If you're interested, I think the storyline in SHINee's "Hard" MV can be interpreted in two ways. If you notice, the whole MV has a piano theme. For example, in the beginning when the scene becomes animated, it showed Taemin being pulled into the piano. And, if you look at the set with the brown walls, you will notice that it looks like the inside of a piano with the wooden hammers that create the sound when the keys are played on the walls behind them. And the lighted white screen is divided like the white keys of the piano with the people's silhouettes representing the black keys, etc. This could represent how music is what controls their lives and its what has trapped them in this world as artists. Which could be similar to the themes within Taemin's solo Never Gonna Dance Again album trilogy -- "2 Kids", "Criminal" and "Idea" -- and his epilogue "Advice." However, I'm also pretty sure that the whole "Hard" MV storyline is connected to SM's SM Culture Universe. The more I watch it, the more I see that seems to indicate that it's all connected. As with all the groups under SM Entertainment, their storylines are all part of a larger concept kind of like a giant graphic novel or action movie series with a twist. SHINee's story, so far, primarily connects to EXO's and SuperM's storylines. Each group has their own individual storyline and concept, but when you put them all together there are threads of connections between the groups. You could sort of think of it like the Marvel franchise. Each of the Marvel characters has their own storyline, merchandise and fans, but the stories and concepts often overlap and connect. And with each new character that is introduced it expands on the whole Marvel universe. To understand how all of SM's groups are connected, you first need to be aware that it all began with EXO's origin story in 2012. EXO's concept is that they are aliens from Planet Exo, who have been sent to Earth on a mission to find and protect the Tree of Life from the Red Force, while also trying to fix all the things that are going wrong in the world, which are believed to be caused by the Red Force. The Red Force is thought to be here on Earth inflicting their evil agenda -- corrupting humanity and causing all the bad things that are happening in the world, such as war, hate and destruction of the environment, etc. And because EXO is trying to undo and prevent the Red Force from accomplishing their goals, the Red Force is also trying to take down EXO by capturing them, corrupting them and standing in their way, etc. With SHINee's "Hard" MV, I think when we first see Taemin in the black sleeveless suit, he looks very similar to what he looked like in his SuperM debut teasers, which could mean that this could be connected to SuperM's storyline. SuperM is the Kpop industry's very first supergroup, which debuted in October 2019, and their concept and storyline is centered around the fact that they are Avengers-like superheros, so SuperM is the group that pretty much connects all of SM's groups together. SuperM is made up of members of SM's other male Kpop groups, such as Taemin from SHINee, Baekhyun and Kai from EXO, Taeyong and Mark from NCT, Ten from WayV and Lucas who is a former member of WayV. This group's storyline is that they are coming together to help EXO battle the Red Force, which is the evil villian or group within EXO's storyline. As "The Avengers," SuperM is taking members from each of SM's groups and joining forces to take down the Red Force. And, just like how the movies "Avengers Identity War" and "Avengers Endgame" eventually had each of the Marvel Avengers members recruiting their whole crew to help in the fight, I think SM is setting it up so that all of its groups' members will eventually be brought into the conflict. I also think the story in "Hard" even could be connected to Taemin's "Advice" storyline. We see him with his hands painted blue in "Hard," similar to his black ink stained hands and body in "Advice," and in both scenes we see him standing in front of/playing a piano. (Technically, Pearl Aqua is SHINee's color. However, before LED lights were invented, creating a wider range of colors -- making way for SHINee's official Pearl Aqua color -- they used blue and green in things to do with SHINee. That's why we still see blue, green and aqua with most things SHINee related.) Some have pointed out, that the scene with the silhouettes behind the screen, reminds them of the scene in Taemin's "Criminal" MV, with the people behind a screen pushing their hands into it. However, in "Hard" Taemin is standing in front of the screen, rather than walking through the middle with the two sides reaching for him like in "Criminal". Although, I also think that scene could be connected to EXO's storyline, because we see in EXO's "Tempo" MV a scene where there are silhouettes behind a lighted white wall that looks very similar to this. In EXO's storyline, the people behind the wall are thought to be EXO's alter ego clones who were created by the Red Force or they could be the EXO members who are trapped behind the wall. We also see