Was anyone else shocked when he announced he was going to be doing a solo debut? Just me?

I wasn’t shocked because I thought he’d never do it, more like I was shocked because it was a surprise. I thought he dyed his hair for a group comeback but then the solo was announced and I was like *shocked Pikachu*.

The news came so fast and then the teasers came out promptly after. We’ve been hit by a whammy of news lately by Monsta X and it’s been fun.

I greatly anticipated the debut so of course I have to talk about it. If you’ve seen my blog lately, I have fallen into the Monsta X well.

Maybe that’s what they’re looking down at in those concept photos, not a grave but a well. And they’re looking at us MonBebe’s stuck there (happily).

Anyhoo, on with the show.

HYPE ENERGY

If you’re looking for a track where it’s pure rapper Joohoney, this is the one. He comes with the fire. He spits his bars 1000 miles per minute.

It’s really good, but of course, it’s Jooheon.

I really like the lyrics. He’s talking about himself, that hype side of himself full of energy and his journey as a rapper. You would think there would diss rap elements to it but there isn’t.

I like that he can hype himself up without putting others down. That also fits in line with the theme of the album, light.

Yeah, I enjoyed this track.

Voice

Listening to the album snippet this was my favourite. I then heard that it’s a song he’s performed before but now he’s officially releasing it.

The cons of being a new MonBebe.

Having listened to the whole song, I love it. I love his voice and him rapping, it really hypes me up. Then the singing in the background, chorus like and rousing! Then we have the guitar going off in the middle!

This song has captured that concert energy they (Monsta X) has so perfectly!

This would be my song as I get announced in my career as a WWE fighter.

“And now we have Giftielicious!!!!”

*Voice starts playing*

I come out dressed in pink!

I’m sorry I’m never wearing all white, but you get the picture. This song is so perfect for that!

I’m sad it’s so short, but at the same time, the length works. But at the same time, I wouldn’t be mad at another verse.

FREEDOM

This song captures all that he has been saying in the lead up to the album drop. He’s been talking about how he’s going to show new sides of himself, how he’s embracing all of himself and how he wants to shine a light for others.

At first I did not get the song, the first twist in the song truly caught me by surprise. I was like, “Yes! Sing!” Then all of a sudden, ‘Ground will tremble, sky will rumble…’ and it wasn’t just the change in tone that was shocking it was the visuals.

I was like, “Yo, where your pupils at?”

I love that, that was a total surprise. As in no where in the teasers or released pictures did we see that look. He was right when he said whatever we’re expecting we’re going to be surprised because he has more tricks up his sleeve.

There is another twist with the dance break but I feel like it fits in with the song. (That transition though! From undignified?! That was smooth) It’s hype but calm. It’s not overly hype, it’s like a confident quiet hype.

That’s how I feel about the song as a whole. It’s got a calm assuredness to it. I feel like that fits in with him accepting himself and all aspects of himself from the cute honey bee to the intense rapper.

Also, people can’t be defined in one way, so in that vein this song can’t be defined in one way.

So, I feel like the song takes me on a journey. The lyrics also reflect that. In getting to this place he has found freedom. When you can be truly yourself you can be free. He doesn’t fit in any box, he’s just Joohoney and in that he’s free.

I love the music video and the different looks. He goes from free and happy, feet out and all, to glow in the dark monsta, to his pre debut look (am I wrong or is this what MonBebes were referring to on Twitter?), to disco ball. Disco ball is my favourite. When the light is bouncing off him and the dancers are dancing around him in a circle…! Yes. That was the one.

진화 (Evolution)

The anime song. The internet is right, this song is perfect for an OST! You heard him in the live, contact him! Stat!

I love me a song that has anime theme song vibes. Bleach had the best openings and that’s when my love affair started. So, of course, I like this song.

Even the lyrics follow the arc of a shonen protagonist. The striving for a better them, the struggle to get there and the triumph in reaching their goals.

The song is called Evolution and so it’s the evolution of Joohoney. I can see that in the lyrics.

I like the line:

‘Crawling is better than nothing, I know I’m still evolving, till I feel I’m done, let me fly up on my way.’

He seems to love the oh, oh, ohs. You know the ones. This is the third variation we’ve had. Although, the ones in Hype Energy didn’t sound exactly like ohs.

I feel like others can relate to the lyrics of the song. For me, the journey from 20s to 30s has been turbulent, so the song does speak to me.

독백 Ft. GSoul

I’ve said this already in my post about my favourite Joohoney raps but I love his lyricism. I love how he strings words together. I love how he expresses himself through the lyrics of his songs. This song is another one to add to my list of favs because yes!

I do love my hype songs but also love me some finger snapping music, some light jazz. I love soft melodic rapping as much as I do hype intense rapping.

This song hit the spot.

He’s talking about how he doesn’t want to be defined and in this song he explicitly does talk about not wanting to be put in a box. He talks about how each part of his journey has been important in making him the man he is today, even the dark moments which to him are not all that dark because there was light in those moments.

He tells himself that he loves him. I love that! That may be my favourite part of the song.

So beautiful.

And GSoul’s voice! It’s pure gold, pure honey! And his voice fits so well with the smooth jazz of the song. *chef’s kiss*.

I have a headache right now, so listening to this song is really soothing. I love the piano solo section and just the softness of the whole song.

The softness also adds to the sincerity of his words.

Don’t Worry Be Happy

He has said that this song is a song for the fans, the MonBebes.

The song does what it says on the tin. It is uplifting, it is warm and comforting. No really, the vibes are genuinely warm. I listen to it and I can feel the comforting energy being sent from Joohoney himself from Korea to me.

It’s the perfect song to end the album and the perfect song to follow 독백. The album flows well in general to be honest.

The lyrics are also lovely. Nah, it’s so sweet. We can get through this together, the dark times, and step into the light. We are each other’s comfort and strength.

We also got some soft ohs in this song.

Overall, I like the album. It’s a solid start to Joohoney’s solo career. It’s a very, This is Me, album. It’s like he’s introducing himself again but also paying homage to where he has come from and how far he has come. At the end of the day he has been in the industry almost ten years.

My only con, it’s too short!

Hommie! Please, give us more (in your own time ofc).

I don’t know my favourite in this mini album just yet. I want to marinate and enjoy before picking one. I will say Evolution and Voice are fighting it out. But then again I really like 독백… yeah I don’t know.

What’s your favourite?