D-2: A Review
In 2016, Min Yoongi (aka Suga of BTS) released a self-titled mixtape under the name Agust D. He was not the first member of the band to release a solo project, but he is the first and (to date) the only member to create a different alias for his solo project. It’s largely understood by the fans that Agust D is a name he reserves for his solo releases, but not necessarily every release outside of BTS.
This distinction can be easily viewed as a separation of identities. By his own admission, Agust D is a side of him that is ‘more raw’ where he can freely express himself. Agust D isn’t necessarily Min Yoongi’s compartmentalization, but rather, an extension of his ‘self’. Indeed, both the previous self-titled mixtape and D-2 are lyrically more raw and packs a heavier punch due to its sheer bluntness. The surprise May 22nd drop preceded by a mysterious countdown that had fans on edge with speculation.
Thematically, D-2 expresses the constant battle between his ideals and the reality he must live with. His introspection comes in the form of two very different magnitudes, the first as moments when he seems to zero in on his inner thoughts, clinically dissecting them and his personal feelings to reveal insights of the self and identity, the second as an objective outside observer, keenly aware of how Min Yoongi fits within the dynamics of a society and industry.
The juxtaposition is keenly felt in how the album is sequenced. In Moonlight he notes that he’s “a Peter Pan who still can’t wake up from his dreams”. As he inches closer to 30 years old — a brand new decade — he grows more introspective of his youth and the adulthood that he must face. He then ‘detaches’ from the individual self to give scathing commentary on the state of the industry and where he is in both Daechwita and What Do You Think?
In Daechwita — the mixtape’s centerpiece — the rapper samples traditional Korean military music to signal the ceremonial walk of the king. The use of military music here is reminiscent of the 2016 track Agust D where Suga used the marching drum to open the song. This isn’t the only reference to the 2016 mixtape in the song. Neatly slotted among the scathing lyrics is the phrase “It makes no sense to call me a dog. I was born as a tiger, I’m not a fragile pill-popper like you”, which is an echo of the 2016’s Give It To Me where he rapped “I can’t live like a dog when I’m born to be a tiger”.
He then zooms out and gives commentary on the self within the context of society in Strange before zooming back in to assess his individual self in 28. In Strange, he collaborates with his bandmate RM to talk about, well, strange things. The pair goes back and forth on how the strange is often perceived as normal and how society is a slave to the system. I mean, for God’s sake, everything’s under control, as RM put it. While he’s never been reticent to discuss societal issues in his songs, Suga has always left the interpretation of his songs to his listeners. It makes sense that Strange ends with the rapper posing a question “if there is a God, please tell me if life is happiness”, leaving the listeners to draw their own conclusions.
In 28, employing the use of youthful dreams as a central point of the song’s narrative, he elaborates on the subject of growing older with Niihwa’s assistance. As the fickle dream of youth dissipates, the anxieties of adulthood settles in. The song ends abruptly with Suga noting that ‘I’m becoming an adult’, sonically depicting how the realisation of one’s adulthood comes abruptly rather than slowly.
Worth highlighting is how D-2 helps establish the lore of Min Yoongi the Artist. Especially notable in D-2 is how he refers to his old lyrics multiple times throughout the album. Not many artists can afford to be self-referential, but Suga is assured enough of the extent of his discography both in and out of BTS. He uses deftly placed references which old fans can enjoy as either a revision to his old ideas (note how the phrase ‘big cars, big house, big rings’ have changed meaning over the years) or an affirmation to his old lyrics. In Moonlight, he calls back to the lyrics he wrote in 2015 (Intro: Nevermind), affirming that ‘If you think you’re gonna crash, accelerate even harder, you idiot’.
These kernels of lyrics, when put together, form a whole picture of Min Yoongi and the things that greatly concerned him. In the four years that have passed since Agust D, Suga could’ve chosen to write entirely different topics. After all, by his own admission, Agust D largely concerns his past. Instead, he chose to revisit his old lyrics and make his old notes the springboard for D-2. ‘Here I was’ vs. ‘Here I am’, if you will.
Though not necessarily a victory lap one would expect from a member of the world’s most successful contemporary band, D-2 feels a lot like a personal feat on its own. There is a certain sense of triumph in being able to distill the growing pains of one’s youth. As the rapper himself said, “Perhaps, how we change is what our undertaking is about.”
