right?" to ask how we're doing.+
It's like talking to somebody close...for example, my parents usually skip hello's and how are you's and just ask if I've eaten lunch or dinner.+
Suga goes on to tell us how he's doing (vaguely floating). What a great picture to describe how unreal/disconnected we feel during these crazy covid times...like we're all in this limbo where nothing is in our control and the future is uncertain+
But one thing IS certain...the relationship and telepathy between BTS and ARMY. Suga grounds himself by taking advantage of this free time to write a song for us...expressing himself through his love language (music) for the people that make him the happiest.+
In Verse 2, J-Hope kicks things off longing to leave for the blue ocean where we used to romp around together. Isn't it natural to daydream about pre-covid days when we could hang out with friends, carefree without worrying about social distancing?+
These lines also remind me of "Blue Side". Please watch this clip, which starts out with J-Hope's words from his Hope World Behind on VLive+
credit / 
: https://bit.ly/3bncuwz
credit / : https://bit.ly/3bncuwz
Putting on my 
hat, you could also interpret these lines with respect to the Bangtan Universe...+
hat, you could also interpret these lines with respect to the Bangtan Universe...+
...where the blue ocean is the place where they shared one last moment of happiness before everything falls apart so spectacularly...+
These moments by the blue ocean can be seen as a symbol of peace, true joy through the bonds of friendship and a bittersweet sense of nostalgia...
Now in Telepathy, JHope and JK sing about wanting to escape to the sea to romp around together without any worries.+
Now in Telepathy, JHope and JK sing about wanting to escape to the sea to romp around together without any worries.+
Another application of JK's last line could be a reference to Suga's verses from "Eight" with IU+
In the prechorus, Tae and JK sing about how the relationship between BTS and ARMY are strong...our hearts are the same...even if we're apart, we're still connected together. This feeling of being distant from one another is only for a moment b/c of our telepathic bond.+
This also echoes the tannies' verses in Heartbeat and also Yoongi's verses in Life Goes On+
Skipping the chorus (the lyrics are the same as the introduction), we can jump into Verse 3 where RM masterfully conveys so many things simultaneously.+
Waking up like the wild grass (this could be many things...bed head, plants waking up straining towards the sun which is the source of their warmth and sustenance, morning dew tears that developed after a long night, etc)+
Joonie checks in on ARMY first thing the way you might check on your reflection in the mirror in the morning. Instead of seeing his sleepy eyes, all Joon sees is ARMY. With our telepathic connection, his thoughts are full of us.+
Some people also see the mirror as a reference to his phone...maybe Joonie checks his stan twitter account first thing in the morning to catch up on ARMY hijinks.+
As he walks around, feeling bruised, broken and heavy in heart, Joonie thinks about how this star (or special extraordinary uncommon situation...like this pandemic) provides a special opportunity. Here is a ss from Genius that explains these verses well+
This phrase was referenced back in 2019 FESTA:
RM: "one needs to have 비빌 언덕 (something that they can lean on). By exploring around and collecting stuff, I think I’ve found 비빌 언덕 (things that comfort me) for myself"
Yoongi: "You can say people need Bibil Hills”+
RM: "one needs to have 비빌 언덕 (something that they can lean on). By exploring around and collecting stuff, I think I’ve found 비빌 언덕 (things that comfort me) for myself"
Yoongi: "You can say people need Bibil Hills”+
Please watch this clip from 30:10 to 30:31+
So Bibilly Hills is classic RM wordplay that's a wink from both Korean and English views. 비빌 언덕 translates as a hill that you can rub against from a Korean proverb "even a cow needs a hill to rub against when he's itchy"
So this proverb represents someone or something that you can always depend on and lean on for help.
RM feels that the extraordinary circumstances of the pandemic provides a chance for BTS to return the favor to ARMY...
RM feels that the extraordinary circumstances of the pandemic provides a chance for BTS to return the favor to ARMY...
Since ARMY have always been their 비빌 언덕 , now it's their turn to be our Bilbilly Hills. BTS and ARMY will forever be each other's support and place of healing and comfort.
