A Look Back At BTS V’s Most Iconic Vocal Moments
V’s debut solo album Layover showcases one of his greatest strengths: distinctive vocals that are dripping with emotion.
V from BTS has officially made his solo debut with EP Layover, a chill album exploring lost love that is absolutely drenched in yearning. It’s a good example of one of V’s strengths as a performer, and specifically a vocalist: he’s able to infuse his voice — already distinct and rich with its deep tones and impressive range — with an incredible amount of emotion, telling a story with sound alone.
To celebrate the release of Layover and what V does best, here’s a look back at some of his most iconic and memorable vocal performances…
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Nobody can growl quite like V. He was particularly ferocious, vocally, on the early BTS albums, and none more so than “Jump”. So much so that his verse became somewhat of a theme song for him, courtesy of the other members, who often mimic his growling vocals whenever someone yells “V” in a way that echoes his name drop in the song.
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“Pied Piper” is, generally, a song designed to drive fans insane, but V in particular nails the sensual, seductive, and slightly feral energy that makes this song so damn special (and maddening). From his solo lines to his back-and-forth moment with Jin, his range is fully on display and on fire.
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There are certain BTS songs that, even as they’re group songs, are really owned by a particular member. To me, as wonderful as the rest of the group are on this track, “Spring Day” is really V’s song. There’s a mournful tone to it that suits his voice and his sensibilities perfectly, and he delivers his lines with a beautiful sense of longing and a hint of sadness — particularly when he sings “you know it all, you’re my best friend”.
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Although the BTS members have all made their official debuts as solo artists in the last year, they’ve long had solo work within the group, starting with the Wings album, on which each of them got a solo track alongside group songs. “Stigma” was V’s first solo offering as part of this line-up, and it plays to his strengths. While there are some incredible high notes, it’s his deep, spoken “are you calling me a sinner” that hits you right in the soul.
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“Singularity” was V’s next BTS solo, and it took his seemingly innate sultriness and turned it up by about 1000. His vocal performance, like the live choreography, is sensual, with a dark edge that’s irresistible. The best kinds of solo songs are the ones that feel like literally no one else could do them, and that’s true of “Singularity”.
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V’s most recent BTS solo is dedicated to his younger self, and is an act of love and compassion for his own inner child and the struggles he went through in the past. It’s much more joyful in both content and delivery than V’s other BTS solos, and he infuses his vocals with an endearing warmth and care. The tenderness in his voice as he addresses his younger self as “my boy, my boy, my boy” makes me want to weep every time.
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“Blue and Grey” was originally a song V had written for his own solo work, but it ended up being used as a BTS song on their pandemic-era album BE in 2020. While the other members are great on the track, it’s another song that feels as though it really belongs to V. Exploring feelings of depression, his vocals are heavy and weary in a way that makes anyone that has ever been depressed feel seen. Then his final lines, and especially the “good night” that closes the song, offer a sense not just of bone-deep tiredness but also a promise of rest and release that is cathartic.
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“DNA” opens with an iconic whistle from Jungkook, but it’s V who delivers the first few lines, and he does so with his characteristic power and playfulness. His contribution to the song is part of the reason it’s so damn great, and definitely played a huge part in its massive success.
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A vocal line sub-unit track, “The Truth Untold” is a beautiful ballad that displays each BTS vocalist’s individual strengths and how they come together to create something even more special. But it’s V who really stands out on the track; the emotion in his vocals is palpable. The layers and meaning he infuses in lines like “I’m so afraid” are goosebump-inducing.
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There are five tracks on V’s solo debut album Layover, plus a bonus piano version of title track “Slow Dancing”, and they’re an eclectic, lo-fi mix that is quite different from BTS’s group work and, indeed, any of the other members’ solo work. They highlight V’s established tastes and the romantic and nostalgic vibes he seems drawn to, and, of course, allow him to lean into the kind of emotional vocal performance he’s so good at. This is especially evident on my personal favourite track of the album, “Love Me Again”, on which V sounds painfully plaintive and lonely (in the best possible way).
Good & Great by Key: SHINee’s Key can be relied upon to deliver bop after bop in his solo work, and this mini album is no exception. It includes title track “Good & Great” and five b-sides, my fave of which is “Intoxicating”.
WHY.. by BOYNEXTDOOR: BOYNEXTDOOR’s first comeback is a mini album which includes their three previously released tracks and three new ones, including title track “But Sometimes”. You can read more about the release in my coverage of the group’s press conference over on @Junkee!
“Get a Guitar” by RIIZE: This boy group’s debut has been greatly anticipated, and their first single album certainly serves. Title track “Get a Guitar” is catchy as hell and, together with accompanying b-side “Memories”, marks RIIZE as rookies to watch.
“I Love My Body” by HWASA: The K-Pop industry is notorious for quite narrow beauty standards, and it’s wild that someone as beautiful and thin as HWASA still doesn’t fit into them. So her latest single feels like a fitting and much-needed declaration of self-love.
K-Pop had a real moment at the MTV VMAs this year, marking just how far the genre and its artists have come in terms of hitting the mainstream in the West.
TXT were nominated for four awards and won one — the PUSH Performance of the Year for “Sugar Rush Ride”. Meanwhile, in one of the best performances of the show, they debuted a new single on the VMAs stage — ‘Back for More’, an electrifying collaboration with Anitta.
Stray Kids were also in attendance, and won in the Best K-Pop category for ‘S-Class’, which they also performed during the show. They seemed to be having the best damn time, and it was delightful to watch them take centre stage at such a huge awards show. I also loved their very wholesome reaction to their win, too:
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And while they didn’t attend, other K-Pop stars also managed to nab awards — Jungkook won Song of the Summer for “Seven”, while BLACKPINK were named Group of the Year and also won Best Choreography for “Pink Venom”. Incredible stuff!
Read more about K-Pop at the VMAs from guest contributor Lia Kim!
With love,
Jenna