There aren’t a lot of pop artists working today as feverishly passionate about their craft as RM. In his first official solo album Indigo, which succeeds two mixtapes made concurrently with music for his group BTS, the South-Korean rapper created what might be 2022’s most soul-bearing album.
Indigo is an incredibly exciting album because it’s thrilling to follow an artist with as much potential as RM. You realize that, despite how good he already is, there is still so much room to grow, and that you can only picture a future where he becomes one of the all-time greats.
The release of this album was a defining moment for the leader of the greatest act in the world. It follows BTS’s announcement of a break from releasing music as a septet to focus on expanding each member’s own individual work, as well as the news that after each solo era is complete they will gradually leave to enlist in the military.
As the inaugural member, and arguably the most creatively involved of the seven, RM carries a big stick, whether he likes it or not. In Indigo, however, after years of struggling, he finally finds a way to wield it without compromising the things that made his eyes shine as a teenager discovering music, or his heart beat faster as a grown man nearing the end of his 20s with the eyes of the world all set upon him.
The album dances through genres that all seem to pose questions of direction and identity, to perfectly reflect the artist’s own journey of self-knowledge. From soul, to ballad, to pop, to funk, to punk, it’s both exhilarating and nerve-racking to see RM experiment, as he fails and succeeds with the utmost sincerity and modesty.
As always, he imbues his work with immense conceptual depth, in a constant cycle of absorbing inspiration from the visual artists and musical collaborators that have defined his life, while simultaneously creating inspiring work that will motivate others to pass the feelings down to the next person.
In “Yun,” RM reflects on teachings from his favorite painter Yun Hyong-keun, while in “Still Life,” he re-imagines the concept of life trapped in a canvas, much like his own experience of stardom. In “Wild Flower,” he swaps the bright colorful fireworks of BTS for the quietness of petals blowing in the wind of Kim Namjoon.
Through collaborations with Erykah Badu, Tablo of Epik High, youjeen of Cherry Filter, and Park Ji Yoon, he borrows from the iconic voices of his musical upbringing. And, by continuing his work with trusted partners like PDogg, Honne, DOCSKIM, john eun, and eAeon, RM makes sure that his album has so much of himself in it that it could never be anyone else’s.
Lyrically, RM remains as melancholic and pensive as always, but he approaches subjects that he previously explored in BTS’ music as well as his 2018 mixtape Mono with a lot more emotional maturity and a stronger grasp on life’s complexities and curve-balls. Themes like loneliness, the artistic process, the dehumanization of fame, the difficulty in connection in today’s digital, rapid, and packed daily life, are present in almost every single song, but unlike his previous work, in Indigo, RM is never in despair.
The opener “Yun” invites the listener on a search to define where exactly the human being ends and the art begins, but by the closing track “No.2,” we know there really is no answer. The best art is the art that’s most human.
At this stage in his career after making music for over a decade and approaching his 30s, RM has enough confidence to be curious, and make mistakes, knowing that erring isn’t the demise of the artwork but its seed. Indigo reflects the past 4 or so years of his life, but is also filled with good omens for the future. The outro brings the album full circle, leaving the listener with the message that is most prevalent throughout Indigo, “Don’t look back. You’ve done your best.”
Indigo is an album that feels young and bold, yet wise and settled. In a way, it’s the perfect encapsulation of what it feels like to say goodbye to both the messiest and most thrilling decade of your life. RM comes out the other way holding all the power in his hands to define the years ahead how he wants to, and not how he’s expected to.
