''Echo'' is the second

extended play An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

(EP) by South Korean singer Jin of

BTS BTS (), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010. The band consists of Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jung Kook, who co-write or co-produce much of their material. Originally a hip hop group, they ...

, released on May 16, 2025, through

Big Hit Music Big Hit Music (, stylized in all caps), formerly Big Hit Entertainment (), is a South Korean record label established in 2005 by Bang Si-hyuk. It was re-branded and re-structured into an independent label under Hybe Corporation (formerly Big Hi ...

Background and release

''Echo'' was announced on April 15, with Big Hit Music confirming that the album would contain seven tracks, including the lead single " Don't Say You Love Me" on April 17. The album features a guest appearance from Yena on the track "Loser". In support of the album, Jin will embark on his first solo world tour RunSeokjin Ep. Tour.

Composition

''Echo'' consists of seven tracks. It has been described as a

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre and form of rock music characterized by a strong commercial appeal, with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock musi ...

album that delves into influences of "Eighties-style

synth pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s b ...

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

, and various sub-genres of

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

, including Brit rock,

pop punk Pop-punk (also punk-pop, alternatively spelled without the hyphen) is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop music, pop. It is defined by its fast-paced, energetic tempos, and emphasis on classic pop s ...

country rock Country rock is a music genre that fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal sty ...

metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

, and

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

. Thematically, ''Echo'' was noted to be based on Jin's perspective on universal life experiences, with the record "capturing everyday emotions with warmth and sincerity". In a track-by-track review on ''Billboard'', Jeff Benjamin noted that the EP once again included rock as the genre that "shaped in'smusical identity," but contained "deeper stories ompared to ''Happy''that can resonate on a more human level."

Critical reception

Writing for '' Clash'', Maria Leticia Gomes positively described the album as introspective and cohesive, recognizing Jin's emotive delivery as its key strength. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

Rob Sheffield Robert James Sheffield (born February 2, 1966) is an American music journalist and author. He is a long time contributing editor at ''Rolling Stone'', writing about music, TV, and pop culture. Previously, he was a contributing editor at '' Blen ...

scored ''Echo'' three and a half out of five stars, labeling it as an "expansively romantic" album defined by "the confidence of a star who'd never been away". In a mixed review, Rhian Daly of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' praised the album for its emotive vocal delivery but commented on the inconsistent quality of its music, noting that "not everything works".

Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.

Musicians

* Jin – vocals *

Pdogg Kang Hyo-won (; born September 19, 1983), known professionally as Pdogg (Korean: 피독), is a South Korean record producer and songwriter for Big Hit Music. He has produced and composed for artists such as 8Eight, Baek Ji-young, BTS, Jo Kwon, a ...

– vocal

arrangement In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchestr ...

(all tracks); drum programming, keyboards, programming (tracks 2–7); guitar (2, 3), bass (2), synthesizer (3) * Wyatt Sanders – background vocals, bass, keyboards, vocal arrangement (track 1) * Tiggs – guitar, programming, vocal arrangement (track 1) * Nathan Fertig – background vocals (track 1) * James Keys – background vocals (tracks 2, 3, 5–7), guitar (4) * Shin Min – strings conductor (tracks 2, 5) * Yung String – violin (tracks 2, 5) * Matt Thomson – bass, drum programming, guitar, keyboards, programming (tracks 2, 3) * Max Graham – bass, drum programming, guitar, keyboards, programming (tracks 2, 3) * Matt Attard – drum programming, keyboards, programming (tracks 2, 3); bass, guitar (2) * Ben Samama – background vocals (track 2) * Full8loom – background vocals (track 3) * Ghstloop – drum programming, keyboards, programming (track 4) * Oscar Bell – background vocals (track 4) * Xin Qiao – background vocals (track 4) * Noogi Park – bass (tracks 4–7) * Ryu In-hyeok – guitar (track 4) * Young – guitar (tracks 5–7) *

Yojiro Noda , is a Japanese singer, songwriter, musician, record producer and actor. Noda is the lead vocalist, songwriter and guitarist of the Japanese rock band Radwimps and also began a solo project, illion, in 2012. Life and career Early life, Ra ...

– bass, guitar, keyboards, programming (track 5)

Technical

Chris Gehringer Chris Gehringer (born May 27, 1962) is an American mastering engineer at Sterling Sound in New Jersey. Gehringer is known for having mastered recordings by popular artists such as AJR, Dua Lipa, Drake, Ed Sheeran, Gwen Stefani, Harry Styles, ...

– mastering *

Mark "Spike" Stent Mark "Spike" Stent (born 3 August 1965) is an English record producer and mixing engineer who has worked with many international artists including Madonna, Marshmello, U2, Beyoncé, Björk, Depeche Mode, Echo & the Bunnymen, Grimes, Ed Sheeran, ...

– mixing (tracks 1, 3, 4) * James F. Reynolds – mixing (track 2) *

Manny Marroquin Manny Marroquin (born September 21, 1971) is a Guatemalan-American record mixing engineer. He has been credited on albums for high-profile pop, R&B, hip hop and rock acts. He has worked with artists including Rihanna, Kanye West, Katy Perry ...

– mixing (track 5) * Yang Ga – mixing (tracks 6, 7) * Pdogg –

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

, sound editing * Wyatt Sanders – engineering (track 1) * James Keys – engineering (tracks 2, 3, 5–7) * Matt Thomson – engineering (tracks 2, 3) * Kim Kyung-tae – engineering (tracks 2, 5) * Oh Hyun-seok – engineering (tracks 2, 5) * Matt Attard – engineering (track 2) * Max Graham – engineering (track 2) * Full8loom – engineering (track 3) * Oscar Bell – engineering (track 4) * Ghstloop – engineering (tracks 5–7), sound editing (2–7) * Young – engineering (tracks 5–7) * Yojiro Noda – engineering (track 5) * Kieran Beadrmore – mixing assistance (tracks 1, 3, 4) * Matt Wolach – mixing assistance (tracks 1, 3, 4) * James Cunningham – mixing assistance (track 2) * Ben Rugg – mixing assistance (track 5) * Chris Galland – mixing assistance (track 5)

Charts

Weekly charts

Monthly charts

Certifications

References

{{Jin (singer) 2020s Korean-language albums 2025 EPs Hybe Corporation EPs Jin (singer) albums Pop rock EPs Albums produced by Pdogg