loft-cat

Mingi talked about his MCM collaboration, explained his lyric-writing approach, talked about his dislike for the current social climate around the idea of 'success' & more | 052726 TokToq Live [Translation & subtitles by 𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄 ฅᗢฅ]

Other stuff he mentioned:

Korean stocks have been going up to the point where he wonders if it's real.

His eyes are suddenly really light-sensitive and he doesn't know why.

He's working hard on the MCM capsule collection and hopes we're all looking forward to seeing him in Singapore (June 5th at the MCM Paragon Boutique).

His goal for the collection was comfortable clothes Atiny can throw on casually - he changed the design about six or seven times in order to create items that can complete an outfit by themselves.

Seonghwa and Jongho both asked him for pieces from the collection, but the other members didn't. ("You give it to people who want it.")

Things have been hectic for him since January since his solo album was so closely followed by the MCM collaboration (plus all group activities on top of that).

He's not a perfectionist. ("Why are you trying to make this perfect? Even if you do it, it won't be perfect anyway. I can say that for sure.")

He knows people find him fascinating because he gets things done by himself (without KQ's help), but he believes since it's his music, he should be the one doing it.

He'd arranged a 'Dinero' live performance with World Korea since Atiny had asked for it, but the timing unfortunately didn't work out.

credit @mngggi

I keep listening to Nova like it's a puzzle I'm trying to solve. There are so many fascinating elements at play, from the sound (celestial hip-hop?) and the vocal tones to the rapping and lyrics. This was so not the song I expected from Mingi but I love how he keeps challenging himself with each new solo project.

I love the signature barking at the beginning, I love how the song samples from NASA, making it a companion piece, and I love how Mingi just launches into the chorus. His experimental vocal modifications really work here, enhancing the dreamlike quality of the melodic track that repeats itself under the beat. Each verse transitions really well into that chorus. I'd hope we get to see the behind-the-scenes video with Mingi in the recording booth, because I'm curious how close he got to that high-pitched sound.

As always, I was keen to read the lyrics. Mingi is a true storyteller, and his solo works are intensely autobiographical.

I came to change this game, like a chaser I've grown bigger, a real risk-taker I'm pushing past limits, betting everything Going straight in, wager it all on the line I've caught fire, not caring about conventions Burning it all down like there's no tomorrow I'm clearing out еverything that once doubted us Hеading straight into orbit, even NASA gave a shout out to Oh, nothing I need to grow even more What I spend on myself becomes value, even if it's a bit toxic My individuality keeps getting bigger My music has become like a religion and a belief to my fans A new paradigm, a definition of a new order I'm standing at a brand new starting point There's nothing blocking the path that's unfolding ahead (Pow)

Mingi's verse reflects the his evolution and maturity as an artist and as a human. There's none of that anxious child that Mingi remembers in Youth, and we're past him overcoming his demons in Autobahn ("the storm is gone now"). Roar showed us a Mingi fully in control of his creative vision, and Nova is Mingi's declaration: he's here to conquer the world.

Burning it all down like there's no tomorrow I'm clearing out еverything that once doubted us

Mingi's okay with taking risks, as he and Ateez have nothing more to prove to their haters. Like other members have said, they are at a new starting point in their career, and they feel refreshed and determined to continue their ascent.

There's also recognition and reflection in this verse: What I spend on myself becomes value, even if it's a bit toxic sounds to me like Mingi acknowledges the vices that come with success and fame. He's taken advantage of his material circumstances to pursue his goals. Fix On is more than just a performance, it's becoming a lifestyle and brand, which will undoubtedly continue to fund his passion projects. My music has become like a religion and a belief to my fans shows his confidence that there is an audience for his work, be it music or fashion or more.

I'll admit when Royal 44 started his verse I did a double-take because he sounds so much like Hongjoong, but his lyrics were NOT what I expected:

I pop it like king Pop it, poppin' some beam Shoot like a rocket, pew, huh I love the toxic vibe, no reason Free Mercedes and she give me head Even when I'm like this, she says she likes it, that's crazy love She wants something harder and more intense Our connection is like handcuffs you can't break Mix this and that, uh, X got me crazy Tonight I shoot for the stars, go all out My baby, you like it? When I pop out, watch your whole check I touched hundreds of millions when I was eighteen I don't even care, you can go over there I live a rockstar lifestyle Living well, living wild, that's for life

At first I wondered if Mingi just told his featured guests to basically rap about whatever they wanted. In this case, Royal 44 wrote about a girl giving him head in a Mercedes. Okay! But after taking the whole song into consideration, I realized just how CLEVER this song is on a meta-textual level. Royal 44 is 21 years old: brash, arrogant, and cocky. He's basically Mingi at that age: blazing ahead with no wisdom, only unbridled desire. I live a rockstar lifestyle, he raps. I love the toxic vibe, no reason — which recalls Mingi's earlier line: What I spend on myself becomes value, even if it's a bit toxic. The contrast in these lines reveals how, for Mingi, cockiness has settled into confidence, earned by experience and self-knowledge. The "rockstar lifestyle" still has its appeal, but Mingi has shaped it to fit his own ambitions, rather than let it shape him.

Royal 44's verse purposefully sits in uneasy tension with Mingi's opening verse and Gaeko's verse to follow:

Lonely in a rocket It's not even surprising, I'm already half a century old The audience has grown bigger I keep planting seeds, someday they’ll grow in the field Hands up, my arms strong The stage is my universe, I am walking on the moon I slice up my words Put a price tag on them and sell them The color of the money is brown I expand my empire Shoot for the stars like SpaceX For rap stars who've “lost their screws,” it's a mayday My value is still like a Maybach My name will never be painted with the colors of defeat No cap, that's what you say, that's what they say Looking at the blue dot in detail I type out the long essay of a single human life

Gaeko's verse felt almost like foreshadowing and aspiration: he's 45 years old, has a successful career, and is respected by the industry. Younger rappers like Mingi and J-Hope want to work with him. I slice up my words / Put a price tag on them and sell them . This is clearly what Mingi hopes for himself in the future. I find it fascinating on a meta level that the song book-ends Mingi's verse about ambition with Gaeko's verse reflecting on all he's built: My value is still like a Maybach / My name will never be painted with the colors of defeat. A Maybach is a luxury sub-brand of Mercedes, which is a nice callback to Royal 44's verse (Free Mercedes and she give me head. 😆). In this case, flashiness has become prestige; ambition has become legacy. I keep planting seeds, someday they’ll grow in the field. Mingi is one of those seeds (I need to grow even more) and one day he'll plant some seeds of his own.

"Because the decision rests entirely on the Montana Constitution, it is insulated from the U.S. Supreme Court. Under the principle of adequate and independent state grounds, the federal Supreme Court cannot review a state court's interpretation of its own constitution, so long as that constitution provides more protection than the federal one. [...] What this means in practice is that Montana's transgender residents now have a constitutional shield completely independent of the Supreme Court of the United State’s decisions."

This is me when I read: