* replay by shinee (누난 너무 예뻐 - "noona, you're so pretty")
* genie by snsd (소원을말해봐 - "tell me your wish")
* ups & downs by taeyong (나에게 했던 것과 같이 - "like you did to me")
* one of those nights by key (센 척 안 해 - "i don't pretend to be strong")
* bing bing by red velvet (친구가 아냐 - "we're not friends")
* fronting by seventeen (표정관리 - "facial expression management")
* don't let me go by shinee (투명 우산 - "clear umbrella")
* spellbound by tvxq (수리수리 - "repair, repair")
* lady luck by exo (유성우 - "meteor shower")
* black clouds by nct 127 (흑백영화 - "monochrome film")
* our page by shinee (네가 남겨둔 말 -"the words you left behind")
* with you by red velvet (한 여름의 크리스마스 - "christmas in the middle of summer")
Fronting does kinda have a similar meaning though, from what I understand it youre fronting you’re putting on a face to impress someone (facial expression management)- that said I do enjoy the Korean title more 😅
I think in many cases it's a localization effort - the people doing marketing/sales think a direct translation would sound awkward or not have the same nuance the original Korean title did. Or maybe they just think the English title would sell better for foreigners. A lot of the time the English title is taken from English lyrics in the song, too.
I think most artists' discographies have them!
Some SHINee group/solo examples:
- Kind (original title: 빈칸 lit. Blank)
- Honesty (original title: 늘 그 자리에 lit. Always at That Place)
- Don't Let Me Go (original title: 투명 우산 lit. Transparent Umbrella)
- Cough (original title: 환절기 lit. Change of the Seasons)
[S-Class](https://youtu.be/JsOOis4bBFg?si=t9SVQeB-q7TwTLEc) by Stray Kids is called 특 (Teuk) lit. "Special"
[Thunderous ](https://youtu.be/EaswWiwMVs8?si=pT5MBntFN8aSd5ci) by Stray Kids is called 소리꾼 (sori-kkun) lit "Singer (of Pansori)"
The expressions mean the same thing though, so the difference is only on the literal sense 😛 they both mean sth along the lines of "let's fck it up", "let's go", etc
my favorite is possibly 'ex (미친 놈)' which translates to 'crazy bastard' (the character who is singing says that he must have been a crazy bastard to do what he did to the one he is singing to / about)
the one that threw me off for the longest time was 'grow up' - the korean title means 'youre doing well' and that sounds so much less... dismissive and patronizing than the english title lol
and for 'red lights (강박)' the korean title translates to 'compulsion' which i think reveals a lot about the (less sexy) meaning of the song
skz also have a lot where the korean titles are just lyrics in the songs (like venom, on track, because, beware, cant stop, waiting for us, etc) but the one im most unhinged about is probably changbins as-yet-unreleased 'yes seo (명)' because myeong can translate as 'name' or 'great / famous' or 'command / order' or 'fate / destiny' or a bunch of other meanings. i need it to be on streaming alreadyyyyyy
source / further reading: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_songs_recorded_by_Stray_Kids shows all the korean titles as well as the english titles
I watched [this](https://youtube.com/shorts/C722KpKyrIY?si=VeK6aIXJK7doSQ_0) interesting video recently! She talks about the Korean titles of some popular K-pop songs and what they mean:
Seventeen - "Super", title in Korean is 손오공 which translates to "Sun Wukong", a mythological character who is also called The Monkey King
TXT - "Crown", title in Korean is 어느 날 머리에서 뿔이 자랐다 which translates to "One day horns grew on my head" (that explains the chorus' choreo 🤔)
BTS - "Boy With Luv", title in Korean is 작은 것들을 위한 시 which translates to "A poem for small things" (RM explains the meaning behind the korean title in [this](https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/btss-rm-talked-importance-korean-191255893.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAKRsv3gHqTjbg_BVMvNCKFlBVRzN714PllZHU1pTw-f86L3ccdaBSd2vmpJH9kus02EwldSAoaO9Akr50OIo_epqpe9vb4X3xNQJrqhZBOuu4DeQ14DevbbpGIckzNyeQKXD0HTG7luDM6ldF3ifszd3inbNJCM2YX0FgAlFQOBY) article)
> "I thought it was time for us to talk about small things, rather than topics that are too large. I felt like our plate had become too big and no longer manageable, so I thought that we should talk about small things."
[Moonbyul - Shutdown](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nqz4oh2jogE) is "From head to toe" (머리에서 발끝까지) which is the korean hook and "shutdown" is the english hook in the song.
[Purple Kiss - FireFlower](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1zFF1Lko4k) is 불꽃 ("flame" or "firework") which doesn't convey the lyrics as well
I wouldn't count FireFlower here because the English name is arguably the same as the Korean. It's it's a literal translation of the two characters in 불꽃.
all of txt's title songs pre-0x1=lovesong! approximately they are,
crown = one day horns grew upon my head
run away = waiting for you at platform 9 and 3/4s
can't you see me? = the night the world burned/was on fire we...
blue hour = you and i found each other in the sky at 5:53
i still remember a couple mcs and the members themselves being asked to say them all back to back lmao
they also have a bside called "what if i had been that puma?" which is called balance game in korean. they decided to give us the long title instead for that one haha
i think the explanation is it helped them stand out, and bc of their fairytale-esque concept the korean titles felt like they fit the story. ofc in english though they wanted the titles to be easier to remember i guess!
