‘View’ vs. ‘Married To The Music’: The Relation that May or May Not Exist as a Result of My Madness

Hafsa Tameez is a Pakistani-born, nowhere-based interior designer/ professional procrastinator/ self-entertainer. Stumbling onto Kpop as a socially-awkward shy recluse, she was immediately hooked. After making the irrevocable mistake of taking a philosophy course in college, she now loves analyzing the world of Kpop with Gayathri. While she adores far too many Kpop groups, her favorites have always been SHINee, Vixx, Exo, Mamamoo and Spica (though BTS is swiftly reeling her in).

Gayathri Ravindran is an Indian-born, Dubai-based Multimedia Design student currently 4 months away from graduation. She discovered Kpop through the irresistible charms of the one who calls himself Nichkhun, after seeing him on Running Man one too many times. Last year something possessed her to take a philosophy class, then two more and now she spends her free time analyzing Kpop culture with Hafsa. Currently following way more groups than she has time for including 2PM, SHINee, Vixx, BTS and Exo. Not a big fan of girl groups, although she is very excited about Mamamoo and The Ark.

This is what happens when Kpop takes over your life and you decide to take a philosophy class...

Hafsa: ‘View’ vs ‘Married To The Music’: The relation that may or may not exist as a result of my madness

Sounds like a title to me XD

Gayathri: So I haven’t actually looked up lyrics to either song. Do you think it’s significant or are we sticking mainly to the visual?

H: I don’t remember the lyrics for "View." But "Married To The Music"?

Very… uh…romantic?

G: Is that the word for it? LOL. yeah all I remember is “neomu areumdaumdaumdaumdaum view”. That’s literally it. I’m guessing they’re not talking about Minho's abs? XD

H: I don’t know, but did you notice that every time the chorus came up it was Minho right there on screen?

Not really minding that view right there. If you know what I mean :3

G: Haha I do ;)

H: I also remember “I won’t let you down”

Mostly cuz it’s always an Onew solo shot there and I want them contacts.

G: Ooh his grapefruit hair

H: And that

G: And that poor soul who tried and failed to get with that :””

Ok anyway Imma look at finding a video with English subs for View

H: if you find a good one, send me the link

G: IDK man, I'm not convinced "sweetly dip it in & eat the fondue of light" is an accurate translation.

:/

But then again, who even knows

H: Fairly certain that fondue ain’t no dessert

Is it just me being pervy or are both songs about getting down

G: Right? I was just about to say it got very explicit after the fondue bit. Omo. What if it’s like the Korean 'netflix and chill’?!

H: The what now?

G: Like Bieber's chillin’ by the fire eatin’ fondue?? XD

Netflix and chill is basically a new slang term for doing the do

You feel? *creepy eyebrow wiggling*

H: Oh God! Hahahahahahahaha

Then wait till you read the lyrics for Married To The Music

G: Whoa whoa whoa! What's this about the “moment you pass your sleeping senses”?

H: Dude. IDEK

You know I’m not great with pop culture references -.-

G: Of course that’s why I’m here.

So basically this areumdaum view is like all the 'normal' coming of age stuff they never got to experience since they’re idols and it would be scandalous?

H: That’s what I thought. Like when I watched the two MVs, the thing that caught my attention immediately was that both of them seemed to reference SHINee’s idol lives, a lot. View almost entirely. Married To The Music kinda more through the title and chorus I guess

G: Hold on I’m still on the lyrics for "View." I’ll look at "Married To The Music" now.

H: Oh you found an MV with lyrics? Link please

G: I got distracted by the pretty, ok?

H: LOL. No judgement here mate

G: "Oh baby your scent wetly spreads over me"

Ahem, yeah ok then...

H: Dear Lord. Oh wait, better yet "On this hot groove, I'll take you"

XD. Like even I get that one, ok?

G: LOL

So what I'm getting from this is that the only way they can imagine falling in love with someone and pursuing an actual relationship is if they're also "Married To The Music" as much as SHINee are? IDK man.

