Marking the milestone of nine years as a group, BTS has made an unprecedented moment for themselves and their fans by releasing a career-spanning anthology album that includes their most iconic songs, unreleased recordings, and several new tracks. PROOF is a reflection and celebration of all of the most significant moments between BTS and ARMY that have lit the path from their debut up until now - a light that is shining on the open doorway into whatever is next for the group. The album takes listeners along this path through three discs of groundbreaking and heart-reaching musical selections.
Starting the album is a newly-released and restored version of “Born Singer,” an emotional song previously only released on Soundcloud and performed at some of the group’s earliest concerts. The song is a reworking of the title and certain themes of “Born Sinner” by hip-hop artist J-Cole. This sampling of an iconic song from a young rapper’s perspective shows the group’s admiration and connection with the hip-hop icons of their generation. Both songs are a reflection of the struggle of still feeling the passion and belief in yourself and your dreams in the face of doubts and expectations from others. The song begins with the chorus sung acapella - Jungkook’s voice resonant with emotion - before the other members and instrumentals make their entrance. The chorus is a soul-filling melody of strong vocals and gospel-like harmonies that frames the rap line’s passionate verses. Each rap verse expresses the fears, pressure, determination, and dedication of pursuing their dreams and vision for their music and integrity as artists: of a group starting from scratch and putting their shoulders to walls that others tried to put up in front of them. RM, SUGA, and J-Hope deliver their verses with a shaking intensity of emotion while showcasing their individual styles of both flow and songwriting. “Born Sinner” is a powerful song that strikes a deep chord between BTS and their fans.
The first disc of PROOF explores some of the most iconic of the group’s title tracks, from the very beginning with their dynamic debut track “No More Dream” of 2013 to the upbeat retro-pop “Butter” of last year. The tracks on this disc spotlight the stylistic development of BTS, as well as the important messages to young people and the world that they have always integrated into their music. While BTS has faced discrimination and doubts from others throughout their career, many saw the potential and talent of the young group from the very beginning. People noted during their debut performances and releases that this group could be something really amazing, and PROOF shows that those early eras had a strong foundation of skill and artistry that still hold up to this day. The energy of songs like “No More Dream'' and “N.O.” still hits just as hard; the rebellious spirit of a group of boys making a name for themselves and standing up for the value of the voices of youth still relevant today. Tracks like “Blood Sweat & Tears” and “Fake Love” show their skillful yet raw depictions of angst of facing challenges in life and love, of heartbreak and breaking out of it. “Dynamite” and “Butter” are the sunny, pop-rock retro powerhouses of current pop music, with fun lyrics and extremely dance-able feels to them. BTS pursues each genre masterfully and comes out of those explorations with success.
Closing out Disc 1 is the group’s newest title track “Yet to Come.” “Yet to Come” is both a reflection on their past and a look to their future. This song appreciates the precious memories that have colored in the canvas of BTS’ story up until now, with references in the lyrics and music video to themes and imagery that are hallmarks of their parable of youth that has been weaved throughout the years. Lines such as “the past was honestly the best, but my best is what comes next” simply yet effectively capture the sentiment of simultaneous reminiscence and anticipation. The sound of “Yet to Come” is sunny and inspiring, a nostalgic coming-together of the voices and memories that make up BTS and their journey so far. The beat and bass line keep the feel upbeat and refreshing. The melodies and harmonies in the instrumentals and vocals are sweet and soaring, full to bursting with feeling and the rap and singing embellishments that BTS naturally enhances the flow of their music with. The strength of their individual and group vocals pushes the emotions behind the track to new heights. You can feel their passion for their craft and their maturity as artists very clearly through the sound and lyrics of “Yet to Come.” This song is friends around the campfire, reminiscing over good times and talking about the dreams to come - and ARMY has a seat pulled up right next to BTS.
Ringing in Disc 2 is the high-energy new track “Run BTS.” This track encapsulates the confident style that BTS has always been known for and reminds listeners that they will always have that iconic tenacity ready in their back pocket. This track is an effective amalgamation of hip-hop and rock devices, a use of genre that BTS has been notorious for since their debut. Marked by a deep, thrumming chorus that sings “if we live fast, let us die young” and the memorable tagline “run, bulletproof, run, yeah you gotta run,” this track displays the group’s voice of youth and drive, a voice that demands to be listened to. BTS has always had a knack for defending youth for youth’s sake, for fully experiencing the ups and downs of being young rather than finding some obscure excuse for simply existing and taking up all the space that young hearts want to.
Disc 2 takes us through the sub-unit and solo tracks of the last nine years, with selected songs showing us the musical personalities of the different members and how they fit with each other to create the bigger picture that is BTS. If the story and group that is BTS is one giant quilted tapestry for us to admire and find comfort under, these songs are the squares that make up its individual colors. The songs on this disc were specially selected by the members, each having a say in which music represents their musical personalities the best.
Perhaps the most special for ARMYs are the songs on Disc 3, which is a physical collection of the unreleased demo versions of many of our favorite tracks, along with several new songs. What makes this disc, and in turn, the entire PROOF album, unique is that these songs are only available to listen to on this physical CD. With an anthology album that includes such intimate and coveted recordings and multiple brand-new tracks in a CD-only format, BTS is once again breaking ground and continuing to vitalize the joy of physical album sales in an industry that has become so largely digital. With vocals and audio mixes previously unreleased, this disc gives us an exclusive listening experience with the process and elements of how BTS creates their final products of music.
The demos of “Spring Day” and “Epiphany” by V and Jin respectively are still-impactful renditions of the songs, with their strong vocals giving an emotional delivery of the alternate versions of two already heart-tugging songs. The demos of songs such as “Boy In Luv,” “Jump,” and “DNA” give a fresh take on some of the group’s most fun and energetic tracks, with recordings that show us their inner fire and youthfulness. The disc tracks these unreleased recordings, much like the other two discs, through the timeline of BTS to show how far they have come as artists within even their most raw and personal takes in the studio. This disc also includes two new songs: “Quotation Mark” and closing track “For Youth.” “Quotation Mark” is a cheeky love note, a peppy R&B-style track that follows that fun-yet-nervous feeling of having a crush. That feeling of being confident but anxious, of wanting to woo the person on your mind - and knowing that you could - but still feeling those sweaty-palmed, frozen-in-place nerves about how they might feel in return. It’s a routine call back to the boyishly confident approach to love that BTS has always been so adept at.
“For Youth” is an emotional track - one part ballad and one part laid-back syncopated groove - that expresses the group’s connection to each other and ARMYs, to the always-unnamed but always-known “you.” The tracks starts with a well-known and heart-touching recording of a crowd of ARMYs singing “Young Forever,” before the piano chimes in and the opening vocals - sung first by Jungkook - strike an immediate chord in the listening space. You can tell immediately how soul-baring and important this conversation is. This is a closing to the first chapter, to this journey that PROOF takes us on through the still-weaving canvas of BTS and ARMY. This is an appreciation for the connection, the special tie between us through all the eras and milestones of BTS so far. They contemplate their eternal concept of youth with lyrics that reference metaphors also found in young forever: an endless maze, rain, the seasons changing. Themes of the inevitability of nature, of rain and togetherness quenching the driest deserts, of seasons changing like life cycles through stages, are found like connected dots across the star map of their expressions. This closes the musical collection that is PROOF with an appreciation and touch that only BTS can convey so well.
PROOF is a window to gaze into the past, and an open door into the future. A sunny entranceway with a warm breeze and gently billowing curtains, inviting us to enjoy the peace of the view and step through the threshold together.
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Written By: Sav
Edited By: Aury
Checked By: Shelley