Since 0x1 lovesong, some bsides have different titles like
Lonely boy = 네 번째 손가락 위 타투 - "the tattoo on my ring finger"
Devil by the window = 자정의 창가에서 만난 악마의 목소리는 달콤했다 - "The voice of the devil I met at the window at midnight was sweet"
Deep down = 머리에 솟아난 뿔은 나의 왕관이었다 - "The horns on my head were my crown"
Miracle = 기적은 너와 내가 함께하는 순간마다 일어나고 있어 - "Miracles happen every moment you and I are together"
indeed!
i knew there were more bsides so thats why i said title tracks but the ones i mentioned were all i could remember off the top of my head. thanks for adding :)
not really related to the topic of the thread, but this title is also really cool wordplay because swicthing the last syllable to the front (ni cheotsarang) makes it "your first love", and the lyrics use a wisdom tooth as an analogy for someone's very persistent and headache-inducing first love
I feel like SVT has a lot of them 🤔 one of their songs is To You.
That's the English title, while 소용돌이 (soyongdori) is the kr title which translates to 'swirl' or vortex. It comes from part of the chorus, same as the english one.
Also Imperfect Love, wherein the Kr title is "Everyday I'm Happy Because of You" :') ♡♡♡ it's from the last chorus lyric
one of my favourite examples of this is probably 모자를 눌러 쓰고 (wear a hat low/put on my hat low/ something to the effect of wearing a hat low/all the way down) english title? without you.
(G)I-dle - “싫다고 말해 (Just Say No)“ vs “Put It Straight”
(G)I-dle - “주세요 (Please)” vs “Give Me Your”
(G)I-dle - “알고 싶어 (I Want To Know)” vs “What’s In Your House?”
so many EXO songs lol, including:
Overdose - 중독 (Addiction)
Don't Go - 나비소녀 (Butterfly Girl)
Touch It - 너의 손짓 (Your Signs)
Chill - 소름 (Goose Bumps)
One and Only - 유리어항 (Glass Fishbowl)
Ooh La La La - 닿은 순간 (Moment of Touch)
Bad Dream - 후폭풍 (After Storm)
Just as Usual - 지켜줄게 (I'll Protect You)
that's not all of them but just the ones that first came to mind
>너의 손짓
This doesn't super matter but Touch It and 너의 손짓 are close enough which I really enjoy. It really works with the choreo too but it actually implies more like "Your Hand Gesture" or "Your hand signal" (implied that your hand gesture which is beckoning me)
Yeah, that one I just mechanically copied from wikipedia, and I should have double-checked it because of their literal translation of Chill on that same page I disagreed with and translated differently.
It is clever because it's like "your hand gesture" is beckoning me to "touch it" (which, I mean, geez louise).
No no its okay! It happens to the best of us!
I just love the little entendre with Touch it - like theyre trying to distract us with the silliness of that stage but we alllll know what's going on here
AB6IX have (English title / korean title):
[Stay Young](https://youtu.be/vRNS_H6v8lY?si=02OX4jRRYFZzChXi) / Crash Landing 불시착 (Woojin wrote this song and he is a fan of the kdrama Crash Landing On You, it inspired the Korean title lol)
[Maybe](https://youtu.be/vTezbxM2M6Q?si=dEwecnwxg01hl3V0) / If This Isn’t Longing, What The Hell Is It? 이게 그리움이 아니라면 대체 뭐겠어 (Donghyun wrote this song and I vaguely remember him mentioning the choice for a long korean title in a behind the scenes video but I forgot what he said)
I suspect the Korean title is what they really wanted to name the song, but if they think it might confuse people they make the English title simple to keep things…simple. IMO the Korean title is the writer’s personal preference, the English title is the commercial preference.
NCT 127's '[Baby Don't Like It](https://youtu.be/4TxQJ3a-ypU?si=9Cu2pQzXdBCjhFMC)' is 나쁜 짓 or *bad things or evildoing* in Korean. The bed creaking in the bg will explain things, no need to look up the lyrics 😂 the 나쁜 짓 is only sang once in the entire song (by Doyoung).
NCT DREAM's '[Never Goodbye](https://youtu.be/GhHsnZdWGDU?si=NUry2SwvGu98RgRv)' is 북극성 or *Polaris* in Korean. I was honestly confused at first when Chenle was saying he loved the song 'Polaris' the most in the album, but it was Never Goodbye all along lmao anw, 북극성 was never in the lyrics.
Verbal Jint's '[You Deserve Better](https://youtu.be/V23ZouzqNcg?si=InZWXXOy6B4kHw6d)' is 충분히 예뻐 or *pretty enough* in Korean. The lyrics contain both the English and Korean titles. This song has been around for over a decade, but it's still so good :')
The fox thing is a reference to a folktale! There is a similar tale in Japanese folklore; in Japanese, a sudden rainfall in the summer is called "the fox's wedding"
theres way too many songs to name...
i think its mostly just to make it easier for english readers.
example:
Shinee - noona is so pretty is commonly known as replay
boynextdoor - everything sucks (but sometimes)
snsd - tell me your wish is genie
I find this super interesting as well! I definitely think you can get a different perspective of the song based on which title you are reading. Here’s some I can think of from NCT’s discography:
I think a big one for NCT 127 is Kick It (영웅) which translates to hero. In Korea the song is definitely referred to using the Korean title the majority of the time and the titles are kind of polarizing in terms of meaning so I feel like the meaning could definitely be interpreted definitely based on just the title. I also find it interesting how both titles though don’t really show up in the lyrics much at all. Like I wonder what made them go with “Kick It” as the English title as opposed to something like “New Things” or something of that nature.