Hmm, but what about the video when they keep getting parts cut off? :/

H: Maybe...

I didn’t see it that way actually. When I first saw "View," I’ll be pretty honest, I was confused. I didn’t really get what was happening. It took me a while to understand that the girls had taken them away. And only waaaaay later did it click that their personas in the MV are a reflection of themselves in real life. Essentially SHINee is SHINee; work, performances, blah blah. But then these girls come and "kidnap" them. Correct me if I’m wrong but this is what I thought the MV was about.

G: Yeah, but to me it seemed like SHINee knew they were going to be taken away and just let it happen

H: You raise an interesting point, and honestly I’m not so sure. Basically SHINee end up chilling with their kidnappers. They essentially have a really great time until the wee end when the police find them. That’s when you hear the sirens

G: If you mean ‘netflix and chilling’ *eyebrow wiggles* :3

H: Hahahahaha. Our mind is really in the gutter today isn’t it? XD

Rejected though, in Onew’s case

G: Haha for Onew, yes

IDK about Minho though, dat face

H: That did not feel like chilling. I mean she bonked him over the head with a bottle

G: it seems like such an odd thing to include in there

H: I thought so too at first, but I think it’s left in there on purpose

G: I mean until that point I was pretty sure SHINee wanted to be there.

H: True, so we think they weren’t consenting participants on the kidnapping.

G: You think that’s a reference to saesang fans?

H: I don’t know. Maybe.

G: Like the reason they can’t be completely carefree is because it could be dangerous for them in terms of saesangs?

H: That’s one interpretation certainly.

I thought it was more like a reference to themselves. From the way the scene played out, it felt like a down-to-earth realistic realisation on SHINee’s part regarding who they are. Am I reading too much into this? I thought it was all a big giant metaphor for freedom

G: You're supposed to bruh. It’s called critical analysis.

I also think it’s interesting how first there's Onew who's obviously all NO and then Minho who doesn’t seem like he's sure about what he wants… Wait, did we just acknowledge Minho’s acting skills? O_O

H: LOL!

True. I didn’t really get that before, until I saw the MV with the lyrics.

It felt like they were singing from inside a cage, and the view isn’t necessarily a girl per say, but rather it is the view of the world. In in their case, the world outside the world of being an idol

G: I thought it was mostly about the whole ‘things they could be doing but can’t’

H: That would certainly play into it, I mean sure there are all these things they want to do but can’t

G: Hmm #samesame

H: And the MV shows that they would have fun doing them, but I think they also realise that they don’t particularly know how to

G: I see what you mean. So the MV is also the realisation that the freedom they crave is also dangerous for them. Hence the Minho-bonked-over-the-head-with-a-bottle don’t-know-what-he-wants thing. Makes sense. There are also those moments where the girls try to take photos and Jonghyun’s like “Nah man”

H: Yeah totally. There are numerous mentions of their idol lives. It even flashes on the TV screen in the grocery store at 0:52. Not to mention that huge collage wall.

G: Basically every time they mention ‘you’ in the lyrics, we're saying they don’t mean you literally as a person.

H: I believe so. I think that’s why the lyrics are that vague.

G: #twinning

I’m with you so far, but there is one part I don’t really get. So you know the lyrics at the end?

“It’ll be the first time for anyone, like you (I feel a thousand senses)
Smelling and tasting the star light (I’ll never leave you lonely)
Feeling the weight of the scent (I won’t let you down)
Seeing the colour and shape of sounds”

What if here the person saying 'It’ll be the first time for anyone, like you' is not SHINee but say like a personification of the non-idol life that they dream of? You follow?

H: Uh…no. Sorry

G: Like what if this is the whole thought process in SHINee's head. Like an internal monologue thingy

H: Right, I follow!

G: Good, because I think I just confused myself.

H: Hahaha!

