After spending sixteen consecutive weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 charts and dominating the newest Rolling Stones Music Chart, “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X has become one of the hottest tracks of 2019.
Yesterday, RM from BTS and Lil Nas X dropped the remix of the “Old Town Road”, leaving fans baffled. The surprise drop came as news to fans for whom the collaboration was both unexpected and surprising. But by the end of the day, the song ended up amongst the top 10 tracks on iTunes, an impressive feat by the artists.
With RM’s contribution to the track, Lil Nas X has finally scored four remixes for his country trap. In a song that does not even extend for a full two minutes, the rapper managed to give an impressive glimpse into his skills as a writer and a rapper. Known for his unique wordplay and a sense of language, RM turned Nas’ country trap into a uniquely crafted Korean rendition.
Namjoon seemingly used the opportunity of collaboration to introduce his culture, something that forms the backdrop for the majority of songs from BTS’ discography including “IDOL”, “Ddaeng”, “Paldogangsan”, and many more.
By placing a purple horse on the thumbnail and changing the song title to “Seoul Town Road”, the rapper traces his roots and takes listeners to his home ground – South Korea. The spatial changes that might seem trivial to some are quite significant as the move hints towards RM’s attempt of representing his country on an equal plane as Lil Nas X does when he metaphorically uses the physical location to talk about his hardships.
RM’s verse will immediately bring “Seoul” from Mono to mind wherein the rapper talked about his relationship with his city and the similar dynamics become evident when one listens to the track alongside “Seoul Town Road”. His verse is therefore, a beautiful payback to his country.
Another significant contribution to the track is RM’s wordplay around “homies”. What sounds like homies (friends) is actually “homi”, a popular farming tool used by Koreans. By talking about these “homi-s”, RM is hinting towards BTS’, a Korean group’s ascension in the West. With a single metaphor, the rapper managed to not just represent his country but also make its dominance evident.
BTS’ growth as one of the biggest artists in the industry has definitely made the world take note of their influence. Well aware of the fact, RM is playing a jibe on the audience while at the same time, acknowledging the group’s impact.
This remix will primarily be remembered for Namjoon’s craft and it seems that the song will help BTS tap on newer demographics too which will help them in the long run.
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