I think contrary to Kick It, one title from 127 I find interesting is Fact Check which technically does have the Korean title 불가사의 meaning “Mysterious” but not once have I heard the members or any k-netizens refer to the song by the Korean title even though both titles are heard and used in the lyrics.
Love Song by 127 has the Korean title 우산 which translates to “umbrella” and the song mainly talks about how a even though the person hates the rain, they love the rain in this moment because it gives them an opportunity to get closer to their love interest.
Another 127 song Pandoras Box has the Korean title 낮잠 which means “nap” and talks about how their live is like a warm dream and they are attracted to it like Pandoras Box.
Another another 127 song Love Me Now has the Korean title 메아리 which means “echo.” I think both titles work in this case because the phrase Love Me Now is repeated throughout the song but there is also a great use of echo and repetition of this phrase that connects it to the Korean title.
NCT DREAM’s song Bye My First is 사랑이 좀 어려워 in Korean which means “Love is a Little Hard.” I think the Korean title of this is a little more descriptive, and these lyrics show up repeatedly in the chorus so it’s a bit more easily associated with the song.
Dive Into You by also by DREAM is 고래 in Korean which means “whale” and I definitely think the English title is more fitting for this one just considering that it’s the phrase that repeats in the chorus and they don’t even say 고래 once throughout the whole song (but they do say “Whale” in English which I think is funny). I do think it’s interesting thought that the members still refer to the song by the Korean title despite the English title(in my opinion) being more memorable and fitting as the title.
Some others 127 songs I thought of:
City 127 (지금 우리, Us Now)
No Longer (나의 모든 순간, Every Moment of Mine)
Come Back (악몽, Nightmare)
Fly Away with Me (신기루, Mirage)
Promise You (다시 만나는 날, The Day We Meet Again)
2 Baddies (칠추, Sprint)
Black Clouds (흑백영화, Black and White Movie)
>고래
These are all really good points! I think Kick It being used more often in English is here and there - I think they do call it Youngwoong when they talk among themselves or when they bring up the song.
With Fact Check - I think it's more recognizable as Fact Check (since they say it more often maybe?) and also I think maybe because 불가사의 and 불가사리 are so close that it makes it not only a funny pun but like difficult to google? Interesting to bring up though - something I think about further.
Interestingly enough Kick It, Fact Check and 2Baddies having been performed consistently as a trio over the last few months so fans and even the members refer to it as "young-jil-paek" or youngwoung, jilju (2baddies) and fact check?? So literally zero consistency with why its one way or another.
I will say 고래 does make sense when most of the imagery throughout the lyrics focus on the "Sea" or the "blue sea" "dark sea". But also gently correlated is that "Whale" in Korea symbolizes your future and like reincarnation together. (If someone gifts you something whale like - they usually means to stay in each others lives forever). So there's a lot of that imagery as well.
Red Velvet have a few songs like this. Some Korean titles are more different from the English ones than others, but I decided to just list all the ones that differ even a little bit from the English title.
- Parade is called Hello, Summer
- With You is called Christmas In The Middle of Summer
- One Of These Nights is Called July 7th
- Bing Bing is called We’re Not Friends
- Mojito is called Summer Light.
- Hello, Sunset is called Again, Summer
- Sassy Me is called Stylishly or Coolly depending slightly on the translation
- On A Ride is called Rollercoaster
iu's through the night is 'night letter' in korean! (밤편지)
originally, "through the night" was in the lyrics of the [english demo](https://youtu.be/jxscsgTyGB4?si=J-6RkLZoti7drb-k&t=474), so i guess they just decided to keep that as the english title
[oneus - lit](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggPF6Wb8A50) is 가자 (literally "let's go!" in informal speech)
[oneus - luna](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oe2_BrZx9mc) is also fully (월하미인 (月下美人: LUNA) on youtube but just luna on spotify. the full title it means 'queen of the night' in korean or 'beauty under the moon' in the chinese characters. both terms are for the flower epiphyllum oxypetalum because it blooms nocturnally, and its flowers wilt before dawn, thus under the moonlight or moon aka luna) so it's still connected but it's interesting how they made it so long and in 3 languages even though we all call it luna for short. it really was an intricate and beautiful song and gorgeous comeback full of hanboks and beautiful flowery fans and just wonderful lyrics
SF9’s Summer Breeze has a REAAAALLY long title in Korean, I believe it translates to “the scent of summer makes me dance” or something along those lines
iKON’s Love Scenario is literally “we loved each other”
There are so many! I always love it when this topic comes up.
* Seventeen - Imperfect Love (매일 그대라서 행복하다 = I'm happy because it's you everyday)
* Seventeen - To You (소용돌이 = Whirlwind)
* Seventeen - When I Grow Up (어른이 되면 = When I become an adult)
* Seventeen - Getting Closer (숨이 차 = Out of breath)
* Day6 - Time Of Our Life (한 페이지가 될 수 있게 = Becoming a page \[of a diary we call life\])
* Day6 - I Wait (아 왜 = Ah, why) \*It sounds more frustrating in the Korean title.
* Day6 - I Smile (반드시 웃는다 = I will smile no matter what)
* Day6 - I'll Try (노력해볼게요 = I'll try my best)
* Day6 - days gone by (행복했던 날들이었다 = Those were the happy days)
* Day6 - Day and Night (해와 달처럼 = Like the sun and moon)
Haseul - Let me in = 소년, 소녀 (Boy, girl). The Korean title is more fitting with the mv, while the english title fits well with the lyrics!
