beenzino [12]
release date: 5.31.2016
artwork: IAB Studio
Beenzino’s full length album, [12] shows Beenzino’s full-range capabilities as not just a rapper but a musician and an artist. The tracks ‘Saturday Night,’ ‘I Don’t Mind,’ and “Being Myself’ exemplify Beenzino’s chill, fun beats dealing with fairly light themes that are both addicting and fun to sing along. In ‘I Don’t Mind,’ Beenzino raps about how he will ‘buy a one-way ticket’ to see a woman that he can’t take his mind off of. In ‘Being Myself’ he raps about how he is “too busy being himself” and doesn’t fit into one category as a musician, a fashionista, an artist, and the many other labels that follow him.
Generally, all the tracks resemble the style of the instrumentals of Jazzyfact, Beenzino’s group with producer Shimmy Twice. It is not a typical hip-hop album, and really shows Beenzino’s ability to mold his verses onto any stylistic beat. He also carries the theme of time throughout his tracks. The first track, ‘Time Travel,’ playfully deals with the idea of time travel as he goes back to 2004 when he imagines his future as a rapper.
시계는 못 본체하는 음악을 하고 싶어
나는 영어 단어론 Timeless
‘Imagine Time’ is a more serious beat about how he fights against the chase with time. Time is constantly ticking against him, and he looks back on the time he has lost in place of the much fame has gained.
Beenzino is truly a skilled storyteller and decorates his lyrics with wordplay and metaphor. His song, ‘So Wet (젖고있어),’ is a mellow song about how someone has broken his heart, or “rained” upon him. ‘So Wet’ is perhaps one of the most mellow songs on the album, but also the one that stands out the most. Beenzino manages to take the overtold story of heartbreak and put his own spin to it, which is what perhaps makes his music so timeless.