BTS has released their much-anticipated album, ARIRANG, comprising 14 songs. The title track, SWIM has garnered attention as ARMYs cannot get enough of the new music the group released after June 2022.
Interestingly, while the title track is an amalgamation of heartfelt lyrics, electrifying music and larger-than-life visuals, it has another interesting aspect that makes it all the way more unpredictable. BTS’ rapper, SUGA or Min Yoongi, lends his vocals in the second verse of the song. If you are new to BTS, the group has four vocalists, Jungkook, Jimin, V and Jin, and three rappers, RM, Suga and JHope. While the group maintains this strictly, there are times JHope is seen singing vocal parts, or some other members take up rapping. But those cases are rare.
However, in SWIM, Suga takes up the lead in the second verse, which opens space to explore the song further. Instead of his usual rap style, Suga takes up a melodious paragraph and sings it with his own charm. The lyrics go, “Water, water so deep, water so deep/ Take it off the ground, I ain’t never gettin’ cold feet/ Yeah, you know me, yeah, you know me/ Sittin’ on the shore, now I’m ready for the whole sea/ I can feel the high waves comin’ (Yeah)/ Why you run away? You can run in (Yeah)/ Salt on my tongue, she’s stunnin’ (Oh)/ You’re the only place that I wanna be, yeah.”
He later joins the group in harmonising but does not strictly go back to rapping. He flaunts his rapping skills in other songs from ARIRANG but lends his vocals to SWIM. It might have been a strategic move, to throw fans off guard with his raw vocals. But SUGA has also sung in some of his solo tracks before, including People, Interlude: Set Me Free, People Pt.2 (feat. IU) and Trivia: Seesaw.
Also Read: Suga Turns 33: BTS Members RM & J-Hope Share Quirky Wishes, Yoongi Celebrates With Cake