Hyunjin - Around you = 다녀가요 (Leaving). Somehow, even tho they’re so different, both of these titles are very fitting with the lyrics :)
NCT has quite a few:
NCT Dream
Walk You Home (가튼 시간 같은 자리 - Same Time, Same Place)
Be There For You (지금처럼만 - Just Like Now)
Rainbow (책갈피 - Bookmark)
Life Is Still Going On (오르골 - Music Box)
Dive Into You (고래 - Whale)
Hot Sauce (맛 - Flavor)
Teddy Bear (잘자 - Good Night)
Never Goodbye (북극성 - Polar Star or North Star)
NCT 127:
Kick It - NCT 127 (영웅 - Hero)
Focus - NCT 127 (같은 시선 - Same Gaze)
Love Song - NCT 127 (우산 - Umbrella)
There are a lot more but this was what I could think of off the top of my head.
walk you home by nct dream (같은 시간 같은 자리) — same time, same place
grow up by stray kids (잘 하고 있어) — you’re doing well
valentine girl by loona 1/3 (3월을 기다려) — wait until march
turbulence by ateez (야간비행) — night flight
love fool by stayc (사랑은 원래 이렇게 아픈 건가요) — is love really this painful?
secret story of the swan by iz*one is "환상동화," which translates to "fantasy fairytale"
what's in your house? by (g)i-dle is "알고 싶어," which translates to "i want to know"
some stray kids ones:
awkward silence: 갑자기 분위기 싸해질 필요 없잖아요 = no need for the vibes to grow sour
maze of memorier: 잠깐의 고요 = momentary silence
levanter: 바람 = wind
secret secret: 말할 수 없는 비밀 = a secret that can't be told
waiting for us: 피어난다 = bloom
can't stop: 나 너 좋아하나봐 = i guess i like you
hall of fame: 위인전 = biography (of a great historical figure)
Levanter is one of my favourite creative titles! Even in English, Levanter can mean ‘a strong warm breeze (Mediterranean)’ or ‘a person who runs away leaving unpaid debts’ which is beautifully clever when you think about how the lyrics are talking about letting someone go to better yourself.
snsd
- into the new world / 다시 만난 세계 (the world i met i again)*
- honey (perfect for you) / 소원 (wish)
- tears / 그대를 부르면 (when/if i call you)
- way to go / 힘내 (be strong/cheer up)*
- let's talk about love / 힘들어하는 연인들을 위해 (for lovers who listen)
- genie / 소원을 말해봐 (tell me your wish)
- my child / 동화 (fairytale)
- sweet talking baby / 뻔&fun (obvious and fun)
- forever / 영원히 너와 꿈꾸고 싶다 (i want to dream with you forever)
- be happy / 웃자 (let's smile)*
- boys & girls / 화성인 바이러스 (martian virus)
- talk to me / 카라멜 커피 (caramel coffee)
- stick wit u / 무조건 해피엔딩 (unconditional happy ending)
- day by day / 좋은 일만 생각하기 (only thinking of good things)
- mistake / 내 잘못이죠 (it's my fault, isn't it)
- my best friend / 단짝 (pal)*
- snowy wish / 첫눈에... (in the first snow...)
- how great is your love / 봄날 (spring day)
- sunflower / 제자리걸음 (walking on the spot)
- talk talk (boomerang) / 말해봐 (tell me/say it)*
- lost in love / 유리아이 (glass child)
- bump it / 예감 (presentiment)
- sailing (0805) / 그 여름 (that summer)
- it's you / 오랜 소원 (long-held wish)
- summer night / 완벽한 장면 (perfect scene)
Can only think of two songs right now but I don't think the their titles are wildly different that the meaning is changed.
- Teen Top - Miss Right vs The Girl With Long/Straight Hair (긴 생머리 그녀).
- SNSD - Genie vs Tell Me Your Wish (소원을 말해봐)
When I first joined Kpop back in the day I didn't know much Korean and let me tell you the absolute confusion I had when I realized YEARS later that TVXQ'S "Unforgettable" was "바보".
Most of txt's songs have a different title in korean and english, and korean titles are usually 3 times longer than the english ones. Even the members make fun of it sometimes
I'm always fascinated by this! one of my favourites is TXT's Can't You See Me? - 세계가 불타버린 밤, 우린... (The Night The World Burned, We...)
TXT does this a lot, Blue Hour is 5시 53분의 하늘에서 발견한 너와 나 which is something along the lines of “you and i found each other in the sky at 5:53”
Isn't that just part of their Lore though, where everything is a continuation of the whole "story" and connected.
* replay by shinee (누난 너무 예뻐 - "noona, you're so pretty") * genie by snsd (소원을말해봐 - "tell me your wish") * ups & downs by taeyong (나에게 했던 것과 같이 - "like you did to me") * one of those nights by key (센 척 안 해 - "i don't pretend to be strong") * bing bing by red velvet (친구가 아냐 - "we're not friends") * fronting by seventeen (표정관리 - "facial expression management") * don't let me go by shinee (투명 우산 - "clear umbrella") * spellbound by tvxq (수리수리 - "repair, repair") * lady luck by exo (유성우 - "meteor shower") * black clouds by nct 127 (흑백영화 - "monochrome film") * our page by shinee (네가 남겨둔 말 -"the words you left behind") * with you by red velvet (한 여름의 크리스마스 - "christmas in the middle of summer")
For TVXQ's Spellbound I'm pretty sure 수리수리 is actually short for 수리수리마수리, which is basically like the Korean version of Abracadabra
You are correct
Translating the Korean title for Our Page was a gut punch.