In Verse 4, Vmin and Jin sing about how our relationship is perfectly matched...not too fast, not too slow...we go at our own pace throughout this crazy rollercoaster of life. Throughout the highs and lows of life, our telepathic connection runs deep and true.+
These lines bring to mind Jungkook's lyrics from "Still With You"
"Though our footsteps may be out of step. I want to walk this path with you"+
"Though our footsteps may be out of step. I want to walk this path with you"+
And also SUGA’s Kkul FM 06.13 Vlive on June 6, 2020, where he had Jung Kook as a main guest. He closed with:+
Then the song ends with another Prechorus/Chorus which we already covered.
Before we dive into music production, I'd also like to talk a little bit about Yoongi's writing process, which we can piece together through different anecdotes shared throughout BE's promotional videos+
Before we dive into music production, I'd also like to talk a little bit about Yoongi's writing process, which we can piece together through different anecdotes shared throughout BE's promotional videos+
From 6:57 to 7:30 from the BTS (방탄소년단) BE-hind Story video, we see that Yoongi used a song that he wrote awhile back for BE+
Yoongi speaks to his practice of keeping his writings (most likely beats, music and verses/lyrics) because you have to have hope from 31:03 to 31:35 of this video:+
Suga explains that he played the beat & just wrote the melody in 30 minutes. Getting that creative high when the stars align, inspiration strikes and you're like a conduit for whatever you're creating to come rushing forth is the most amazing feeling in the world.+
Yoongi played Telepathy for Jimin and JHope while they were filming In the Soop. Jimin talks about how he helped get Telepathy onto BE as the project manager in the BTS 'Live Goes On' Vlive Comeback special. See 25:35 to 26:08 from this clip:+
Now onto music production...when I listen to Telepathy, I get this monstrously happy and vibrant vibe...the song is fully immersive and the literal definition of a bop. It's hard not to bop your head to its modernized funky vibe.+
I think this is one of the reasons why Telepathy is one of Hobi's favorite songs from the BE album (he was most looking forward to telepathy in the BTS 'BE' Comeback Countdown on YouTube.+
The first thing you hear are 80s style synth pads, broken up occasionally by a fun sample. Pads are sustained chords that add atmospheric ambience. Together with the samples, the overall sound helps immerse you into this totally funky retro soundscape.+
Then a muted bass kicks in 10 seconds in...it's filtered to the point where it almost sounds like it's coming from another room. Or maybe from a car that's driving by your house and you can hear the bass from their music in the distance.+
Around 0:13, the music starts to crescendo (get louder) and the filters start to strip away so the tone of the synth pads come into focus and sound sharper/brassier as the electric bass goes into a funkier wah-wah beat...all this is building your anticipation up to the vocals.+
JK, Jimin and Suga come in with amazing layered vocals that are stacked, panning left to right...please listen to this with headphones if you can. There's a fun call & response where the last part of every phrase is echoed back.+
When the vocals enter, a whole percussive world opens up...you'll hear a cow bell mostly on your left side, an egg shaker or cabasa on your right side and a solid bass drum thump on every beat and other 808s supporting the whole framework.+
Hitting the bass drum on each beat is often referred to as four to the floor b/c cause a drummer will step down on the pedal, pushing it down to the floor to hit the bass drum 4 times per measure. 4 to the floor will get you to nod your head to the beat.+
You can hear an alternate hyped build-up in the BE Concept Clip (Room version) post...I like both versions, but think the album's is more effect. https://twitter.com/BigHitEnt/status/1325453030913830913?s=20
This may be offputting to some people, but you'll hear a significant amount of autotune in this song...it's used for texture and depth to Yoongi's badass yet sassy delivery...I can almost HEAR the smirk from the sound of his vocals alone.+
Yoongi's also not just singing a tune, he is embedding the rhythm of his rap into our souls as he uses the melody to HIT the beat. He literally owns the beat.+
For those of you that don't know what a vocoder is, it's usually using the sound of a synthesizer as the input to filter the sound of a human voice to ultimately compress the audio data, resulting in a transformed vocal that sounds futuristic and funky (think Kraftwerk).+
At least that's how vocoders are used in music production.
