...'reloaded'.
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by PAM
The whole world already knows by now: whatever the ultra-talented golden maknae of BTS, Jung Kook (or simply "JK"), touches, it turns to gold, as in solid gold! Therefore, his first solo album, "Golden", is aptly titled as such. And, just before embarking on his Military Service in the early days of December 2023, when we thought his "Golden" campaign was coming to a close, he did it again! He had two huge surprises in a row: "3D (Justin Timberlake Remix)" and "Standing Next To You (Usher Remix)". For the two pillars of the music industry today taking interest in remixing JK's work, puts the golden maknae on a different level as a solo artist. No amount of hating from 'antis' can deny that. In fact, the hating confirms it... haters hate good things and successful people.
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3D with JT iteration
"3D (feat. Jack Harlow)" is the second single to come out of "Golden", which was released prior to the launching of the album itself. It has this lively rhythm that entices one to sing along, get up and dance... and party! The song reminds fans what pop music is about - meant to be enjoyed, first and foremost. Jack Harlow's verses ruffled the feathers of many... but, like I said in another post, the verses were merely misunderstood. JH was showing how a pathetic, inconsiderate and selfish rake of a dude can be completely turned around by true love... and the hope of being loved as well. Some people listened to the rake part, and stopped! Naturally, that turned them off, and never saw the budding of a sweet love... in 3D! JK showed what he can do with his deep arsenal of voice power with fun beat and delicious mix of mild hiphop, dance and R&B genres. Because of that, it is a personal favorite of mine.
As if that wasn't enough, the great Justin Timberlake (JT) made the already engaging song to an ultra-loveable one with an added hip verse where JK tried his golden voice in rapping. Aww-inducing lines such as, "now let me fly you out to Seoul, South Korea. I just wanna get into your soul like Aretha," pasted instant smiles on listeners' lips... and sent avid listeners to cloud 9! Whew!
Awesome job, JK and JT! Congrats!
Wouldn't it be nice to see these two 'boy band alums' go on singing and dancing spree to the tune of 3D (Justin Timberlake Remix)? Ah, that's like bringing icons of two generations on a sweet talent per talent 'bout' - winner takes all! Can't wait until JK returns to 'pick a fight' - the beautiful collab kind - with JT!
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SNTY, soulful with Usher
"Standing Next to You", or simply "SNTY", is the main track of "Golden". It is a great song - a personal pick for a great song of 2023. As sung by JK, it is a feast to the ears... but it's hard to sing it. One has to have a wide range of vocal prowess to pull it off: from a soft feathery caressing vocals to rhythmic R&B style that invites one to get up, take to the floor for some moves... to soft rocking growl that pleasantly surprises... to that smooth Swan Song-ish falsetto that astounds. JK sang 'em all... and nailed 'em all! What is even more amazing is that he can pull off singing it live while dancing with a challenging choreography.
He performed SNTY live a few times during his "Golden" campaign. He did great in all of them but my favorite was the very first one at iHeart Radio. Why? It was an awesome surprise! A few months before the release of "Seven (feat. Latto)", the first single from "Golden", I remember commenting on one of RM's IG stories where he shared a song by Bon Jovi. At that time, we were still waiting and wondering about JK's solo project, and RM was one of those nudging him to work on his album already. As JK was so well-known for "Euphoria", "My Time" and "Still with You", naturally, people were expecting him to work on songs similar to these old hits. I think I was one of the few who were imagining something different. So, I commented on RM's post, "imagine if JK does a Bon Jovi-like song in his solo album, huh. That would be the day!"
Fast forward to the "Golden Age": In his performance at iHeart Radio... he came in dragging a microphone stand, clad in ripped jeans and a leather jacket like a rockstar! And then he started drawling SNTY like a rockstar, too. By the time he got to the now-famous "t-t-t-take off" part (2:18 - 2:28 min), he sounded like he was so ready to give the likes of Jon Bon Jovi, Eddie Vedder and Myles Kennedy a run for their money! Man, is there anything that JK cannot do? The outcomes of his 'BTS Chapter 2' stint proved his versatility as a singer and performer! He can even act well! Chapter 2 brought out the best of JK - in every aspect, including having the confidence to go abroad on his own to perform and promote his songs. The most important strength that he demonstrated is his maturity. He now can muster the courage to ignore all the negativities and leverage the flood of positive things that came his way... winning many hearts and amassing new fans. 
Last Dec. 15, he once again showed us how much he has grown as an artist as he performed SNTY alongside a legendary R&B artist: the one and only, Usher, in a music video! 'Proud' is an understatement... we, real ARMYs are utterly in awe of our golden maknae, and we thank Usher for recognizing his talent and helping to elevate JK to where he is after BTS Chapter 2. Those of us who followed the growth of this young man together with his BTS brothers, and on his own, too, were left in a flood of tears-of-joy as we watched the SNTY Usher Remix music video!
Usher sang his part so beautifully... well, per Usher's usual high standard, of course. He made the R&B and mild rock-ish sound of SNTY so soulful! JK pitched SNTY masterfully with his mix of vocal ranges, Usher elevated it to an ultra-smooth cloud nine-ish sound with his beautiful voice and vibe-worthy adlibs. In the MV, JK performed as if he is equal in talent and superstardom as Usher, because he is getting there... in only a few months into his solo stint. Usher did not hold back, he did push JK to be at his best. The R&B virtouso that Usher is showed up, turning the choreography to feel like a freestyle dancing. The budding R&B specialist that our JK is played it safe in the beginning, sticking to the choreography, but stood his ground when left alone with Usher by demonstrating his own freestyle as well. It was a beautiful collaboration: two legends from two generations, side by side in an epic of a song! It was so enjoyable to watch!
Congratulations, JK and Usher!
We did get that distinct feeling that the "SNTY Usher Remix" will not be the last collaboration between these two legends. To show our excitement, we streamed SNTY MV to 60M on the eve of the "SNTY Usher Remix" MV release. And, roughly 48 hours later, we streamed the new Remix MV to 5M.
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Image credit: The music video above is from Bangtan TV posted on YouTube while the photo is a screenshot from the SNTY official mv on YouTube - thanks, Bangtan TV, Hybe and YouTube.
