K-pop Songs For When Life Gets Hard
Q: What is a song that helped you through a difficult time?
Contrary to the title of this post, I know it's not K-pop, but Coldplay's 'Fix You' is always the first song I think of. Here's a little excerpt from my journal when I did an intentional listening exercise with the song:
“Simple lyrics, but it just hits the right spot when one is feeling down, dejected, spiralling. Gives me a wave of calmness.. the instrumentation builds: sad → slightly more hopeful (seeing the light) → opportunity for all the emotions to be released (“tears stream down your face”).”
Music is the universal language & communicates emotions without having to say anything; it brings us together & knows no barriers. Thank you to the artists who are brave enough to explore the depths of their own discomforts, feelings & traumas, who bare their souls to strangers in their art. It's through this art that we can find validation, release & comfort.
October 10 is World Mental Health Day. Music is a powerful source of therapy, with the right songs finding you at the right moments of your life — as a cathartic release for the pain you hold, carrying you through the dark to the light towards better days. The feeling that the artist understands exactly what you are going through, giving you the encouragement you need & telling you that you are never alone in your battles. That it’s okay to be feeling this way.
I hope these songs find you at the right time ♡
— xx thia.
Dear You.. I hope this finds you.. | Love poem - IU
I’ll be there, behind you who walks alone
Singing till the end, this song will be endless
Take a big breath
For you who forgot how to cry aloud…
I’ll sing
Love poem is often regarded as one of IU’s most selfless and emotional works, serving as a “supportive poem” or a lifeline for those who are suffering in silence. In the song’s introduction and annotations, IU shares that “Even human altruism is based on self-centeredness”. Here is the full translated text:
“Even human altruism is based on self-centeredness.” It’s difficult to watch someone you love become isolated and all alone. Those words of support and consolation that I quickly offered, because it was too painful for me to sit and watch and do nothing. I was under the false impression that my actions were entirely for that person’s sake. I still can’t help interfering when I see my people (t/n: people I care about) having a hard time. I’ve come to realize, though, that my actions are not entirely out of consideration or to serve as consolation for that person, but rather my own ardent desire to see that person lead a peaceful life. As someone making such a brazen request, I will keep my wishes to a minimum. I ask that you listen to this love poem, that you keep breathing. No one can carry someone else’s life (t/n: take responsibility for them) forever. But if both are headed in the same direction, they can walk together no matter how long the distance. Also, this is what I’ve done all my life and the only thing I’m good at, so I can sing as much as possible for the people I love. Just like all the poems I’ve received from the world throughout my singing career, I’m diligently writing poems filled with sincerity. I hope we can continue to live on, listen to each other’s poems in turn, and take big and small breaths. //
Dear You.. days will get better. | Better Days - SuperM
Just gotta hold on
Yeah, I know that it hurts,
but the sun will shine through
There’s gon’ be better days,
better days, better days
Around the corner, it’s true
Better Days was released during the height of the global COVID-19 pandemic, when the entire world was bound to their own homes and feeling lost, lonely, grieving loss.. it shares the comforting message of hope for the future and resilience, as well as solidarity in shared struggles.
Dear You... it’s OK, just let it all out. | BREATHE - Lee Hi
It’s alright if you run out of breath
No one will blame you
It’s okay to make mistakes sometimes
Because anyone can do so
Composed by the late Jonghyun of SHINee, BREATHE is a song for those who are feeling exhausted in life. The central message is that it is okay to feel overwhelmed, it is okay to make mistakes, that “running out of breath” is not a sign of failure but a natural, human response to life’s hardships.