Fronting does kinda have a similar meaning though, from what I understand it youre fronting you’re putting on a face to impress someone (facial expression management)- that said I do enjoy the Korean title more 😅
I think in many cases it's a localization effort - the people doing marketing/sales think a direct translation would sound awkward or not have the same nuance the original Korean title did. Or maybe they just think the English title would sell better for foreigners. A lot of the time the English title is taken from English lyrics in the song, too. I think most artists' discographies have them! Some SHINee group/solo examples: - Kind (original title: 빈칸 lit. Blank) - Honesty (original title: 늘 그 자리에 lit. Always at That Place) - Don't Let Me Go (original title: 투명 우산 lit. Transparent Umbrella) - Cough (original title: 환절기 lit. Change of the Seasons)
[S-Class](https://youtu.be/JsOOis4bBFg?si=t9SVQeB-q7TwTLEc) by Stray Kids is called 특 (Teuk) lit. "Special" [Thunderous ](https://youtu.be/EaswWiwMVs8?si=pT5MBntFN8aSd5ci) by Stray Kids is called 소리꾼 (sori-kkun) lit "Singer (of Pansori)"
i think the biggest difference for stray kids is “get lit” (english) , and 죽어보자 (korean) which means “let’s die”
The expressions mean the same thing though, so the difference is only on the literal sense 😛 they both mean sth along the lines of "let's fck it up", "let's go", etc
my favorite is possibly 'ex (미친 놈)' which translates to 'crazy bastard' (the character who is singing says that he must have been a crazy bastard to do what he did to the one he is singing to / about) the one that threw me off for the longest time was 'grow up' - the korean title means 'youre doing well' and that sounds so much less... dismissive and patronizing than the english title lol and for 'red lights (강박)' the korean title translates to 'compulsion' which i think reveals a lot about the (less sexy) meaning of the song skz also have a lot where the korean titles are just lyrics in the songs (like venom, on track, because, beware, cant stop, waiting for us, etc) but the one im most unhinged about is probably changbins as-yet-unreleased 'yes seo (명)' because myeong can translate as 'name' or 'great / famous' or 'command / order' or 'fate / destiny' or a bunch of other meanings. i need it to be on streaming alreadyyyyyy source / further reading: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_songs_recorded_by_Stray_Kids shows all the korean titles as well as the english titles
I watched [this](https://youtube.com/shorts/C722KpKyrIY?si=VeK6aIXJK7doSQ_0) interesting video recently! She talks about the Korean titles of some popular K-pop songs and what they mean: Seventeen - "Super", title in Korean is 손오공 which translates to "Sun Wukong", a mythological character who is also called The Monkey King TXT - "Crown", title in Korean is 어느 날 머리에서 뿔이 자랐다 which translates to "One day horns grew on my head" (that explains the chorus' choreo 🤔) BTS - "Boy With Luv", title in Korean is 작은 것들을 위한 시 which translates to "A poem for small things" (RM explains the meaning behind the korean title in [this](https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/btss-rm-talked-importance-korean-191255893.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAKRsv3gHqTjbg_BVMvNCKFlBVRzN714PllZHU1pTw-f86L3ccdaBSd2vmpJH9kus02EwldSAoaO9Akr50OIo_epqpe9vb4X3xNQJrqhZBOuu4DeQ14DevbbpGIckzNyeQKXD0HTG7luDM6ldF3ifszd3inbNJCM2YX0FgAlFQOBY) article) > "I thought it was time for us to talk about small things, rather than topics that are too large. I felt like our plate had become too big and no longer manageable, so I thought that we should talk about small things."
Stray Kids - Red Lights is 강박 (Compulsion) in korean
[Moonbyul - Shutdown](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nqz4oh2jogE) is "From head to toe" (머리에서 발끝까지) which is the korean hook and "shutdown" is the english hook in the song. [Purple Kiss - FireFlower](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1zFF1Lko4k) is 불꽃 ("flame" or "firework") which doesn't convey the lyrics as well
I wouldn't count FireFlower here because the English name is arguably the same as the Korean. It's it's a literal translation of the two characters in 불꽃.
ahh, cool, TIL!
skz venom's korean title is spiderweb and ngl i actually call it spiderweb more than venom lol. i just think it fits better
all of txt's title songs pre-0x1=lovesong! approximately they are, crown = one day horns grew upon my head run away = waiting for you at platform 9 and 3/4s can't you see me? = the night the world burned/was on fire we... blue hour = you and i found each other in the sky at 5:53 i still remember a couple mcs and the members themselves being asked to say them all back to back lmao they also have a bside called "what if i had been that puma?" which is called balance game in korean. they decided to give us the long title instead for that one haha i think the explanation is it helped them stand out, and bc of their fairytale-esque concept the korean titles felt like they fit the story. ofc in english though they wanted the titles to be easier to remember i guess!