EXO fighting with their silhouette shadows in their live concert performance of their song "Wolf," which is also thought to be EXO battling X-EXO as they search for the Tree of Life. Ever since SHINee came out with "Don't Call Me," I think the storyline in that MV was supposed to be SM bringing SHINee into the SM Culture Universe. In their "Don't Call Me" MV it looks as though the SHINee members go through some sort of wormhole as they are teleported somewhere and we see them all posing in their black outfits like they are getting ready for battle. This looks very similar to the scene in SuperM's debut "Jopping" MV when the SuperM members are coming together at the beginning of "Jopping." Therefore, because Taemin is a member of SuperM, I think SHINee is supposed to be getting ready to join SuperM in the fight against the Red Force. In "Hard" we also see Taemin standing on a grate as he crouches down and looks through it at the "people" in white trapped below, similar to his scene in SuperM's "Jopping" MV. The scene with Key standing with all the dancers in white -- which I think are supposed to represent the white keys of a piano -- sitting in a circle around him, also seems to be an important part of the story, however, I'm not sure what it all means yet. We see Key remove the mask of one of the guys and we discover the guy has a glowing blue earpiece, which seems to be suggesting that they are being controlled by outside forces. However, because they are all just sitting there without moving, it seems to indicate that they are currently "shut-down". Either these people are androids or robots, like in EXO's "Lucky One" MV, or they are people who are under mind control. Although, I don't think they are being controlled by the Red Force necessarily because we don't see any trace of red anywhere in that scene. Instead, the color we see is blue, which usually within EXO's storyline means that it represents something to do with EXO, who are the good guys. Plus, as I said, blue with SHINee usually represents SHINee and their connection as a group. Minho standing on the edge of that rock formation looks similar to the scene with Girls' Generation's Taeyeon standing on the rock in the middle of the ocean in Key's solo "Hate That ..." MV, and it also looks a lot like the scene in SHINee's "Don't Call Me" MV, with Key standing on the submerged phone booth. It all has the same feeling. (Notice how they also are all wearing red in all of those scenes. Red usually represents something to do with the Red Force.) In the next animated scene, we see what looks like Minho in the red jacket fighting with the same piano key ropes that pulled Taemin into the piano in the beginning. To me, it looks like its trying to keep him trapped within the piano and under the control of the music. However, in the next scene we see the giant piano has been destroyed behind them, which could represent how music no longer controls them, but they now control the music. (As the SHINee members have said, in the beginning of their career they did whatever they were told to do, however, now that they've been in the industry for more than 15 years, they have learned how to be their own artists, and it has afforded them the opportunity to now make their own decisions about their music and to participate in creating the songs and designing their albums, etc. They are now the ones in control.) In the last scene at the end, it reminds me of the same menacing red atmosphere as Minho's rap section in their "Don't Call Me" MV, where we see him in an all red room with chairs hovering above him. Therefore, I think the gloved hand is Minho's hand because it looks like the same gloves that Minho is wearing in the scene right before that where they are dressed in black. Although I don't know what that means yet, I am sure it is something to connect the storyline to something within one of SM's MVs in the future or will make more sense when more of the story is revealed as SM releases the next chapter, etc. But you should also know, that no one really knows for sure what is happening in any of the story. There are well known theories and storylines that are accepted within the fandom, which we think might explain what is happening in each MV. And there are theories about how each MV is connected and where each falls within their larger storyline, but nothing is set in stone. Fan theories are constantly evolving and changing with every introduction of a new piece of the puzzle. New things are revealed with every MV release, concert, event, or appearance, etc., which could either add to or change the storyline.
Mal did you listen to Key's last 3 solo albums? He is the king of Retro genre. He owns the 80s sound! Just react to his Bad Love and Killer MVs. Gasoline MV is also great anthem song ❤ Also please react to their Juice performance MV 😍
You know, I haven't really checked out much of his solo stuff (even tho I have seen some of the aesthetics for the videos and they are GORGEOUS), but I love nothing more than when k-pop marries that 80's sound into their music, so I will be sure to take a listen!