No it makes sense, and it fits right in with what I was saying. Essentially, "View," the lyrics are a monologue inside Shinee's head.

So let’s see. The whole song and mv for "View" is this:

SHINee are idols and they are stuck in the idol life. Cuz the idol life, for all its glamour and glory comes with restrictions that sometimes makes it feel like a cage. They realize that "in the ocean, time is a bottle"

They are basically stuck in a bubble because they are "so used to being bored they have forgotten the feeling of it being special." And SHINee is standing at the window looking outside into the world trying to figure out what lies out there in the world of freedom

G: And they are asking this view, this freedom essentially, to show them what it is that they are missing out there. But according to the MV, they add a slight layer that isn’t in the lyrics. In the MV, these girls fulfill their wish; they take them out, show them a great time. But SHINee also realize that this freedom, this world they see, this view is also dangerous. Maybe the “kiss on the eyes,” is the symbolic way of wanting to be able to look past that danger, to ignore it per say. Does that make any sense?

H: yup J

It’s almost like they want one thing but the world wants something else, or the world IS something else entirely.

G: “View” makes sense!!! Nice. I’m gonna miss the idea that neomu araemdaum view is the Korean Netflix and chill.

Now with that being said, I think "Married To The Music" is a continuation of this concept. Like I feel like if "View" was the problem, the unspoken desires, the longing and all that, then "Married To The Music" is the reconciliation

H: Ooh, I follow you. If "View" is looking out the window through the bars, then "Married To The Music" is turning around and looking inside

G: You mean like introspection?

H: No, as in looking at the interior of the cage of idol life that they are in.

G: Ah, ok. Hang on, I found a lyric MV for it

OK, yeah. I’m a bit lost when it comes to "Married To The Music." The first time I saw this I had no context in terms of lyrics. Who is that girl supposed to represent? Is she also a personification of something? Also, is that a wedding veil?

H: She is. She is in full wedding attire. Same here, I had to watch it like 19 hundred million times to make any sense of it. Mostly cuz I was too busy drooling to do much else. #FangirlLyfe

G: I also assumed she was trying to create like a perfect guy with all the SHINee parts they keep losing but I don’t see how that works. Like is it a commentary on how idols are supposed to be perfect? Or more about the dynamics of the group as a whole? Like how each member is supposed to have a specific image or role to play? i.e.: Key being the mom of the group but not really

H: My friend, you ask the relevant questions. Just going through them I think the whole song and MV are an answer to the "if you want freedom so much and THIS is the reality of the idol business, why don’t you just leave" question

G: Ahh! Cuz they're "Married To The Music." They’re “married” to the idol life as a whole, and according to the lyrics they love it, which is why they don’t leave.

H: Exactly! Or if you really want some SM bashing in there, they are bound legally by a marriage-like contract. Whichever "View" floats your boat. See what I did there? ;)

G: Oh my God, yes I see what you did. That’s interesting since in "View" they were pretty vague. They never mentioned the word ‘girl’ specifically but they do here quite a few times.

H: I still think it’s not really a girl but rather their life personified as one

G: Yeah me too. So is the ‘you’ here a reference to the music or to idol life?

H: I think it’s the same thing. Their life IS their music. Hence "Married to the Music."

G: “All of me is you, Like it’ll explode, turn it up”,

Yea makes sense

H: I love that line. It adds a completely different layer of meaning. It’s not that they love the music idol life, but that IS them. How can they leave a part of themselves?

G: “Remember this unforgettable, hot highlight”. Man SHINee has some bomb pickup lines in these.

Still not sure about the parts getting cut off thing though. How does that fit in?

((((((((PIC)))))))))

H: I think I’m getting it. The lyrics here are their reasons for wanting and loving their idol lives and whatnot, and the MV gives all the reasons why they should probably leave. Basically, the MV shows their idol life metaphorically

G: OK...

