RM: A Man of Meaning

Sitting up straighter at his desk, Kim Namjoon attentively listened to the questions being asked and carefully thought before answering. This young man is a teacher’s dream — so polite, handsome, and smart!

But when he's not in the classroom, or a student, he is the leader of popular K-pop band BTS — and a rapper who specializes in expressing himself with meaning.

Rap Monster has been featured in Gaeko's track "Elephant". In the trivvy, and pretty easygoing song, Rap Mon speaks along with Gaeko of passion and desire — this tells us that he doesn't separate with his rapping/songwriter role within BTS. Gaeko is a pretty acclaimed rapper and producer, so seeing that Rap Monster is having ties with Gaeko and many other big endorsement producers, I can tell he's not your typical idol rapper.

Not only does Rap Monster have linkages within the South Korean entertainment industry, but he also has ties with an American hip-hop producer and rapper: Warren G. For American Hustle Life, BTS traveled to Los Angeles to gain great experiences, while also learning nearly everything about hip-hop — beatboxing, dancing, and so on; Warren G being their teacher.

Rap Monster was able to leave a very emphasized impact on Warren G, and the two came together after the show to work on “P.D.D”. It's somewhat like a diss track, and the motif behind the rap was to call out his haters to stay alive in order to undergo his success.

Tackling all the haters has been a common theme in Rap Mon's music since the day he stepped into BigHit as a trainee. Marking back to his debut, he has often been the one not to be taken seriously, and has been thoroughly mistreated. 

As a whole, there's pretty much no end to the teasing, nor ignorant disliking towards idol rappers in general, but should the insults dispirit many, they are now more of an elixir of strength and encouragement for Rap Monster.

Throwback to when he first debuted, Rap Monster obviously wasn't being taken seriously with his solo rap — it sounded vulnerable in many areas when he began sharing some of his music, but in current day it sounds potent.

His strength can be especially heard in his mixtape, RM. In tracks “각성 (Awakening)”, he shows a side of him that many idols tend to hide. Rap Mon says, “fuck you, I’m an idol” — a label in which he once despised but now cherishes. Rap Monster used to let all the maddening hate get to him, but soon enough he realized that his aggravated rapping and role as an idol rapper is the only ammunition his haters have.

Rap Monster pushed away all the haters, but he himself still hasn’t seemed to have gotten past himself. He is the type who addresses and ponders over every immaculate detail, but never seems to be satisfied, and you can easily tell that his mixtape took lots of thought to compose.

“목소리 (Voice)” starts with a very serious thesis for the mixtape, followed with a dim piano tune. In this song, Rap Monster is contemplating on the plot twist that brought him into hip-hop and the journey that followed on after his decision.

Rap Monster recollects the adrenaline rush of composing his first rap as a very bright, yet unfulfilled student who didn’t know at that time he was searching for something other than homework.

In his most recent track “Always”, holds a eerie feel, clever composition, and expressive aching emotion that shows how much work Rap Monster puts into his music. Rap Monster dealing with haters and having to gain respect from others starting at rock bottom, into an inspirational solo artist, and also as the leader of a successful K-pop group who consistently show respect and adoration towards him.

In another hit track, “Do You”, Rap Monster characterizes the fact that he doesn't care if people say things about him. Whatever he wears, whatever he does, or the music he produces may not be to your liking, but he doesn't care because he has been able to distinguish his own ability to turn hatred into power alongside his potential to transform the Korean industry and fans.

This is Rap Monster, and he's here to show his passion and teach the new generation how things should be done.

First Written: 4/28/2017

Originally Posted Here