With "Hard," SHINee is just doing what we have all come to expect from them -- showing us something that has never been seen or heard before and starting a new trend. Nothing you hear from them will ever be like anything you have ever seen or heard before. They raise the bar even higher with every comeback. And that's what makes them SHINee. :D With every new song release, SHINee are expected to come out with a style and sound that is brand new, not only for them, but in the industry as a whole. What you just experienced is exactly what makes SHINee legends. And, this is the reason why they are so highly respected, and why almost everyone in the industry who came after them, cites them as one of their biggest influences and one of the reasons why they wanted to become a singer and dancer, etc. The whole reason why they chose "Hard" for their title track is because they wanted to show everyone that SHINee can do any genre, including hip-hop. Although, just to make sure you didn't forget that this was a SHINee song, they couldn't just do straight hip-hop. They had to create this hybride mashup of pop, rock and retro hip-hop, etc. to give this song that SHINee flavor. They killed this!! This will definitely be a contender for album of the year.
You can't tell me that you're not singing "hard like a criminal, hard like the beat, hard like ma flow ..." over and over again in your head after hearing this song. LOL We can definitely add this to SHINee's earworm song list. And the rest of the songs on the album are just as catchy. And, switching up the beat and style of the song in the middle of the song is pretty much how the majority of SM Entertainment's songs are structured. It's kind of SM's signature style. You will hear that same thing happen in a a lot of the songs you listen to from SM. This song was wrote by Kenzie, who is an SM songwriter and producer that has wrote a large majority of SM songs. She even has her own studio at SM, that's how much she is involved in SM's sound. However, the SHINee members participate in all aspects of the songwriting and producing, as well. That's why it has that signature SM design, and, yet, it's also very uniquely SHINee. The fact that this song is nothing like anyone expects, and different than anything out there, is exactly what makes it a SHINee song. SHINee were designed to be SM Entertainment's experimental boy group, so everything they do is meant to be the first, and they are expected to create the trend. With every new song SHINee produces, it's supposed to be different than the last, so you will never hear the same style or sound from them. But it will somehow always have that SHINee feel. This is really just SHINee going back to their roots. Before debut, SHINee was actually training to be a hip-hop group. However, as Key tells it, they just didn't have the swag to pull off hip-hop full time, so last minute SM decided to change up their style to the contemporary R&B style of their debut song "Replay" that they have now become known for. "Hard" just proves that SM wasn't wrong, and SHINee has no problem in the world of hip-hop. But their destiny and calling was to be a group that never ties themselves down to just one style or genre. They were meant to show the world that they can be diverse and unique and never do the same thing twice. With every release that SHINee has they intentionally flip the script and change things up in the Kpop industry. That's why, when SHINee makes a comeback, everyone pays attention because they are looking to SHINee to show them what the industry's next song style and dance trend will be. It's actually said that within 3 months of SHINee making a comeback, you will see that same sound and dance style being duplicated across the industry with every comeback to follow, for both boy groups ad girl groups. When SHINee does something, the industry takes note and follows suit. You just discovered why SHINee still holds one of the top spots after more than 15 years in the industry. Just wait until you go through their entire discography of songs and MVs. So far, they have 14 full-length albums (8 Korean albums and 6 Japanese albums), several repackaged albums, a multitude of mini albums, numerous OSTS, they each have solo songs and albums and there are hundreds of live performances that will absolutely leave you speechless with their talent. And it only gets more and more impressive as you follow them through their career. They have accomplished a lot in the past 15+ years, and they are one of the groups that made Kpop what it is today. However, if you want to see where SHINee truly shines, you have to see their live performances. When SHINee debuted in 2008, Onew (the leader and lead vocalist) was 18, Jonghyun (the main vocalist and a songwriter) had just turned 18, Minho (the main rapper and sub-vocalist) and Key (lead vocalist and sub-rapper) were 16 and Taemin (Main dancer and lead vocalist) was 14. However, now, SHINee are known for the fact that there are no longer any fixed roles in their group. The main vocalists can rap, the rappers can fill in as main vocalists, and they are all impressive dancers. SHINee are some of the most well-respected artists in the industry. Onew (Pronounced Oh-New in English or On-New with a Korean accent, real name Lee JinKi) -- the one with the amazing high notes and the colorful outfit -- is the leader of the group and he has