Here Is What Korea’s Top Lyricists Have To Say About IU’s Original Lyrics For Her Songs
IU is, undeniably, one of Korea’s most successful singer songwriters yet. She nails her performances every, single, time — and the fact that she produces a lot of her own songs may largely play into that.
Her originals are absolutely cherished by fans, but not only by her fans it seems. These top lyricists in Korea also praised IU for “knowing how to write good lyrics“. Here’s what they had to say about her work:
1. Lyricist Jeon Gandhi
All day, my heart is riding on the hands of the clock — ticking closer to you minute by minute…
— IU
Lyricist Jeon Gandhi, who wrote the words for K-Pop hits like f(x)‘s “Rum Pum Pum Pum” and NCT Dream‘s “My First and Last”, commented that IU actually “made her stop writing for a while“. She explained, “when [she] first heard the lyrics to IU’s ‘Friday’, [she] became ashamed of [her] own lyrics” and had to halt working for a bit. IU fans can relate — IU’s lyrics can have quite the impact.
2. Lyricist Kim Eun Soo
If only there is a short cut to go back to where you are…
— IU
Lyricist Kim Eun Soo (or Jennifer E. Kim), who is a lyricist with JYP Entertainment, once tweeted that IU is a certain “force“. She claimed “it is an honor to have been able to write lyrics for IU and heard her sing them” — especially after listening to the words to “Knees”.
3. Lyricist Seo Ji Eum
I’m plenty exhausted already, I don’t need to see the dark secrets inside. I’m plenty tired already, I don’t want to read the fine print…
— IU
In an episode of TMI News, lyricist Seo Ji Eum — who wrote mega earworms like EXO‘s “Growl” and Girls’ Generation-TTS‘s “Twinkle” — revealed that she is a huge fan of IU’s lyrics. She commented that “IU’s lyrics make [her] drop everything and listen.” She particularly praised IU’s ability to “take deep, almost philosophical topics and turn them into easily relatable, easy-listening lyrics.”
4. Lyricist Kim Eana
Everyone is singing songs of spring. Flowers are blooming and dancing in the breeze. But I want to hear about other things. Things other than spring, love, and cherry blossoms…
— IU
Lyricist Kim Eana, who is an award-winning lyricist to have worked with artists like Sung Si Kyung, Brown Eyed Girls, and IU herself, noted that “IU has reached a certain level of writing lyrics that work.” According to Kim Eana, IU “as a songwriter has the ability to write the words and give those words the best melody they can have“. And someone who can do both is simply unstoppable.
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