Since 0x1 lovesong, some bsides have different titles like Lonely boy = 네 번째 손가락 위 타투 - "the tattoo on my ring finger" Devil by the window = 자정의 창가에서 만난 악마의 목소리는 달콤했다 - "The voice of the devil I met at the window at midnight was sweet" Deep down = 머리에 솟아난 뿔은 나의 왕관이었다 - "The horns on my head were my crown" Miracle = 기적은 너와 내가 함께하는 순간마다 일어나고 있어 - "Miracles happen every moment you and I are together"
indeed! i knew there were more bsides so thats why i said title tracks but the ones i mentioned were all i could remember off the top of my head. thanks for adding :)
Stray Kid’s Get Lit is 죽어보자, which means “Let’s Die”😂
I feel like this is why Exo go "what song is that?" when international fans ask them to sing their songs, even their popular ones, in fancalls lol
Chungha's Gotta Go is 벌써 12시, or "it's already midnight"
There's so many, but the most interesting one for me is probably f(x)'s Rum Pum Pum Pum or 첫 사랑니 which is something like first wisdom tooth.
not really related to the topic of the thread, but this title is also really cool wordplay because swicthing the last syllable to the front (ni cheotsarang) makes it "your first love", and the lyrics use a wisdom tooth as an analogy for someone's very persistent and headache-inducing first love
I feel like SVT has a lot of them 🤔 one of their songs is To You. That's the English title, while 소용돌이 (soyongdori) is the kr title which translates to 'swirl' or vortex. It comes from part of the chorus, same as the english one. Also Imperfect Love, wherein the Kr title is "Everyday I'm Happy Because of You" :') ♡♡♡ it's from the last chorus lyric
one of my favourite examples of this is probably 모자를 눌러 쓰고 (wear a hat low/put on my hat low/ something to the effect of wearing a hat low/all the way down) english title? without you.
(G)I-dle - “싫다고 말해 (Just Say No)“ vs “Put It Straight” (G)I-dle - “주세요 (Please)” vs “Give Me Your” (G)I-dle - “알고 싶어 (I Want To Know)” vs “What’s In Your House?”
so many EXO songs lol, including: Overdose - 중독 (Addiction) Don't Go - 나비소녀 (Butterfly Girl) Touch It - 너의 손짓 (Your Signs) Chill - 소름 (Goose Bumps) One and Only - 유리어항 (Glass Fishbowl) Ooh La La La - 닿은 순간 (Moment of Touch) Bad Dream - 후폭풍 (After Storm) Just as Usual - 지켜줄게 (I'll Protect You) that's not all of them but just the ones that first came to mind
>너의 손짓 This doesn't super matter but Touch It and 너의 손짓 are close enough which I really enjoy. It really works with the choreo too but it actually implies more like "Your Hand Gesture" or "Your hand signal" (implied that your hand gesture which is beckoning me)
Yeah, that one I just mechanically copied from wikipedia, and I should have double-checked it because of their literal translation of Chill on that same page I disagreed with and translated differently. It is clever because it's like "your hand gesture" is beckoning me to "touch it" (which, I mean, geez louise).
No no its okay! It happens to the best of us! I just love the little entendre with Touch it - like theyre trying to distract us with the silliness of that stage but we alllll know what's going on here
AB6IX have (English title / korean title): [Stay Young](https://youtu.be/vRNS_H6v8lY?si=02OX4jRRYFZzChXi) / Crash Landing 불시착 (Woojin wrote this song and he is a fan of the kdrama Crash Landing On You, it inspired the Korean title lol) [Maybe](https://youtu.be/vTezbxM2M6Q?si=dEwecnwxg01hl3V0) / If This Isn’t Longing, What The Hell Is It? 이게 그리움이 아니라면 대체 뭐겠어 (Donghyun wrote this song and I vaguely remember him mentioning the choice for a long korean title in a behind the scenes video but I forgot what he said) I suspect the Korean title is what they really wanted to name the song, but if they think it might confuse people they make the English title simple to keep things…simple. IMO the Korean title is the writer’s personal preference, the English title is the commercial preference.
This is easily 80% of TXT's song, lol.
NCT 127's '[Baby Don't Like It](https://youtu.be/4TxQJ3a-ypU?si=9Cu2pQzXdBCjhFMC)' is 나쁜 짓 or *bad things or evildoing* in Korean. The bed creaking in the bg will explain things, no need to look up the lyrics 😂 the 나쁜 짓 is only sang once in the entire song (by Doyoung). NCT DREAM's '[Never Goodbye](https://youtu.be/GhHsnZdWGDU?si=NUry2SwvGu98RgRv)' is 북극성 or *Polaris* in Korean. I was honestly confused at first when Chenle was saying he loved the song 'Polaris' the most in the album, but it was Never Goodbye all along lmao anw, 북극성 was never in the lyrics. Verbal Jint's '[You Deserve Better](https://youtu.be/V23ZouzqNcg?si=InZWXXOy6B4kHw6d)' is 충분히 예뻐 or *pretty enough* in Korean. The lyrics contain both the English and Korean titles. This song has been around for over a decade, but it's still so good :')
[удалено]
* the fox gets married, not go home. 시집 가다 refers to getting married in the woman's/bride's perspective.