one of the most unique voices in the industry. (Onew means, or sounds like, the Korean words for soft or gentle, so he was given his stage name because he has a very calm and gentle personality.) He is one of the most coveted male voices, that all other singers dream of getting a chance to collaborate with. His vocals are unmatched. He even holds the record (40+ seconds) for the longest continuous note without changing tone or pitch. SHINee are a 5 member group, with 4 active members. You only saw Onew in part of the "Hard" MV because, unfortunately, he is currently on hiatus due to his health. He went on hiatus in the middle of filming the MV, and wasn't able to participate in the rest of the shoot. It was announced June 9, when Onew was hospitalized for a short time, that he would take a doctor recommended rest. Therefore, he won't be participating in any of their comeback activities. Key -- in the suit with the shorts -- is our fashionista of the group who is SHINee's stylist for a lot of their MVs and stage outfits. He is an amazing singer and is a sub-rapper in the group. (Notice how Key was singing through his clenched teeth in the last part of the song when they were all dressed in black. And he still sounded perfect while giving off the "Hard" vibes that the song required. Just one of the many unique elements of this song that only SHINee can pull off.) He is also considered SHINee's dance copy machine. Key has the ability to see and remember choreography the fastest in the group. He is also SHINee's fluent English speaker, and he is almost as good as a native speaker. Minho -- the one with the red jacket with the epaulets -- is the main rapper and yes, he is the visual of the group, but his vocals are also some of the best in the industry. Minho sings just as much as he raps. He also writes most of his own raps in SHINee's songs. Minho is a top actor, and he has starred in numerous dramas and movies, starting way back in 2011. When not promoting with SHINee, he is almost always on the set of his latest drama or movie. He is also known as a star athlete. He says these days he goes to the gym a couple of times a day to work out, just because he likes to work out, but he also is crazy about soccer, and he plays basketball, baseball and golf, and he is good at track and field events, etc., as well. And, not only does he enjoy playing all those sports, but he is usually the best athlete on the field, and he pretty much wins every time. Minho's nickname is "Flaming Charisma," and one reason is for his intense passion for sports and games and his need to always win. And, as mentioned, Taemin -- the blond -- is considered one of THE BEST dancers in the industry (one of the top 2 best dancers of all dancers in Kpop), and that's not just by fans, but by everyone in the industry, including his peers. Taemin's nickname is the Korean Michael Jackson. He is also one of the most popular male solo artists, and he is a member of the Kpop supergroup SuperM. Taemin truly is art when it comes to his performances. Although Jonghyun wasn't in the MV -- because he passed more than 5 years ago -- in order to get to know SHINee, you have to get to know him as well. He is known as one of the best vocalist in Kpop, whose voice was unmatched. He also was one of the most prolific songwriters and composers of his generation. Jonghyun wrote and composed almost 40% of SHINee's songs, plus he wrote all of his own solo songs and numerous songs for other artists. He was one of the only SM artists to be given complete artistic control over his work, including several of SHINee's song selections. He was extremely respected within the industry as a songwriter, composer and singer. He was one of the very first Idols to be known for this songwriting and composing skills. Once you get to know their voices, you will always be able to pick them out of a crowd just by the sound of their voice. Most fans will tell you we know who is speaking or singing within 1 second, even with our eyes closed, with them standing in a crowd of screaming fans. All 5 of their voices are that unique -- there is no one with a voice like any of theirs. That is why they are "The Princes of Kpop".
They always show a different version of themselves with this unique essence and what I love, they evolve with their music. I love rap and melody and the bridge is divine. There's a lot of symbolism in there, and Taemin said there's a lot of references to him, but oh my god, I'm obsessed with this album. SHINee BACK next JUICE Don't Call Me
I seen shinee and hit your subscribe button so fast!!!!! You have a new friend in me.... thank you for such a great reaction to the best amazing group of guys out there. Please react to taemin my favorite artist of all time.
Check out shinee's entire discography and solo work including their live performances such as Minho during dynamite and key with born to shine. Not to mention Jonghyuns yi si fuerra Ella live.
Please react to their JUICE performance video! ❤ they debuted in 2008 and still active in the industry
JUICE SHINee you should see it..its fire !!!
This is the high class performance of the 15 year old group
SHINee is the different level forever. THE LEGEND
TAEMIN is THE KING of kings
They're veterans who have perfected their craft. It's a joy to watch!
Princes of Kpop 🎉Juice!
Seen shinee and hit the subs for the reaction ❤thank you
Thank you so much!!!
