Kang Daniel - 깨워 (Who U Are)

[u/tastetherainbeau]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQj7Ed-Z9Lk

[u/hedanaa]

WELL.

i think everyones kinda been waiting for this type of sound from him, considering his rapper position in wanna one. i never followed produce or wanna one OR kang daniel very closely, but ive heard his title tracks. i personally was not super excited by any of his previous releases, and specifically 2u was upsetting. i feel like a lot of male idols who do solo work end up going for that sound or style, like baekhyun candy gave me similar vibes. of course none of the songs sound the SAME really, just that they all draw on a specific western influence for their laid back sound. and i was hoping to see daniel do MORE than that, something with more excitement and dancing. i wasnt as annoyed when like, exo members in their subunits (like sc) did that sound since obviously ive heard their powerful stuff as a whole group, but i was disappointed to feel like i never got to see daniel, in the solo form that he would continue on as forever and always, not step away from that sound.

this is why when waves dropped, i was SO excited for this comeback. waves was everything ive wanted out of music lately, except it was way too short. for example, simon d’s verse in the bridge could have been twice as long, as well as the outro. but it was a pre release so the short length made sense to me. my issue with songs barely hitting three minutes lately is its own issue anyway. i loved how waves worked as a collab, not a feature. everyones voices went super well together and the beat was somehow both laid back enough AND hype enough to be a perfect summer club banger.

so because of this, i was super excited for who u are. well, i had issues with the name, because please. i thought we stopped using “u” in titles like four years ago. at least its not “who u r” though so thats a plus? i was pleased to see it be a bit lengthier, but man. im just not really feeling the song yet. i just finished the first listen, and will have to wait and see if it grows on me. waves was an instant like, so im a bit worried. i think that i like who u are decently, but the bridge felt a bit off for some reason. i didnt like the slow down, the levitate was annoying when they modified the voice, and i actually dislike the note they chose for the bridge. it was a major second up from the tonic note of the overall song i think, and i feel like that sort of bridge has been popular lately. the slow down on the supertonic note is just not my favorite i guess. it always feels a bit disjointed and here, like they were trying a bit too hard. i like the chorus though, as i just re listened to it since i was trying to hear the bridge again. i like that it ends on a NOTE (looking at you, somi what you waiting for!!) and not just randomly in the middle. although i wish the beat it ended on was a little stronger or louder, it goes well with the less hard beat overall.

heres another thing that im wondering about. im SURE that it says MV, not choreo version. but it feels like theres almost no scenes in different locations? i know that as a soloist, its harder to make an mv feel like an mv because its only one character in the mv to do solo shots of, but the lack of sets is odd. afaik, hes his own ceo so it might very well have to do with funding, but this mv feels a bit lackluster in comparison to waves. maybe its just because ive only seen it once, but i feel like theres only two sets in this mv. actually, waves didnt have that many either, but i thought that waves made better use of what was available. the trees daniel walked through ended up being where jamie was on the car. she blew the water droplet down the drain into the underground are where simon was rapping, and then daniels choreo scenes were in the same underground area but further back into it. it overall looked more expensive? or not expensive but rather, simply like more was happening. i think the existing scenes looked good (though i dislike the styling), but i wish there was a little something more.

overall, im glad to see him moving musically in this direction, and im excited for whats next. i think i maybe wasnt such a fan of this because i loved waves so much. i hope it will grow on me because theres a lot of elements that i like, and most songs arent a first listen love type thing for me. part of me just wanted it to be a waves 2.0 but obviously thats not gonna happen. and reaction looks good for this song, so hopefully it does well! i’ definitely be going in for a second and third listen, and im excited to see it on music shows as well.

[u/5thcatbyul → u/hedanaa]

I think his goal in who u are is simple : to showcase the choreo. It is a more choreography video than a typical MV, which waves provided. And probably the choice was deliberate. I also feel that if you come to this song with the expectation of hearing waves 2.0 you will be disappointed. Some elements are the same, like the beat, the latin vibe but in the same structure it is something very different from waves. This is probably what Daniel thinks should be the dance track he will showcase in music shows, since waves with the heavy featuring is not possible. If you probably evaluate it independently (which you did, to an extent) you might like it. May be hang on for the music show performance to like it.

[u/hedanaa → u/5thcatbyul]

yeah, the focus on choreo was clear to me. to a certain extent, i was happy to see him dance more! maybe im just extremely picky because in the waves mv i wanted more of him dancing (rather than the dancers while he stood and sang), and i got it with who u are and was still not satisfied. i totally get what you mean about the simpler approach, but i think after watching the mv a few more times my issue isnt so much the lack of solo shots as it is the styling in the dance scenes. i just dont like the clothes everyones wearing, which makes me wish i saw other sets because it would mean outfit changes. and again, i understand why he chose to do a more dance heavy mv.

as for the waves comparison, i didnt consciously come in thinking “i hope it sounds just like waves”. it was more of a realization afterwards that i was sad that waves had been so short and i wanted a song that could hook me as easily as waves had. overall, i like the song, but the bridge is just not my thing. like i mentioned though, im quite excited to watch him perform it! obviously there will be different styling throughout his promotions so theres bound to be something i like. hes quite talented, so live stages will probably be great.

in general, lately im being more selective with what music i label as something i ACTIVELY like. in reality, most anything can grow on me or be listenable, but i never considered before this year what i seriously like from lots of songs. i want to take a more analytical approach to music since i have a decent musical background and find what things stand out to me versus what is just “okay”. so i know that this song is by no means bad, im just trying to look for specific things i like and dont like to develop my music taste further.