[News Song] Girls' Generation's 'Dasi Mannan Segye' Becomes a New Minjung Gayo

Songs soothe and relieve inner emotions such as sadness, loneliness, and anger, but they also play a role in capturing specific eras and events to urge social change. Especially under oppressive circumstances, they become a means of resistance against injustice. This is why folk songs are indispensable at sites of struggle.

Girls' Generation's "Into the New World," released in 2007, is emerging as a new protest song in 2024. Screenshot from YouTube

'Morning Dew,' which begins with "After a long night," was written and composed by Kim Min-ki and released in 1971. It expressed the dew formed at dawn with a simple melody and lyrical lyrics, but was suddenly banned in 1975. Even during the Fifth Republic, born from the December 12, 1979 military coup and the May 17, 1980 rebellion, Morning Dew was banned for being deemed subversive. The problematic lyric was "The sun rises red over the graveyard."

However, the lyrics were interpreted to mean that after the "long night" (dictatorship) passes, a bright morning (freedom and democracy) will come, and despite censorship and oppression, Morning Dew spread widely. The more it was banned, the more it became a symbol of resistance. During the June Democratic Uprising in 1987, Morning Dew was sung by a million people at the funeral of martyr Lee Han-yeol. In a July interview before his passing at age 73, composer Kim Min-ki recalled:

"A million people sang it earnestly from their hearts. At that moment, I thought, this is no longer my song."

Since then, Morning Dew has served as a folk song at rallies and protests yearning for democracy.

On the evening of the 7th, citizens gathered at Yeouido Park in Seoul, where the impeachment vote against President Yoon Seok-yeol was taking place, are shouting impeachment slogans.

"Goodbye to the repeated sadness in this world now~"

Girls' Generation's "Into the New World," released in 2007, is rising as a new folk song in 2024. This is at the candlelight rallies sparked by President Yoon Suk-yeol's December 3 emergency martial law situation.

According to Melon, Korea's leading music platform, starting from December 3, when martial law was declared, the number of listeners of "Into the New World" increased by 23% over the following week (December 3?9) compared to the previous week. Analysts say the resurgence of this 17-year-old song is largely influenced by the martial law situation. Various K-pop songs, led by "Into the New World," are playing the role of folk songs at the impeachment protests against President Yoon Suk-yeol.

On social media and elsewhere, "impeachment playlists" are being shared. In addition to "Into the New World," songs such as Ros?'s "Apartment," Super Junior's "Sorry Sorry," and G-Dragon's "Crooked" are included.