If you're interested, I think the storyline in SHINee's "Hard" MV can be interpreted in two ways. If you notice, the whole MV has a piano theme. For example, in the beginning when the scene becomes animated, it showed Taemin being pulled into the piano. And, if you look at the set with the brown walls, you will notice that it looks like the inside of a piano with the wooden hammers that create the sound when the keys are played on the walls behind them. And the lighted white screen is divided like the white keys of the piano with the people's silhouettes representing the black keys, etc.
This could represent how music is what controls their lives and its what has trapped them in this world as artists. Which could be similar to the themes within Taemin's solo Never Gonna Dance Again album trilogy -- "2 Kids", "Criminal" and "Idea" -- and his epilogue "Advice."
However, I'm also pretty sure that the whole "Hard" MV storyline is connected to SM's SM Culture Universe. The more I watch it, the more I see that seems to indicate that it's all connected.
As with all the groups under SM Entertainment, their storylines are all part of a larger concept kind of like a giant graphic novel or action movie series with a twist. SHINee's story, so far, primarily connects to EXO's and SuperM's storylines. Each group has their own individual storyline and concept, but when you put them all together there are threads of connections between the groups. You could sort of think of it like the Marvel franchise. Each of the Marvel characters has their own storyline, merchandise and fans, but the stories and concepts often overlap and connect. And with each new character that is introduced it expands on the whole Marvel universe.
To understand how all of SM's groups are connected, you first need to be aware that it all began with EXO's origin story in 2012. EXO's concept is that they are aliens from Planet Exo, who have been sent to Earth on a mission to find and protect the Tree of Life from the Red Force, while also trying to fix all the things that are going wrong in the world, which are believed to be caused by the Red Force. The Red Force is thought to be here on Earth inflicting their evil agenda -- corrupting humanity and causing all the bad things that are happening in the world, such as war, hate and destruction of the environment, etc. And because EXO is trying to undo and prevent the Red Force from accomplishing their goals, the Red Force is also trying to take down EXO by capturing them, corrupting them and standing in their way, etc.
With SHINee's "Hard" MV, I think when we first see Taemin in the black sleeveless suit, he looks very similar to what he looked like in his SuperM debut teasers, which could mean that this could be connected to SuperM's storyline.
SuperM is the Kpop industry's very first supergroup, which debuted in October 2019, and their concept and storyline is centered around the fact that they are Avengers-like superheros, so SuperM is the group that pretty much connects all of SM's groups together. SuperM is made up of members of SM's other male Kpop groups, such as Taemin from SHINee, Baekhyun and Kai from EXO, Taeyong and Mark from NCT, Ten from WayV and Lucas who is a former member of WayV. This group's storyline is that they are coming together to help EXO battle the Red Force, which is the evil villian or group within EXO's storyline.
As "The Avengers," SuperM is taking members from each of SM's groups and joining forces to take down the Red Force. And, just like how the movies "Avengers Identity War" and "Avengers Endgame" eventually had each of the Marvel Avengers members recruiting their whole crew to help in the fight, I think SM is setting it up so that all of its groups' members will eventually be brought into the conflict.
I also think the story in "Hard" even could be connected to Taemin's "Advice" storyline. We see him with his hands painted blue in "Hard," similar to his black ink stained hands and body in "Advice," and in both scenes we see him standing in front of/playing a piano. (Technically, Pearl Aqua is SHINee's color. However, before LED lights were invented, creating a wider range of colors -- making way for SHINee's official Pearl Aqua color -- they used blue and green in things to do with SHINee. That's why we still see blue, green and aqua with most things SHINee related.)
Some have pointed out, that the scene with the silhouettes behind the screen, reminds them of the scene in Taemin's "Criminal" MV, with the people behind a screen pushing their hands into it. However, in "Hard" Taemin is standing in front of the screen, rather than walking through the middle with the two sides reaching for him like in "Criminal". Although, I also think that scene could be connected to EXO's storyline, because we see in EXO's "Tempo" MV a scene where there are silhouettes behind a lighted white wall that looks very similar to this. In EXO's storyline, the people behind the wall are thought to be EXO's alter ego clones who were created by the Red Force or they could be the EXO members who are trapped behind the wall. We also see EXO fighting with their silhouette shadows in their live concert performance of their song "Wolf," which is also thought to be EXO battling X-EXO as they search for the Tree of Life.
