Khushi Sharma, New Delhi

“LOVE RESEMBLES MISTY DREAM”

Lilac is derived from the beautiful flower which blooms in the season of spring. It is a refreshing colour as well. Lilac as a flower symbolizes purity, confidence, renewal and, innocence. It is title of a studio album by Lee Ji-eun or better known by her stage name IU.   ‘LILAC’ is her fifth studio album released on 25^th March 2021 which is a follow up for ‘Palette’ that was released in 2017. It was a long awaited album which took 4 years of wait and patience but came out as another milestone by IU!

Different from her previous works; this album can take you back to the retro times in an upbeat style. The album consists of total of ten songs varied in their genres, styles and composition. As she mentioned, for this album, she worked with a lot of different composers including AKMU’s Lee Chan-hyuk, Woogie, Sumin and many more. Each and every song is very different from each other and outshines the exceptional musical ability of the artist and adds a ton to her discography. Lilac is not just a goodbye to her youthful and beautiful 20s but it also conveys how grateful she is to end this amazing decade on this note and to receive all the love and support through this time. The album marks an introduction of a nation’s girl to her 30s with new hopes and desires.

The first sneak peak of the album was published earlier this year in January with a single release song titled as ‘Celebrity.’ It is a dance pop and electro pop track written and sung by IU. The song is refreshing and is meant to comfort people who are tired and suffering. Artist conveys the strength to those people through the song. ‘Celebrity’ came out as a commercial success as well as the great start for the awaited album release. The song debuted number one on Gaon chart and stood atop for six consecutive weeks, making it the longest number one to do so. It was her 17^th single to atop the charts. In total, Celebrity got 11 wins making it as the most awarded song followed by ‘Palette’ and ‘You and I‘ with 10 wins each. It also ranked 1 in charts of countries like Singapore and New Zealand. Creating history already, it was her first appearance in Billboard Global Charts ranking as 78, making it historical for her as a soloist.

The Title track ‘LILAC’ is an upbeat city pop song which can give a you a nostalgia you might not know of. Listening to this song is just like watching the garden bloom in spring and wind singing behind it. The lyrics of the song will comfort you every time you listen to it. It’s a song that will fill you with positive energy in those dark times. The lyrics of the song mentions ‘love me only till the spring like a warm breeze’ mentioning her farewell to her happy 20s and the goodbye would have not been more perfect than this.

Another song that catches your attention in the album as soon as you hear it, is ‘Troll’ featuring Dean. Let’s just say that I was waiting for this duo! It starts with a funky vibe but is a song set in rhythm and blues with an exceptional reggae-pop fusion. It has solid vocals and catchy melody which can make you happy while listening to it. Next song is ‘Coin.’ IU showcased her rapping skills with low scaled vocals in the song with interesting sounds in the instrumental. The lyrics of the song goes ‘since it’s a last game, make a mistake without regrets’ she executes perfect vocals! Another happy song of the album is ‘Ah Puh’ which is an upbeat track with a catchy ongoing rhythm and a happy melody. The song is about going on in life, even if you lose sometimes and not give up.

The last funky song of the album is ‘Flu’ which is emotional at the same time! If you loved listening to ‘Bbibbi’ by IU, this might slide into your Playlist easily too. Proceeding to the slow, ballad emotional songs from the album, ‘Empty Cup’ has an exceptionally refined melody and the innocence of lyrics will capture your heart. ‘Hi Spring, Bye’ is another synthetic heaven ballad, a downtempo song which will heal you whenever you listen to it.

IU showcased her vocal flex in the song that we all are fans of. Last not the least, the song that can make you tear up is ‘My Sea.’ The simple piano and raw vocals makes the song one of the best ballad songs of the year. The lyrics are beautiful and comforting such as ‘child so long time, did I barely hurt to myself’. This is the longest song from the album and the most precious one for me!

‘Lilac’ ends on the epilogue which concludes the album in a very beautiful way. The lyrics are ‘the past song that I sang for you do they still give you comfort?’ And if the answer is yes then it’s enough to give meaning to her life. The song is an emotional ride for the fans who have been listening to IU from a while. The album is one of the finest albums which can refresh your life in a beautiful way. Hope you will love the album like me and let’s see how many of us are on the upbeat side and how many of us are on the ballad side of the album! Let us know in the comment section below!

Happy Listening! Let us know your favourite song from this album in the comments!