Following a six-year break, Taeyang is back, and he’s kicking off an exciting new era of his career with “Vibe,” an upbeat love song that features Jimin of BTS — and it’s just a hint of all the upcoming music he has in store.
In South Korea, Taeyang has been a household name since making it big as part of the trailblazing K-pop boy group Big Bang, whose 2012 release Alive was the first Korean-language album to debut on the Billboard 200. In 2010, Taeyang — born Dong Youngbae — put out his first solo album Solar, which featured hits like “Wedding Dress.” His second solo album Rise made waves in 2014, becoming the highest charting K-pop album by a soloist on the Billboard 200, and songs like the effortless “Eyes, Nose, Lips” remain classics. But fans have been eagerly anticipating new music since 2017, when Taeyang released his last album White Night, before heading off in 2018 to complete mandatory military service in South Korea.
Luckily, Taeyang is ready to give his followers what they’ve been waiting for. On Jan. 13, he’s releasing “Vibe,” a song that’s fun and upbeat, and that will instantly make any listener want to get up and dance. It’s a nice contrast to the R&B tracks he’s known for, and somehow it feels nostalgic and trendy at the same time. On top of all that, the track features Jimin of BTS, who, like Taeyang, is known as a multi-faceted artist who can sing and dance. A collaboration with any members of Big Bang and BTS felt almost impossible at one point, and yet here we are.
A day before the release of “Vibe,” Rolling Stone met with Taeyang in the Hapjeong area of Seoul. Sitting in the offices of THEBLACKLABEL, the affiliate of his longtime home YG Entertainment that he just signed to, Taeyang opened up about how his collaboration with Jimin happened and shared what he’s been up to since completing his mandatory military service in 2019. At the end of our conversation, he points to a Chrome Hearts Rolling Stones bracelet he’s wearing. “This was one of the first gifts my members bought me,” he says. He put it on as a way to celebrate his Rolling Stone interview.
First things first, congratulations! You have so many fans that have been waiting for new music. Is there a specific moment that made you decide it was time to return?
Thank you. I think the main thing was that the music itself was ready. Following the transition from YG to THEBLACKLABEL, I was able to immediately put everything I had prepared into motion.
It feels like a new start. How do you feel right now, one day ahead of the release?
Honestly, any time a release date approaches, I think I have the same feeling: I feel really nervous and also really worried. But on the other hand, I’m very excited thinking about meeting with fans since it’s been so long and I’m looking forward to it.
“Vibe” features Jimin of BTS. Can you walk us through how the collaboration came about? I heard Jimin admires your work.
I had heard that for a while, too. However, we never overlapped while promoting music so I wasn’t fully aware. About two years ago, though, Teddy at THEBLACKLABEL was watching me work — that was at a time when the BTS members weren’t doing many solo activities — and Teddy mentioned in passing that he thought people would really enjoy it if I got together with Jimin to collaborate on a great song. That really stuck with me and I thought it was a great idea, so I always had it in mind.
And then last summer, I had the opportunity to meet with the members of BTS at various private gatherings and events. Through that, we naturally had meals together, and I met Jimin as well. The conversation came up very organically, like, ‘There’s some music we’ve put together, do you have interest in working together?’ and he said he would really love to. After that, he came to our studio, we played…
Read More: Taeyang Returns to Music With “Vibe,” Featuring Jimin of BTS – Rolling Stone