Ever since SHINee came out with "Don't Call Me," I think the storyline in that MV was supposed to be SM bringing SHINee into the SM Culture Universe. In their "Don't Call Me" MV it looks as though the SHINee members go through some sort of wormhole as they are teleported somewhere and we see them all posing in their black outfits like they are getting ready for battle. This looks very similar to the scene in SuperM's debut "Jopping" MV when the SuperM members are coming together at the beginning of "Jopping." Therefore, because Taemin is a member of SuperM, I think SHINee is supposed to be getting ready to join SuperM in the fight against the Red Force.
In "Hard" we also see Taemin standing on a grate as he crouches down and looks through it at the "people" in white trapped below, similar to his scene in SuperM's "Jopping" MV.
The scene with Key standing with all the dancers in white -- which I think are supposed to represent the white keys of a piano -- sitting in a circle around him, also seems to be an important part of the story, however, I'm not sure what it all means yet. We see Key remove the mask of one of the guys and we discover the guy has a glowing blue earpiece, which seems to be suggesting that they are being controlled by outside forces. However, because they are all just sitting there without moving, it seems to indicate that they are currently "shut-down". Either these people are androids or robots, like in EXO's "Lucky One" MV, or they are people who are under mind control. Although, I don't think they are being controlled by the Red Force necessarily because we don't see any trace of red anywhere in that scene. Instead, the color we see is blue, which usually within EXO's storyline means that it represents something to do with EXO, who are the good guys. Plus, as I said, blue with SHINee usually represents SHINee and their connection as a group.
Minho standing on the edge of that rock formation looks similar to the scene with Girls' Generation's Taeyeon standing on the rock in the middle of the ocean in Key's solo "Hate That ..." MV, and it also looks a lot like the scene in SHINee's "Don't Call Me" MV, with Key standing on the submerged phone booth. It all has the same feeling. (Notice how they also are all wearing red in all of those scenes. Red usually represents something to do with the Red Force.)
In the next animated scene, we see what looks like Minho in the red jacket fighting with the same piano key ropes that pulled Taemin into the piano in the beginning. To me, it looks like its trying to keep him trapped within the piano and under the control of the music.
However, in the next scene we see the giant piano has been destroyed behind them, which could represent how music no longer controls them, but they now control the music. (As the SHINee members have said, in the beginning of their career they did whatever they were told to do, however, now that they've been in the industry for more than 15 years, they have learned how to be their own artists, and it has afforded them the opportunity to now make their own decisions about their music and to participate in creating the songs and designing their albums, etc. They are now the ones in control.)
In the last scene at the end, it reminds me of the same menacing red atmosphere as Minho's rap section in their "Don't Call Me" MV, where we see him in an all red room with chairs hovering above him. Therefore, I think the gloved hand is Minho's hand because it looks like the same gloves that Minho is wearing in the scene right before that where they are dressed in black. Although I don't know what that means yet, I am sure it is something to connect the storyline to something within one of SM's MVs in the future or will make more sense when more of the story is revealed as SM releases the next chapter, etc.
But you should also know, that no one really knows for sure what is happening in any of the story. There are well known theories and storylines that are accepted within the fandom, which we think might explain what is happening in each MV. And there are theories about how each MV is connected and where each falls within their larger storyline, but nothing is set in stone. Fan theories are constantly evolving and changing with every introduction of a new piece of the puzzle. New things are revealed with every MV release, concert, event, or appearance, etc., which could either add to or change the storyline.
Shinee ❤❤❤❤❤
Les invito a q vean sus presentaciones en vivo y sabrán pq están en el top y se han mantenido a pesar de sus 15 años y sabrán pq son una leyenda
YASSSS
SHINee is so fantastic // Hope you check out Juice (performance version) by SHINee too. Thanks
Mal did you listen to Key's last 3 solo albums? He is the king of Retro genre. He owns the 80s sound! Just react to his Bad Love and Killer MVs. Gasoline MV is also great anthem song ❤
Also please react to their Juice performance MV 😍
You know, I haven't really checked out much of his solo stuff (even tho I have seen some of the aesthetics for the videos and they are GORGEOUS), but I love nothing more than when k-pop marries that 80's sound into their music, so I will be sure to take a listen!