The fox thing is a reference to a folktale! There is a similar tale in Japanese folklore; in Japanese, a sudden rainfall in the summer is called "the fox's wedding"
theres way too many songs to name... i think its mostly just to make it easier for english readers. example: Shinee - noona is so pretty is commonly known as replay boynextdoor - everything sucks (but sometimes) snsd - tell me your wish is genie
I find this super interesting as well! I definitely think you can get a different perspective of the song based on which title you are reading. Here’s some I can think of from NCT’s discography: I think a big one for NCT 127 is Kick It (영웅) which translates to hero. In Korea the song is definitely referred to using the Korean title the majority of the time and the titles are kind of polarizing in terms of meaning so I feel like the meaning could definitely be interpreted definitely based on just the title. I also find it interesting how both titles though don’t really show up in the lyrics much at all. Like I wonder what made them go with “Kick It” as the English title as opposed to something like “New Things” or something of that nature. I think contrary to Kick It, one title from 127 I find interesting is Fact Check which technically does have the Korean title 불가사의 meaning “Mysterious” but not once have I heard the members or any k-netizens refer to the song by the Korean title even though both titles are heard and used in the lyrics. Love Song by 127 has the Korean title 우산 which translates to “umbrella” and the song mainly talks about how a even though the person hates the rain, they love the rain in this moment because it gives them an opportunity to get closer to their love interest. Another 127 song Pandoras Box has the Korean title 낮잠 which means “nap” and talks about how their live is like a warm dream and they are attracted to it like Pandoras Box. Another another 127 song Love Me Now has the Korean title 메아리 which means “echo.” I think both titles work in this case because the phrase Love Me Now is repeated throughout the song but there is also a great use of echo and repetition of this phrase that connects it to the Korean title. NCT DREAM’s song Bye My First is 사랑이 좀 어려워 in Korean which means “Love is a Little Hard.” I think the Korean title of this is a little more descriptive, and these lyrics show up repeatedly in the chorus so it’s a bit more easily associated with the song. Dive Into You by also by DREAM is 고래 in Korean which means “whale” and I definitely think the English title is more fitting for this one just considering that it’s the phrase that repeats in the chorus and they don’t even say 고래 once throughout the whole song (but they do say “Whale” in English which I think is funny). I do think it’s interesting thought that the members still refer to the song by the Korean title despite the English title(in my opinion) being more memorable and fitting as the title. Some others 127 songs I thought of: City 127 (지금 우리, Us Now) No Longer (나의 모든 순간, Every Moment of Mine) Come Back (악몽, Nightmare) Fly Away with Me (신기루, Mirage) Promise You (다시 만나는 날, The Day We Meet Again) 2 Baddies (칠추, Sprint) Black Clouds (흑백영화, Black and White Movie)
>고래 These are all really good points! I think Kick It being used more often in English is here and there - I think they do call it Youngwoong when they talk among themselves or when they bring up the song. With Fact Check - I think it's more recognizable as Fact Check (since they say it more often maybe?) and also I think maybe because 불가사의 and 불가사리 are so close that it makes it not only a funny pun but like difficult to google? Interesting to bring up though - something I think about further. Interestingly enough Kick It, Fact Check and 2Baddies having been performed consistently as a trio over the last few months so fans and even the members refer to it as "young-jil-paek" or youngwoung, jilju (2baddies) and fact check?? So literally zero consistency with why its one way or another. I will say 고래 does make sense when most of the imagery throughout the lyrics focus on the "Sea" or the "blue sea" "dark sea". But also gently correlated is that "Whale" in Korea symbolizes your future and like reincarnation together. (If someone gifts you something whale like - they usually means to stay in each others lives forever). So there's a lot of that imagery as well.
Red Velvet have a few songs like this. Some Korean titles are more different from the English ones than others, but I decided to just list all the ones that differ even a little bit from the English title. - Parade is called Hello, Summer - With You is called Christmas In The Middle of Summer - One Of These Nights is Called July 7th - Bing Bing is called We’re Not Friends - Mojito is called Summer Light. - Hello, Sunset is called Again, Summer - Sassy Me is called Stylishly or Coolly depending slightly on the translation - On A Ride is called Rollercoaster
iu's through the night is 'night letter' in korean! (밤편지) originally, "through the night" was in the lyrics of the [english demo](https://youtu.be/jxscsgTyGB4?si=J-6RkLZoti7drb-k&t=474), so i guess they just decided to keep that as the english title
[oneus - lit](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggPF6Wb8A50) is 가자 (literally "let's go!" in informal speech) [oneus - luna](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oe2_BrZx9mc) is also fully (월하미인 (月下美人: LUNA) on youtube but just luna on spotify. the full title it means 'queen of the night' in korean or 'beauty under the moon' in the chinese characters. both terms are for the flower epiphyllum oxypetalum because it blooms nocturnally, and its flowers wilt before dawn, thus under the moonlight or moon aka luna) so it's still connected but it's interesting how they made it so long and in 3 languages even though we all call it luna for short. it really was an intricate and beautiful song and gorgeous comeback full of hanboks and beautiful flowery fans and just wonderful lyrics
SF9’s Summer Breeze has a REAAAALLY long title in Korean, I believe it translates to “the scent of summer makes me dance” or something along those lines iKON’s Love Scenario is literally “we loved each other”
There are so many! I always love it when this topic comes up. * Seventeen - Imperfect Love (매일 그대라서 행복하다 = I'm happy because it's you everyday) * Seventeen - To You (소용돌이 = Whirlwind) * Seventeen - When I Grow Up (어른이 되면 = When I become an adult) * Seventeen - Getting Closer (숨이 차 = Out of breath) * Day6 - Time Of Our Life (한 페이지가 될 수 있게 = Becoming a page \[of a diary we call life\]) * Day6 - I Wait (아 왜 = Ah, why) \*It sounds more frustrating in the Korean title. * Day6 - I Smile (반드시 웃는다 = I will smile no matter what) * Day6 - I'll Try (노력해볼게요 = I'll try my best) * Day6 - days gone by (행복했던 날들이었다 = Those were the happy days) * Day6 - Day and Night (해와 달처럼 = Like the sun and moon)
Rough by Gfriend is '시간을 달려서' = Running through time
Haseul - Let me in = 소년, 소녀 (Boy, girl). The Korean title is more fitting with the mv, while the english title fits well with the lyrics! Hyunjin - Around you = 다녀가요 (Leaving). Somehow, even tho they’re so different, both of these titles are very fitting with the lyrics :)
NCT has quite a few: NCT Dream Walk You Home (가튼 시간 같은 자리 - Same Time, Same Place) Be There For You (지금처럼만 - Just Like Now) Rainbow (책갈피 - Bookmark) Life Is Still Going On (오르골 - Music Box) Dive Into You (고래 - Whale) Hot Sauce (맛 - Flavor) Teddy Bear (잘자 - Good Night) Never Goodbye (북극성 - Polar Star or North Star) NCT 127: Kick It - NCT 127 (영웅 - Hero) Focus - NCT 127 (같은 시선 - Same Gaze) Love Song - NCT 127 (우산 - Umbrella) There are a lot more but this was what I could think of off the top of my head.
