Idea (song)
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''Never Gonna Dance Again'' is the third Korean
studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...
(fourth overall) by South Korean singer
Taemin Lee Tae-min (; born July 18, 1993), better known mononymously as Taemin, is a South Korean singer-songwriter, dancer, and actor. He debuted as a member of the South Korean boy band Shinee in May 2008 and the supergroup SuperM in 2019, both un ...
. It consists of two parts, ''Act 1'' and ''Act 2'', that were later collected together in the repackage album, ''Never Gonna Dance Again (Extended Ver.)''.


Background and release

It was initially reported that Taemin was preparing to make a comeback in July 2020. However, the comeback was delayed due to a wrist injury Taemin sustained while practicing choreography. On July 29, 2020,
SM Entertainment SM Entertainment Co., Ltd. () is a South Korean multinational entertainment agency established in 1995 by Lee Soo-man. It is one of South Korea's largest entertainment companies and has been responsible for fostering and popularizing the car ...
confirmed that Taemin would soon be releasing his third full album, ''Never Gonna Dance Again'', starting with the release of prologue single "2 Kids" on August 4, 2020. This was followed up by the release of the first half of the album, ''Never Gonna Dance Again: Act 1'', on September 7, accompanied by title track "
Criminal In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...
". The album features nine tracks, including "Criminal", "2 Kids" and a Korean version of the Japanese song "
Famous Famous may refer to: Companies * Famous Brands, a South African restaurant franchisor * Famous Footwear, an American retail store chain * Famous Music, the music publishing division of Paramount Pictures * Famous Studios, the animation division ...
", previously released by Taemin in 2019. Two remixes of "Criminal" by DJ Minit and Sumin were later released on September 29 as part of SM's iScreaM project. The second half of the album, ''Never Gonna Dance Again: Act 2'', was released on November 9, 2020, alongside lead single "Idea", which includes vocals by
BoA Boa, BoA, or BOA may refer to: Snakes * Any member of the Boidae, a family of medium to large, non-venomous, constricting snakes ** Any member of the Boinae, a subfamily of boid snakes *** Any member of ''Boa'' (genus), a group of boid snakes * ...
. The album also features the song "Be Your Enemy", a duet with
Wendy Wendy is a given name generally given to girls in English-speaking countries. In Britain during the English Civil War in the mid-1600s, a male Captain Wendy Oxford was identified by the Leveller John Lilburne as a spy reporting on his activit ...
of Red Velvet. The two "acts" were later released together in an album repackage entitled ''Never Gonna Dance Again (Extended Ver.)'' on December 14, 2020, which includes all eighteen tracks.


Music and lyrics

The album featured Taemin's highest level of creative involvement to date. Taemin described it as "a moment of growth for me as an artist," saying, "I just really wanted to emphasize my individual talent and showcase my character as an artist, my own individual style." The album is intended to reflect a turning point in Taemin's career, and themes of identity and rebirth are central to the overarching narrative. Taemin envisioned the series as a "cinematic story," comparing the separate parts to a movie and its sequels that can stand alone but form a complete narrative when brought together. According to Taemin, "''Act 1'' is about rebelling against the ordinary and the process of finding a new ego." Lead single "Criminal" is a
synthwave Synthwave (also called retrowave, or futuresynth) is an electronic music microgenre that is based predominantly on the music associated with the Film score, film soundtracks of action films, science fiction films, and horror films of the 1980s. ...
song with newtro sounds and a
Stockholm syndrome Stockholm syndrome is a proposed condition or theory that tries to explain why hostages sometimes develop a psychological bond with their captors. Emotional bonds can possibly form between captors and captives, during intimate time together, ...
theme. "Black Rose" features rapper
Kid Milli Choi Won-jae (, born October 26, 1993), better known by his stage name Kid Milli (), is a South Korean rapper. He released his first extended play, ''Maiden Voyage'', on February 23, 2017, and gained further recognition after finishing as the se ...
, and combines dark and colourful keyboard sounds with lyrics referencing a solar eclipse. "Strangers" is a dark pop song with an oriental melody. It describes the moment of meeting a past lover by chance and pretending to be strangers. "Waiting For" is a medium tempo dance track featuring a violin melody and Spanish guitar adlibs. "Famous" expresses the conflict between the artist's onstage and offstage persona. "Clockwork" is a
pop ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner. Ballads ...
that recalls memories of a former lover by incorporating the ticking sound of a clock. "Just Me And You" is an R&B pop song with a retro tape source, whispering vocals and heavy drum beats. R&B song "Nemo" makes use of rhythmic guitars and evokes a 90s sensibility. The final song on the album is prologue single "2 Kids", and includes lyrics written by Taemin concerning painful memories of love as a child. It is described as an
electropop Electropop is a popular music fusion genre combining elements of the electronic and pop styles. It has been described as a variant of synth-pop with emphasis on a hard electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a rev ...
song with warm guitar sounds, and is noted for showcasing a more emotional side to Taemin's vocals in contrast to his usual intense performance style. "Idea" is inspired by
Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born  BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...
's
theory of forms The Theory of Forms or Theory of Ideas, also known as Platonic idealism or Platonic realism, is a philosophical theory credited to the Classical Greek philosopher Plato. A major concept in metaphysics, the theory suggests that the physical w ...
and the allegory of the cave. Taemin described it thus: "instead of 'being trapped in a cave' and living in the shadow of the truth, I want to free myself from the darkness and embark on a journey of enlightenment where I discover a new ego, identity and meaning."


Track listing


Charts


Accolades


Release history


References

{{Authority control 2020 albums Taemin albums SM Entertainment albums IRiver albums Albums produced by Steve Manovski Albums produced by Lee Soo-man Dreamus albums