The Creepy Meaning Behind North Korean Propaganda Songs that Gen Z Likes

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Jakarta –

When Kim Jong-un released his latest propaganda song two weeks ago, perhaps he didn’t expect that the song would be liked by many users of the social media application TikTok.

With rhythm synth-electrothe song entitled “Friendly Father” went viral on social media applications that are widely used by the Gen Z audience.

The song praises Kim Jong-un who has threatened to “annihilate” the United States, violate UN sanctions, and launch multiple ballistic missiles.

“Let’s sing Kim Jong-un, great leader/Let’s be proud of Kim Jong-un, our gracious father,” said the lyrics of the song.

It’s a really good song, said a number of TikTok users.

“Taylor Swift didn’t expect to be eliminated immediately after releasing her new album,” wrote one TikTok user jokingly.

“This song deserves a Grammy.”

“[Lagu] it’s dystopian in the most interesting way,” said some of the comments under the TikTok video.

Most do not realize the meaning of the lyrics. In fact, behind the cheerful pop song there is something hidden and more sinister, experts say.

How to create propaganda that many people like

“Friendly Father” is just one of many propaganda songs produced by North Korean pop hitmakers in the past 50 years.

The song is upbeat, with an upbeat beat, and easy to remember. Rhythm and hookThe songs are not much different from pop hits made in the West, even though they have Soviet-style characteristics from a certain era.

“The song sounds like it was written by [kelompok musik] Abba. “The song is upbeat, easy to remember, and has a very prominent orchestral sound,” said Peter Moody, a North Korea analyst at Korea University.

But there are basic rules when writing songs that are intended to penetrate the mind, not just be popular.

Major chord? Minor chords? Composers must write within a defined space, said Alexandra Leonzini, a Cambridge University scholar who researches the history of North Korean music.

There’s no room for abstract lyrics or overly complex timing. The melody should be simple something that people can easily understand.

The notes must be set within a certain vocal range so that everyone can sing them.

There isn’t any riff multi-octave although North Korea has many talented singers, Leonzini said. The masses cannot follow excessive vocal exercises so complicated things have to be removed.

A collection of propaganda songs rarely contains songs full of emotion.

“The point is that they want to motivate the nation to strive to achieve common goals for the benefit of the nation. They tend not to produce songs like ballads,” he said.

In North Korea there is no tolerance for art or creativity outside the control of the state. Musicians, painters and writers who produce works solely for the sake of art are categorized as committing illegal acts.

“All artistic production in North Korea must provide a class education for its citizens and more specifically educate them about why they should feel gratitude, a sense of loyalty to the party,” said Leonzini.

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The North Korean government believes in the “seed theory”, he added. This means that every work of art must contain an ideological seed, a message that is then disseminated en masse.

Every morning, North Koreans wake up to propaganda songs sung in village town squares, experts say.

Latest song sheets and song lyrics were printed in newspapers and magazines; usually they also have to learn to dance, said Keith Howard, another professor emeritus of North Korean musicology at SOAS University of London.

Getty ImagesArt is tightly controlled in North Korea and seen as propaganda. This photo shows North Korean singers performing to mark the 79th birthday of the late Kim Jong-il, Kim Jong-un’s father.

While visiting North Korea several times in the 1990s and 2000s, he recalled firsthand how North Koreans sang their songs when greeting foreigners.

“When a song enters the body, the song has become part of that person,” he said.

“So they know the lyrics well, even though they’re just doing the action, even though they’re just listening to it,” Howard said of North Koreans.

“A good ideological song can make this happen. The song needs to convey a message.”

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Outside of North Korea, the same phenomenon can perhaps be observed more humorously on TikTok: Users in Western countries say they can’t stop listening to “Friendly Father” on their way to the office, doing homework, or at home. gym.

“This song is stuck in my head 24/7,” wrote one TikTok user.

The song’s popularity also led more people to listen to more North Korean propaganda music.

“I thought, ‘Oh, this is interesting,'” said Matas Kardokas, a British man who makes TikTok videos featuring various North Korean propaganda songs.

One video said: “No one in the trendy coffee shop knows that I’m listening to North Korean propaganda music right now.”

The video has been liked by more than 400,000 users. This surprised Matas.

“Something inside me just clicked and I thought, ‘Hey, I’m sitting in a coffee shop listening to this. Isn’t that the craziest thing you could imagine? I should make a TikTok about this because this isn’t a universal experience. No one nothing will be related to this,” he said.

Ironically, many people are aware that at a time when the Chinese-owned app may be banned by the US, the Communist regime’s propaganda has already gripped its users.

Reading the meaning behind the lyrics of propaganda songs

In the Western music world, fans are listening to Taylor Swift’s new album, or singing Kendrick Lamar’s six-minute rap dissing Drake.

But for North Korea observers, the three-minute song released last month has its own clues.

The North Korean regime has a tradition of conveying major changes in the country through songs, and the message in “Friendly Father” has raised concerns for some people.

This is not the first song dedicated to Kim Jong-un. However, there has been a marked change in the language and vocabulary used.

For the first time, Kim was referred to as “father” and “the Great” terms previously used for North Korea’s first leader, Kim Il-sung, Kim Jong-un’s grandfather.

Kim Jong-un was called the “Great Successor” when he took power in 2012 after the death of his father, Kim Jong-il.

However, more than a decade later, analysts think this may be a sign that he is strengthening his image as North Korea’s “Supreme Leader.”

Recently, he also changed the lyrics of a propaganda song entitled “our father Kim Il-sung” to “our father Kim Jong-un”.

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Music could be a sign of where Kim Jong-un is headed, experts say.

Kim has become increasingly hostile and aggressive regarding the military development carried out by his regime.

Earlier this year, he said North Korea would no longer seek reunification with South Korea, which he declared “public enemy number one.”

Reports say Pyongyang destroyed a large building symbolizing hopes for reunification with South Korea.

It was reported that the destruction added to concerns that North Korea would take more aggressive action against South Korea.

At the same time, Kim has increasingly called for increasing his country’s military arsenal.

“A song is almost like a newspaper in North Korea,” Leonzini said.

“Songs are used to convey the direction the country is heading to mark important moments and important developments in politics.”

Additional reporting by Rachel Looker in Washington DC

Also watch the video ‘North Korea Celebrates the 112th Birthday of State Founder Kim II Sung’:

(ita/ita)