H: Like watch it with the lenses of "SM does all this to its idols"

G: Ahh, I get it

H: For example, all the eating and drinking bits, I first thought that had to do with the strict idol diets and stuff

G: So like Key’s head getting cut off could be a reference to how he's not what they traditionally think is ‘good looking’. So cut off your face cuz no likey

H: I also thought it was because he is the sassy one. Spills secrets left and right without filter. Sort of like Taemin but less accidental

G: Haha. And Taemin's eyes? IDK, he's always been pretty observant and tactless about dropping truth bombs

H: True. So basically all these parts disappearing are representations of what they have to do as idols, turn their eyes away from issues like that

G: I guess. Jonghyun’s mouth makes sense. He is the main vocal so by default he gets the most lines and adlibs. Also he's pretty outspoken and politically aware. Remember how we were talking about him being funny and not being allowed on a lot of variety shows?

H: Ooh, I didn’t even think of that. In that case, even the throwing up makes sense. Especially since the chick who saw him tossed her cookies too. The throwing up could be their mistakes perhaps? Like people have a tendency to blow their mistakes waaaaay out of proportion or make big deals out of them. So in this case, Jonghyun makes a mistake and the lady follows right along.

LOL that scene though! Jong puking, chick puking, and Onew going "WEEEEE!! Confetti!!!"

G: True! I noticed that. And Minho's whole face. I guess his whole image is his face...like he’s just the pretty visual so no one cares about more than that

H: Right. And yet despite all this, they stay

G: But Onew’s nose? I can’t figure it out and it’s annoying me

H: That I have no explanation for. Ignore the way your band members smell on stage after a concert? I don’t know

G: Hahahahahaha!

H: Maybe it’s a reference to his looks too. Like how he is ranked last in the "Who’s handsomest" rankings. Or is it a reference to his smoking? We know him and Taemin do. But apparently he has this good boy image and fans didn’t like that he smoked. Also the smoking led to a lot of his vocal problems leading up to his surgery. That could be the nose thing…maybe

G: Yeah I remember when people caught him with an electronic cigarette and were disappointed. Maybe, since he is also the only one walking around with a soju bottle

H: Yeah and then we hit the scene where the "bridezilla" is sitting there making her collages. Which is mainly the reason why I think both songs/MVs are related. Cuz this wall collage came up in "View," where the chick gets the rejected by Onew

G: Ahh yea! And now here. Interesting. But if you look at them both, this one in "Married To The Music" is all fragments: this one’s eyes, that one’s mouth, this one’s eyebrow and etc. In "View," the collage is all their jacket shots and promo pics.

H: Huh. I’m getting this idea of deconstruction. "Married To The Music," aka the idol industry, picks and chooses what to promote and all. Hence the deconstruction. Literally with the noses and heads and mouths

G: Right, and the picture collages in "View," it's a whole image but still a false one. I mean those are promotional shots, hardly their real selves. I think this is where we as fans come in. Even the idea of sasaeng fans we touched on earlier. We see these images and think that’s what they are and presume to think we know them and what they want.

H: When it may not be really. In that case, it would actually make Onew's rejection of her right there more significant than just a massive burn. LOL

G: Right! So with "View" it is more to do with how idol culture affects them. And "Married To The Music" is how idol culture influences our perception of them.

H: But the conclusion is that they love it anyway and are willing to put up with it for their music.

G: Ok yeah. Makes sense. Choosing a horror concept then was a rather clever strategy wasn’t it?

H: Indeed it was. Subtle way of getting their point across.

G: A lot more subtle than say EXID's "Ah Yeah."

H: So subtle we almost didn’t see it. But I think overall it was a clever way to tell their own story. It still does deal with the idea of identity and deconstruction, but I’m feeling like that might be a whole different topic then.

G: Ugh no stahp. I’d have to dig through my notes on Hume again. X.X

Wait…are we like done?

H: I think so....wow. And to think, first time I saw it all I thought was “ooh, pretty eyeshadow. Wonder if there’s a tutorial” XD