Although she is due to debut in a new girl group, Woolim Entertainment‘s latest female artist JIN released a solo track in early November called Gone to demonstrate her vocal talent.
Concept
The song talks about the feelings towards a loved one who is not here any more and a reflection on the good memories, feeling their presence is still there but also missing them deeply. After reading the lyric translations it occurred to me this intertwines rather well with the MV itself and makes the song even more heartbreaking. What never was could never be. Example of the lyrics – In the places where our future and my hopes still have to be made, I’m standing there because I miss you so much
In the music video, young actress Kim Yoo Jung and Xiumin from EXO provide the story here and you don’t see JIN‘s face at all. Her strong voice is able to carry the message of the song throughout the video. Yoo Jung and Xiumin portray piano students who meet by chance at their teacher’s house. Xiumin is having a lesson before her and is distracted by her arrival, much to the annoyance of his strict teacher (who seems to remind me a little of Claude Faustus from Anime series Kuroshitsuji. It’s his suit and glasses). He doesn’t know who this girl is as the butler escorts him away once his lesson is finished. The next day when Yoo Jung is having a lesson the teacher storms out of the room after a mistake she made and after finding out she is partially blind, Xiumin sneaks in to help her out, feeding her her favourite sweet from a jar…but not before having his pills first when he starts to feel pain in his chest.
After becoming acquainted and sneakily hanging out together like any loved up youngsters, Xiumin and Kim Yoo Jung are unfortunately separated when their meeting is discovered. Both parties are emotionally hurt in the process but when you watch the next scenes you may be able work out why this had to happen. I don’t want to give too much away on the scenes leading to the end of the video as I think everyone should watch it and embrace the emotion in the song.
Here is the music video. Brace yourself for a heavy tug to the heart if you’re one of those people who gets emotional quickly.
[youtube id=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJXmOugipmg”]UK Potential: 3.5/5
Overall: JIN‘s vocal style reminds me a great deal of ballad queen Lee Soo Young. Her voice is gentle and even when hitting slightly higher notes she has no requirement to be overpowering when she wants to express her feelings through song. This could definitely appeal to younger listeners who have experienced a similar situation as the characters in the video and as it’s a slow pop ballad that tells a simple but sad love story it could do well here.
MV highlights
– Kim Yoo Jung‘s subtle kiss to Xiumin‘s finger when he fed her a sweet.
– When Xiumin lets Kim Yoo Jung feel his heartbeat while she is feeling his facial features.
– The intense “thud” while Xiumin plays the piano after he comes back to the teacher’s house and the song just stops for a few seconds, allowing the emotion to sink in.
– How the teacher continued the melody Xiumin was playing near the end of the video.