Quick tangent...vocoders have a really fascinating history.
Here's a video that you can check out later if you're interested:+
Quick tangent...vocoders have a really fascinating history.
Here's a video that you can check out later if you're interested:+
A great way to hear vocals without any of these filters and effects is Suga's Notes.+ https://twitter.com/BigHitEnt/status/1355893615109632005?s=20
In Verse 2, Hobi starts off with beautifully stacked vocals again as he drags out the end of his phrases that gives a lot of attitude to his delivery.+
Then rapper JK makes his return (albeit with melodic rap) that is reminiscent of My Time JK with more call & responses at the end of his lines before IN-YOUR-FACE autotune vocally leads you down to the pre-chorus (almost like a robot is winding down as it turns off).+
Also pay attention to the bass line...it is AMAZING and a bass player's dream b/c it's so badass.+
As the pre-chorus starts, all the instruments fade out to allow Tae's stacked vocals to shine over simple synth pads and a playful sample shimmering on top of the chords.+
When Tae hands the prechorus over to JK, the bass kicks in again with its familiar funk wah beat before the 808s sneak in...building up anticipation before a kickass break beat leads you into the chorus.+
Onto the chorus...we have EPIC layered vocals now, the call & response that makes you want to sing/shout along, the percussive soundscape returns (cow bell, egg shaker or cabasa, 4-to-the-floor, 808s rounding it out)...all leading to the most boppable of bops.+
Then RM slips in an ad lib...ya heard???? leading you to Verse 3...+
...where RM comes in riding the beat, controlling his pace like the master he is. He also has stacked vocals. In the hidden vocals, you'll hear he back himself on the end of his phrases 3 times (right before he says "yeah") in an emphasized and throwaway manner.+
Leading into Verse 4...RM drops a classic "baby" before dipping...
While Jimin sings with stacked vocals, you can hear a whisper of Adora's hidden vocals with a beautiful harmony. Then Jin and V join in with some awesome gang vocals shouting out "hey" and "ho" before ending the verse with that sick autotuned descending robot dying thing again.+
For those of you that don't know what gang vocals are, here's a great clip from when BTS recorded gang vocals for "I Need U":+
For the prechorus, the same thing happens: instruments fade out to allow Jimin's stacked vocals to shine over simple synth pads and a playful sample shimmering on top of the chords. Then the bass slips in building up anticipation with a break beat leading you back to the chorus+
A we get to the climax of the final chorus, you get everything that was amazing about the chorus before
PLUS
an AMAZING Jin high note, adlibs and CRAZY CRAZY CRAZY hidden vocals by Adora and Jungkook+
PLUS
an AMAZING Jin high note, adlibs and CRAZY CRAZY CRAZY hidden vocals by Adora and Jungkook+
Then we have the music production get filtered and quieter...bringing the energy down...landing peacefully until the track fades away.
Also, please note that the album ending is different from the digital track (the ending is more sexy vibes).+
Also, please note that the album ending is different from the digital track (the ending is more sexy vibes).+
You can hear the instrumentation and hidden vocals better in this video:+
And this isn't related to music production, but watch this video if you haven't already for an instant serotonin boost:+
Basically, Yoongles is a MASTER at music production. He manipulates sound spatially, which is why he can conjure up such immersive aural environments. Nobody can beat him at removing instruments to boost layers to highlight vocals to optimize the meaning of the song.+
If you've made it this far, thank you for reading the whole thread
. Please get into lockdown and prepare for BE Essentials:
#1 Spread realistic goals about BE Essential
#2 Prepare your devices/accounts for streaming
#3 Stream BE, LGO, DYN and Sope bday projects.
. Please get into lockdown and prepare for BE Essentials:#1 Spread realistic goals about BE Essential
#2 Prepare your devices/accounts for streaming
#3 Stream BE, LGO, DYN and Sope bday projects.
