"Starlight" is a song by South Korean singers

Taeyeon Kim Tae-yeon (; born March 9, 1989), known mononymously as Taeyeon, is a South Korean singer. She debuted as a member of girl group Girls' Generation in August 2007, which went on to become one of the best-selling artists in South Korea and one ...

and Dean (South Korean singer), Dean, taken from Taeyeon's second extended play (EP), ''Why (Taeyeon EP), Why'' (2016). The song was released on June 25, 2016, by SM Entertainment as the EP's lead single. The song's lyrics were penned by Jam Factory (music publisher), Jam Factory's Lee Seu-ran, while its music was composed by Jamil "Digi" Chammas, Taylor Mckall, Tay Jasper, Adrian McKinnon, Leven Kali, Sara Forsberg, and MZMC. "Starlight" is a pop music, pop and contemporary R&B, R&B song that features synthesizers in its instrumentation. Its lyrics detail a romantic relationship. The single received generally positive reviews from music critics, who were favorable towards its musical styles and Dean's appearance. It peaked at number five on South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart and charted at number six on the US ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' World Digital Songs. A music video for the song was directed by Im Seong-gwan and was released simultaneously with the release of the song. Filmed in Los Angeles, California, the visual depicts Taeyeon and Dean as a loving couple. Although Taeyeon never performed the song live on music shows of South Korea, music shows, "Starlight" achieved the number-one spot on KBS2's ''Music Bank (TV series), Music Bank'' on July 8, 2016. The track was included on the setlist of Taeyeon's concert series Butterfly Kiss, taking place in Seoul and Busan in July and August 2016.

Background and composition

Taeyeon officially debuted as a solo singer in October 2015 with the extended play ''I (Taeyeon EP), I'', which was a commercial success, peaking at number two on South Korea's Gaon Album Chart and has sold over 140,000 copies in the country. Following the success of ''I'', Taeyeon released a single for S.M. Entertainment's digital music platform SM Station titled "Rain (Taeyeon song), Rain", which was a number-one hit on South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart. As her popularity consolidated, S.M. Entertainment announced on June 17, 2016, that Taeyeon's second extended play ''Why (Taeyeon EP), Why'' would be released on June 28. It was also announced that "Starlight" featuring alternative R&B singer Dean (South Korean singer), Dean would be released as the EP's lead single on June 25. "Starlight" is a midtempo 1990s Retro style#Film, music, fashion, and television, retro pop music, pop and contemporary R&B, R&B song which features "bright" synthesizers in its instrumentation. Meanwhile, a writer from Special Broadcasting Service wrote that "Starlight" drew influences from R&B and electronic dance music, EDM. The song's lyrics detail a romantic relationship with the lyrics "You are my starlight, shine on my heart / When I’m with you, it feels like I’m dreaming all day / You are my starlight, I get so happy / Your love is like a gift."

Reception

The single received generally positive reviews from music critics, who praised the song's musical styles. Jung So-young from OSEN (Online Sports and Entertainment News) described the song as having a "pleasant" feeling.

Promotion

Taeyeon embarked on a series of concerts titled Butterfly Kiss. The concert took place in Seoul at Olympic Park, Seoul, Olympic Park on July 9–10, 2016, and in Busan at the KBS Hall on August 6–7, 2016. "Starlight" was included on the setlist of the show, which consisted of 22 songs in total. In August 2019, she performed this song with NCT (band), NCT Jaehyun (singer), Jaehyun at 2019 SMTOWN Live in Tokyo

Credits and personnel

Credits are adapted from the CD liner notes of ''Why''. * Recorded at S.M. Blue Ocean Studio * Lyrics by Lee Seu-ran () (Jam Factory (music publisher)) * Composed by Jamil "Digi" Chammas, Taylor McKall, Tay Jasper, Adrian Mckinnon, Leven Kali, Sara Forsberg, MZMC * Arranged by Jamil "Digi" Chammas, Taylor McKall, Tay Jasper, Leven Kali * Administered by MARZ Music Group, LLC and MZMC Publishing

Charts

Accolades

Music program awards

Notes

References

{{Dean (South Korean singer) 2016 songs 2016 singles Dean (South Korean singer) songs Taeyeon songs Songs in Korean SM Entertainment singles Songs written by Sara Forsberg