The Great Interpreter: KEN’s ‘RE:BORN’, Reviewed
On his new EP, KEN covers two classic Korean songs to look back at his decade-long career. The result is heartfelt and inspiring.
S27M Entertainment
Transformation is the concept behind KEN’s new EP, RE:BORN. Marketed as a reinterpretation of two beloved Korean songs, “ 나는 나비 (The Flying Butterfly)” and “HEART”, the EP is a culmination of over a decade of hard work for KEN. Although he debuted as a member of VIXX in 2012, KEN has spent the past decade exploring new ways to express himself as an artist, beginning in 2015 with his stage debut in Chess.
Five years later, when he released his first solo album, Greeting, KEN introduced himself as a new artist. The album was largely full of big, heartfelt ballads that suited KEN’s rich voice, and it carefully laid the groundwork for where he would go next.
RE: BORN, which is not on streaming and only available through KiTbetter, is the follow-up to KEN’s second EP, PUZZLE, his first release under S27M Entertainment. That album showed, for the first time, the ambitions of KEN’s music. Four years passed between the release of Greeting and PUZZLE, a period during which KEN arguably found his sound and signed with a new company, S27M Entertainment. Throughout this period, KEN told me in a new interview, he began to experiment with different genres.
His background in musical theatre shaped the direction of the new music and gave KEN the confidence to try new genre styles. This version of KEN reimagines the EP's classic songs as his own, infusing his story of learning to believe in himself into the lyrics. This is also an EP about interpretation: As an artist, KEN often had to interpret the music given to him to play different roles - both as an actor on stage and as an idol. Now, with his own music, he has learned how to dig deep to find inspiration on RE:BORN.
While the sound of both songs is vastly different, KEN’s goal, as he expressed in our interview, was the same for each: to provide comfort to his listeners. KEN collaborated on both tracks with YOONSEOK, a childhood friend who also composed “LOVE DAY”, “To You”, and “Make Me Strong”. “HEART”, the EP’s b-side, is perhaps the most sonically familiar to longtime fans of KEN. It could easily fit in with music recorded for Greeting and sounds connected most to “To You”. The track is a tender love song, but KEN intends it as a message for his fans too: If you’re feeling lonely, you can listen to it for strength.
While both tracks are excellent platforms for KEN’s giant, powerful voice, the opener - and title track - “ 나는 나비” is a standout. Like some of the most energetic songs on Puzzle, such as the opener “Gradually”, “ 나는 나비” is an anthem. Even if KEN didn’t write the lyrics about the tough process of growing into a butterfly, they are fittingly autobiographical and poignant.
“I can’t see myself/ I can’t even see the road ahead,” KEN sings in the opening verse, “I’m a very small caterpillar”. But the song’s resolution is simple. “I will fly to my dreams”. Watching the special clip performance video produced by S27M, I thought of KEN’s journey from VIXX to soloist, and how far he has come from the young, inexperienced idol who debuted in 2201. Today, I find KEN’s dedication to his artistic growth inspiring. He is always pushing himself, always willing to try something new or experiment. Perhaps now, at 33 years old and seen as a legend by many, KEN is just beginning to see his own potential.