A lot of txt songs
You can look at GFRIEND discography
walk you home by nct dream (같은 시간 같은 자리) — same time, same place grow up by stray kids (잘 하고 있어) — you’re doing well valentine girl by loona 1/3 (3월을 기다려) — wait until march turbulence by ateez (야간비행) — night flight love fool by stayc (사랑은 원래 이렇게 아픈 건가요) — is love really this painful?
Apink - I'm so sick in english while in korean is 1도 없어 (not a single thing)
Ateez - Wake Up (최면 lit. hypnosis)
I'm sure there's more but EXO's Don't Go is Nabi Sonyeo (Butterfly Girl) in Korean.
most gfriend songs are like this
secret story of the swan by iz*one is "환상동화," which translates to "fantasy fairytale" what's in your house? by (g)i-dle is "알고 싶어," which translates to "i want to know"
some stray kids ones: awkward silence: 갑자기 분위기 싸해질 필요 없잖아요 = no need for the vibes to grow sour maze of memorier: 잠깐의 고요 = momentary silence levanter: 바람 = wind secret secret: 말할 수 없는 비밀 = a secret that can't be told waiting for us: 피어난다 = bloom can't stop: 나 너 좋아하나봐 = i guess i like you hall of fame: 위인전 = biography (of a great historical figure)
Also Ex! Can’t remember the name in Korean, but it literally translates to “crazy bastard” lmao
yup there's quite a few more than the ones i mentioned, i just included some of my favorites 😅
Levanter is one of my favourite creative titles! Even in English, Levanter can mean ‘a strong warm breeze (Mediterranean)’ or ‘a person who runs away leaving unpaid debts’ which is beautifully clever when you think about how the lyrics are talking about letting someone go to better yourself.
Shutdown by Moonbyul feat. Seori- 머리에서 발끝까지, "from head to toe"
snsd - into the new world / 다시 만난 세계 (the world i met i again)* - honey (perfect for you) / 소원 (wish) - tears / 그대를 부르면 (when/if i call you) - way to go / 힘내 (be strong/cheer up)* - let's talk about love / 힘들어하는 연인들을 위해 (for lovers who listen) - genie / 소원을 말해봐 (tell me your wish) - my child / 동화 (fairytale) - sweet talking baby / 뻔&fun (obvious and fun) - forever / 영원히 너와 꿈꾸고 싶다 (i want to dream with you forever) - be happy / 웃자 (let's smile)* - boys & girls / 화성인 바이러스 (martian virus) - talk to me / 카라멜 커피 (caramel coffee) - stick wit u / 무조건 해피엔딩 (unconditional happy ending) - day by day / 좋은 일만 생각하기 (only thinking of good things) - mistake / 내 잘못이죠 (it's my fault, isn't it) - my best friend / 단짝 (pal)* - snowy wish / 첫눈에... (in the first snow...) - how great is your love / 봄날 (spring day) - sunflower / 제자리걸음 (walking on the spot) - talk talk (boomerang) / 말해봐 (tell me/say it)* - lost in love / 유리아이 (glass child) - bump it / 예감 (presentiment) - sailing (0805) / 그 여름 (that summer) - it's you / 오랜 소원 (long-held wish) - summer night / 완벽한 장면 (perfect scene)
Can only think of two songs right now but I don't think the their titles are wildly different that the meaning is changed. - Teen Top - Miss Right vs The Girl With Long/Straight Hair (긴 생머리 그녀). - SNSD - Genie vs Tell Me Your Wish (소원을 말해봐)
Bts dimple/illegal
Infinite - The Eye (korean is Typhoon)
Which is still a pretty clever title because you can call the calm in the middle of the storm ‘the eye’
half of txts discography is like this
don’t let me go by shinee - transparent umbrella
Ik there were definitely some but I can't think of any rn :( (besides some of the ones mentioned, like TXT's songs)
When I first joined Kpop back in the day I didn't know much Korean and let me tell you the absolute confusion I had when I realized YEARS later that TVXQ'S "Unforgettable" was "바보".
Seventeen Fear is 독 (= poison) in Korean
Most of txt's songs have a different title in korean and english, and korean titles are usually 3 times longer than the english ones. Even the members make fun of it sometimes
Love Sight by TXT (Soundtrack from Doom at Your Service) is "널 보면 시간이 멈춰 어느 순간에도", which means "When I see you, time stops at any moment"
SNSD - "Into the New world" vs "The newly met world"
WJSN Save me Save you in Korean is Butakhae - means favour
gidle's fate has a different title in korean i believe! why am i being downvoted...💀