With "Hard," SHINee is just doing what we have all come to expect from them -- showing us something that has never been seen or heard before and starting a new trend. Nothing you hear from them will ever be like anything you have ever seen or heard before. They raise the bar even higher with every comeback. And that's what makes them SHINee. :D With every new song release, SHINee are expected to come out with a style and sound that is brand new, not only for them, but in the industry as a whole.
What you just experienced is exactly what makes SHINee legends. And, this is the reason why they are so highly respected, and why almost everyone in the industry who came after them, cites them as one of their biggest influences and one of the reasons why they wanted to become a singer and dancer, etc.
The whole reason why they chose "Hard" for their title track is because they wanted to show everyone that SHINee can do any genre, including hip-hop. Although, just to make sure you didn't forget that this was a SHINee song, they couldn't just do straight hip-hop. They had to create this hybride mashup of pop, rock and retro hip-hop, etc. to give this song that SHINee flavor. They killed this!! This will definitely be a contender for album of the year.
You can't tell me that you're not singing "hard like a criminal, hard like the beat, hard like ma flow ..." over and over again in your head after hearing this song. LOL We can definitely add this to SHINee's earworm song list. And the rest of the songs on the album are just as catchy.
And, switching up the beat and style of the song in the middle of the song is pretty much how the majority of SM Entertainment's songs are structured. It's kind of SM's signature style. You will hear that same thing happen in a a lot of the songs you listen to from SM. This song was wrote by Kenzie, who is an SM songwriter and producer that has wrote a large majority of SM songs. She even has her own studio at SM, that's how much she is involved in SM's sound. However, the SHINee members participate in all aspects of the songwriting and producing, as well. That's why it has that signature SM design, and, yet, it's also very uniquely SHINee.
The fact that this song is nothing like anyone expects, and different than anything out there, is exactly what makes it a SHINee song. SHINee were designed to be SM Entertainment's experimental boy group, so everything they do is meant to be the first, and they are expected to create the trend. With every new song SHINee produces, it's supposed to be different than the last, so you will never hear the same style or sound from them. But it will somehow always have that SHINee feel.
This is really just SHINee going back to their roots. Before debut, SHINee was actually training to be a hip-hop group. However, as Key tells it, they just didn't have the swag to pull off hip-hop full time, so last minute SM decided to change up their style to the contemporary R&B style of their debut song "Replay" that they have now become known for. "Hard" just proves that SM wasn't wrong, and SHINee has no problem in the world of hip-hop. But their destiny and calling was to be a group that never ties themselves down to just one style or genre. They were meant to show the world that they can be diverse and unique and never do the same thing twice.
With every release that SHINee has they intentionally flip the script and change things up in the Kpop industry. That's why, when SHINee makes a comeback, everyone pays attention because they are looking to SHINee to show them what the industry's next song style and dance trend will be. It's actually said that within 3 months of SHINee making a comeback, you will see that same sound and dance style being duplicated across the industry with every comeback to follow, for both boy groups ad girl groups. When SHINee does something, the industry takes note and follows suit.
You just discovered why SHINee still holds one of the top spots after more than 15 years in the industry. Just wait until you go through their entire discography of songs and MVs. So far, they have 14 full-length albums (8 Korean albums and 6 Japanese albums), several repackaged albums, a multitude of mini albums, numerous OSTS, they each have solo songs and albums and there are hundreds of live performances that will absolutely leave you speechless with their talent. And it only gets more and more impressive as you follow them through their career. They have accomplished a lot in the past 15+ years, and they are one of the groups that made Kpop what it is today. However, if you want to see where SHINee truly shines, you have to see their live performances.
When SHINee debuted in 2008, Onew (the leader and lead vocalist) was 18, Jonghyun (the main vocalist and a songwriter) had just turned 18, Minho (the main rapper and sub-vocalist) and Key (lead vocalist and sub-rapper) were 16 and Taemin (Main dancer and lead vocalist) was 14. However, now, SHINee are known for the fact that there are no longer any fixed roles in their group. The main vocalists can rap, the rappers can fill in as main vocalists, and they are all impressive dancers. SHINee are some of the most well-respected artists in the industry.
