"Save Me" (stylized as "Save ME") is a song by South Korean boy group

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 ...

from their

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...

'' The Most Beautiful Moment In Life: Young Forever'' (2016). The original Korean version was released by Big Hit on May 2, 2016, in South Korea. The Japanese single version was released on September 7, 2016, on their album ''

Youth Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood (Maturity (psychological), maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as bei ...

'', under

Universal Music Japan , often referred to as just Universal Music Japan or UMJ, is a Japanese subsidiary of the Universal Music Group founded in 1990. It is the largest subsidiary for a foreign company in Japan regarding music distribution. The company is responsible ...

and Virgin Music-Def Jam Recordings. The song is widely considered as one of the group’s signature songs.

Music and lyrics

"Save Me" is a

tropical house Tropical house, also known as trop house, is a subgenre of house music, and a derivation of tropical music, with elements of dancehall and Balearic house. Artists of the genre are often featured at various summer festivals such as Tomorrowland. ...

and

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 ...

track. ''

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 ...

''s Rhian Daly described it as "deceptively bright and bouncy – an aural carnival that masks the pleas for help in the lyrics." The song opens with energetic

synth A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...

sound that sonically develops towards tropical house sound. The song contains a speedy rhythm and a "frenetic" chorus. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' described it as "powerfully subtle". Lyrically, it deals with the theme of salvation. The song was written by Pdogg, Ray Michael Djan Jr, Ashton Foster, Samantha Harper, RM, Suga, and J-Hope with Pdogg serving as the primary producer. Musically, it is in the key of D♭ major and is 140 beats per minute.

Promotion

The music video for "Save Me", released in conjunction with the single was produced and directed by GDW. The music video, which was notably filmed in a one-shot take shows BTS members singing and performing intense choreography against the wind, in the backdrop of low-lying clouds that maximize the atmosphere and convey the emotions of a lyrically sad song. The dance was choreographed by The Quick Style Crew. As of February 2023, the visual has garnered over 700 million views. BTS decided to promote on music shows only for a week, performing on

Mnet M-Net (an abbreviation of Electronic Media Network) is a South African pay television channel established by Naspers in 1986. The channel broadcasts both local and international programming, including general entertainment, children's series, ...

, KBS, MBC and SBS as planned to allow for individual activities, performances and overseas schedules, starting with ''

M! Countdown ''M Countdown'' () is a South Korean music program broadcast by Mnet from the CJ E&M Center Studio in Sangam-dong, Mapo District, Seoul. It features appearances by popular music artists who also perform live on stage. First hosted by Leete ...

'' on May 12. The song was promoted at the 2018

MBC Plus X Genie Music Awards The Genie Music Awards () is a music awards show that is held annually in South Korea and organized by Genie Music together with their partner network. The award winners are selected based on chart data from the Genie Music Genie Music () ...

performances as well.

Commercial performance

BTS topped Billboard World Digital Songs with "Save Me", the number 1 spot being taken by their other single "

Fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a fuel in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products. Flames, the most visible portion of the fire, are produced in the combustion re ...

". The videos for "Save Me" ranked second on Most Viewed K-Pop Videos in America, Around the World: May 2016 list revealed by ''Billboard''.

Credits and personnel

The Korean credits are adapted from the CD liner notes of '' The Most Beautiful Moment In Life: Young Forever''. *Pdogg – producer, keyboard, synthesizer * "Hitman" Bang – producer * Rap Monster – producer *

Suga Min Yoon-gi (; born March 9, 1993), known professionally by his stage names Suga (; stylized in all caps) and Agust D, is a South Korean rapper, songwriter and record producer. He debuted as a member of the South Korean boy band BTS in June ...

– producer *Devine Channel – producer *

Jungkook Jeon Jung-kook (; born September 1, 1997), better known as Jung Kook, is a South Korean singer and songwriter. He rose to prominence as a member and vocalist of South Korean boy band BTS. He has performed three solo songs as part of BTS' disc ...

– chorus *Slow Rabbit – vocal and rap arrangement, recording engineer @ Carrot Express *Sam Klempner – mix engineer

Charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Save Me 2016 singles Songs in Korean Songs in Japanese BTS songs 2016 songs Songs written by RM (musician) Songs written by J-Hope Songs written by Suga Hybe Corporation singles Song recordings produced by Pdogg