Description
DPR IAN (formerly known as Rome) is a Korean-Australian rapper, director, and composer under Dream Perfect Regime. He is a former member of the boy group C-CLOWN.
âFor the longest time, I felt like I had somebody else inside me. It just felt like a complete opposite world in which I was living in,â DPR IAN said in Memories In Disorder, a short film documenting the process of his debut EP. âMy whole life I battled with this other individual until I finally decided to make him come to life.â
IANâs courage to bare his soul pays off on his new emotional record âMoodswings In This Orderâ, otherwise titled âMITOâ. His first-ever musical project since leaving the K-pop boy group C-Clown in 2015, âMITOâ is filled with eight tracks that invite listeners on a rollercoaster journey through the singerâs clouded mind.
In the last few years, he has (unintentionally or not) forged himself an image as the enigmatic creative director of the Korean hip-hop collective Dream Perfect Regime, working behind-the-scenes for some of Koreaâs biggest R&B/rap stars like Mino and iKONâs Bobby. A quick glance at IANâs social media profiles and itâs cluttered with charismatic photos and videos of the former idol jamming in the studio or cruising on his motorcycle. He has built an identity based on this ultimate bad boy persona, but his debut EP shatters that illusion to reveal an artist who â underneath all that leather jacket, tattoos and smoke â is riddled with anxiety, doubt and fear.
On âMITOâ, IAN wrangles his pain through modern R&B anthems. It opens with the epic title track, a cinematic two-minute battle cry that sets the mood for the rest of the record. Itâs haunting and grim, an early reminder that the EP draws most of its powers from heartbreak. But it doesnât mean that all the songs on the project are distinctly moody or pessimistic. âSo Beautifulâ is an addictive spaghetti Western-inspired jam while the guitar-pop âNervesâ shows off IANâs rockstar potential (though it sorely misses a chance to really take off).
However when he gets vulnerable, IAN doesnât mince his words. âWhy does no one understand / When I say I am just afraid,â he wonders on the confessional âScaredy Catâ. âWhy does no one lend a hand / When I say I will drift away.â His unguarded emotions are also sprawled across âDope Loversâ, a hypnotic examination between romantic and self relationships.
But âMITOâ isnât simply just DPR IANâs inner demons personified â itâs also a cathartic release for the singer who has decided that heâs got nothing left to hide. âI tell myself to let go of the pain / So sick of keeping it all in,â he murmurs on âWelcome To The Showâ before letting out a defiant wail, âI just want you to close all the doors / Just leave me alone.â Later on the closing song âNo Silhouettesâ, DPR IAN finally learns to let go in order to regain himself: âI lost myself under the sun / I got too close / And now Iâm burning.â
Once you get past the occasional clumsy lyric (âI love it how you think Iâm always this cool / Excusez-moi, I think Iâm just a fool,â IAN sings on âNo Blueberriesâ), âMITOâ is actually a well thought out concept that isnât too overly ambitious. It excels in where itâs supposed to and leaves enough room for the singer to improve on on his next project.
Now that heâs finally in front of the camera and not behind it, DPR IAN is carving out a space for himself in the R&B world, and the mark that heâs about to leave on the scene wonât make him go unnoticed. (Quoted from NME)Â
1. MITO
2. So Beautiful
3. Dope Lovers
4. No Blueberries (Feat. DPR LIVE, CL)
5. Nerves
6. Scaredy Cat
7. Welcome To The Show
8. No Silhouetted
Release Date: 12 Mar 2021
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