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Apink Delivers Hope

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IST Entertainment’s Apink released their latest mini-album “SELF,” with the lead single, “D N D” on April 5th. The group consists of five members as of 2023: Park Cho-rong, Yoon Bo-mi, Jeong Eun-ji, Kim Nam-joo and Oh Ha-young. The group is known for their bubblegum-oriented, and idealistic songs that are more in line with the second generation of KPOP they debuted in. The second generation of the genre, compared to the current fourth generation, has a catchier, brighter tone. 

These include such songs as “No No No” which talks about motivation and “D N D” touches on similar subjects. “D N D” centers around finding happiness and eliminating stress. Lines such as “Happiness is more simple than you think” demonstrates how optimistic the group usually is. The song is about finding hope and de-stressing amid the conflicts of work. Another line that demonstrates the song’s meaning is “Don’t disregard that dream you once had.” It implies that there is potential for everyone’s dream to be realized. While this might seem to be a naive notion, many people have unrealistic dreams that are unlikely to be realized. It is nice to have this happiness. It shows that one always has the potential to anticipate a day when one can realize their dreams. They can deliver a message of hope and potential that can bring brightness to many people’s lives.  

“D N D” is a mixture of electronic and standard instruments, producing a melody that is not exactly fast, but manages to keep the upbeat feeling that the group is known for. The song works in tandem with the lyrics to produce a song that is at times melancholy, but ultimately idealistic. 

A music video was also released alongside the song. It visualizes its meaning very aptly. The video starts with the members working at various jobs, such as painting, or office work in dark environments. Each of their respective scenes change with the members turning their heads towards the sky, where they catch a second wind and pursue more idealistic versions of their jobs in brightly-lit environments. It helps demonstrate the song’s lyrics and message.

Other scenes include sequences in which the members dance in the street in front of a museum, and another scene where they dance in a restaurant backroom. A particularly fitting scene that appears in the video is when the members sit down at a table with candles. At one point, one of the candles goes out, symbolizing the lack of passion for their jobs seen at the start of the video. However, the members light the candle again, representing the renewed interest that they have for their passions towards the end. 

The group also released several supplemental videos to promote the song. These include a fanchant video, where the members encouraged the fans to say certain phrases when they reach specific parts of the song. These are usually a mixture of song lyrics and related words. Fans were instructed to chant the phrase, “D N D” when the group says the phrase in the song.They are supposed to say “Yoon Bo Mi” when the group says, “In your way, find your way.” Fanchants allow fans to interact with the song that is unique to the genre, saying a variety of phrases that distinguish it from western pop. 

Another part of the song’s promotion was the “D N D” challenge, which encouraged fans to dance to the song’s chorus and upload their attempts to Youtube Shorts. The group danced with Kim Jongkook, who is a member of the 1st generation K-pop group Turbo, and famous for his appearance on Running Man, a Korean reality show. It was interesting to see such an old idol make an appearance on a modern video. He was able to keep up with the members who are significantly younger than him, and he is just one of many celebrities who collaborated with the group for this challenge.This also includes YouTuber Tanaka, a panda mascot, representing their fandom name and Lesabe of WJSN. 

While the challenge videos were somewhat repetitive, the nature of these types of videos, it is unique that they ended each one differently. The Tanaka video ended with a closeup of the members and Tanaka as they posed before panning up to the ceiling, while the Lesabe video had her waving goodbye before walking into the screen. In this way, the group was able to break up pop tradition and make each video seem less repetitive and more unique, encouraging viewers to keep watching for a new ending.

Apink’s “D N D” encourages people to do what they love and pursue their passions, an uplifting message that many people can use during these dark times. Because not many groups create these kinds of songs nowadays, the group is great for releasing uplifting songs that will encourage people to live a new and better life.  

Bailey Kanthatham is an Arts & Entertainment Contributing Writer. He can be reached at bkanthat@uci.edu.