Muse

If Jimin's first album Face was a journey through anxiety and loneliness, his second, Muse, released in July 2024, is its bright, sunny counterpart. As the title suggests, this album is devoted to the muse, to inspiration and to love, to everything that moves and fills us, so instead of introspection it brings warmth, longing, and joy.

The whole album is gathered around a charming idea, that of a musical troupe that brings happiness wherever it goes. That troupe even has a name, the Smeraldo Garden Marching Band, and behind it lies a lovely story. Smeraldo is the fictional blue flower fans have known since the Love Yourself era, and its meaning, a truth we couldn't manage to put into words, fits the theme of the album perfectly. On top of that, Jimin's producers, the same team he worked with on his previous album, jokingly nicknamed themselves this, and over time the nickname became real. The very name of the troupe was also inspired by the famous Beatles album about a fictional orchestra, so Muse already breathes nostalgia and playfulness in its very concept.

Sonically the album is warm and a touch retro, drawing on pop, R&B, and hip hop from the turn of the millennium, carrying that comfortable, intimate feel that calls back to simpler, sweeter days. It's led by the song Who, an energetic search for love in which Jimin wonders who his heart is waiting for, while Smeraldo Garden Marching Band, featuring Loco, with its marching rhythms and bright trumpet, sounds like a joyful summer outing. The whole album invites the listener to be honest about their feelings, to finally say what they've long left unspoken, just as the Smeraldo flower itself does.

What makes Muse special is this deliberate turn toward the light. After sharing his hardest moments on Face, Jimin used this album to show his other side, the bright, smitten, hopeful one. It was like stepping out of a tunnel into the sun, confirmation that brightness follows even the hardest stretches.

The album was released while Jimin was serving his military service, prepared in advance, so it served fans as a warm greeting and a comfort during the wait. And that is exactly the essence of Muse, an album that brings joy, calls for honesty in love, and reminds us that however hard life can be, it is always worth seeking out what inspires us.