Onew (Pronounced Oh-New in English or On-New with a Korean accent, real name Lee JinKi) -- the one with the amazing high notes and the colorful outfit -- is the leader of the group and he has one of the most unique voices in the industry. (Onew means, or sounds like, the Korean words for soft or gentle, so he was given his stage name because he has a very calm and gentle personality.) He is one of the most coveted male voices, that all other singers dream of getting a chance to collaborate with. His vocals are unmatched. He even holds the record (40+ seconds) for the longest continuous note without changing tone or pitch.
SHINee are a 5 member group, with 4 active members. You only saw Onew in part of the "Hard" MV because, unfortunately, he is currently on hiatus due to his health. He went on hiatus in the middle of filming the MV, and wasn't able to participate in the rest of the shoot. It was announced June 9, when Onew was hospitalized for a short time, that he would take a doctor recommended rest. Therefore, he won't be participating in any of their comeback activities.
Key -- in the suit with the shorts -- is our fashionista of the group who is SHINee's stylist for a lot of their MVs and stage outfits. He is an amazing singer and is a sub-rapper in the group. (Notice how Key was singing through his clenched teeth in the last part of the song when they were all dressed in black. And he still sounded perfect while giving off the "Hard" vibes that the song required. Just one of the many unique elements of this song that only SHINee can pull off.) He is also considered SHINee's dance copy machine. Key has the ability to see and remember choreography the fastest in the group. He is also SHINee's fluent English speaker, and he is almost as good as a native speaker.
Minho -- the one with the red jacket with the epaulets -- is the main rapper and yes, he is the visual of the group, but his vocals are also some of the best in the industry. Minho sings just as much as he raps. He also writes most of his own raps in SHINee's songs. Minho is a top actor, and he has starred in numerous dramas and movies, starting way back in 2011. When not promoting with SHINee, he is almost always on the set of his latest drama or movie. He is also known as a star athlete. He says these days he goes to the gym a couple of times a day to work out, just because he likes to work out, but he also is crazy about soccer, and he plays basketball, baseball and golf, and he is good at track and field events, etc., as well. And, not only does he enjoy playing all those sports, but he is usually the best athlete on the field, and he pretty much wins every time. Minho's nickname is "Flaming Charisma," and one reason is for his intense passion for sports and games and his need to always win.
And, as mentioned, Taemin -- the blond -- is considered one of THE BEST dancers in the industry (one of the top 2 best dancers of all dancers in Kpop), and that's not just by fans, but by everyone in the industry, including his peers. Taemin's nickname is the Korean Michael Jackson. He is also one of the most popular male solo artists, and he is a member of the Kpop supergroup SuperM. Taemin truly is art when it comes to his performances.
Although Jonghyun wasn't in the MV -- because he passed more than 5 years ago -- in order to get to know SHINee, you have to get to know him as well. He is known as one of the best vocalist in Kpop, whose voice was unmatched. He also was one of the most prolific songwriters and composers of his generation. Jonghyun wrote and composed almost 40% of SHINee's songs, plus he wrote all of his own solo songs and numerous songs for other artists. He was one of the only SM artists to be given complete artistic control over his work, including several of SHINee's song selections. He was extremely respected within the industry as a songwriter, composer and singer. He was one of the very first Idols to be known for this songwriting and composing skills.
Once you get to know their voices, you will always be able to pick them out of a crowd just by the sound of their voice. Most fans will tell you we know who is speaking or singing within 1 second, even with our eyes closed, with them standing in a crowd of screaming fans. All 5 of their voices are that unique -- there is no one with a voice like any of theirs. That is why they are "The Princes of Kpop".
They always show a different version of themselves with this unique essence and what I love, they evolve with their music.
I love rap and melody and the bridge is divine.
There's a lot of symbolism in there, and Taemin said there's a lot of references to him, but oh my god, I'm obsessed with this album.
SHINee BACK
next JUICE
Don't Call Me
Love Shinee..Taemin my Ult ❤❤❤❤❤
Hahaha when she yelled out “F Yeah” … I feel you Sis me too 🥵
Juice performance please!!!
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I seen shinee and hit your subscribe button so fast!!!!! You have a new friend in me.... thank you for such a great reaction to the best amazing group of guys out there. Please react to taemin my favorite artist of all time.
Please reacction JUICE!!!❤
More SHINee please and Taemin
La imagen de su video IS NO SHINee
Check out shinee's entire discography and solo work including their live performances such as Minho during dynamite and key with born to shine. Not to mention Jonghyuns yi si fuerra Ella live.