It’s been a year since Yena’s debut as a soloist! And through 2022, she surprised us with a bright and refreshing concept for her first two releases. However, Yena is going down a much darker route with the release of her first single album: Love War. While we’re no strangers to Yena releasing darker songs as her b-sides, this is the first time that she’s gone this dark. And we’re obsessed!
‘Love War’ is indeed much darker than her two past title tracks. While ‘Smiley‘ and ‘Smartphone‘ were uplifting, optimistic, and bright, ‘Love War’ is quite the opposite. The title alone says it all. Yena leaves behind the bright uplifting pop-rock and opts for a more R&B sound. This song showcases another side of her voice and she sounds so incredible –– it’s soft yet full of emotion. It also features BE’O in the second verse, whose voice complements Yena’s so much.
‘Love War’ is so addictive! It may sound calm, but the lyrics reflect a war on oneself. And she pulls it off so well!
The aesthetics are absolutely gorgeous and the music video has stunning cinematography. We see Yena succumbing to the pain of a romance that turned into hell. It is so well-executed and we could watch this music video and listen to this song over and over for hours.
But ‘Love War’ isn’t the only thing we loved about this release. Yena opens her single album with an intriguing introduction that lets it be known from the very beginning that this release is different from her two previous releases. It has darker and more mysterious tones to it, and creates an atmosphere unlike any other going right into the b-side: ‘Wash Away.’
This b-side is incredible, just like all of Yena’s b-sides. ‘Wash Away’ starts with a simple guitar riff and builds, with heavy R&B influence, as well as jazz and soul. It’s a quiet song where she asks someone to go away because they’ve hurt her so much. It totally completes the message behind ‘Love War.’
While Yena has explored obscure themes and sounds before, ‘Wash Away’ is unlike any other song she’s released until now. While it has a painful and sad undertone, this song is ultimately about standing for oneself and it definitely gives off a vibe of empowerment.
YENA(최예나) 1ST SINGLE ALBUM
— 최예나 (@YENA_OFFICIAL) January 4, 2023
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CONCEPT PHOTO #1
2023.01.16 6PM (KST)#최예나 #예나 #YENA#Love_War pic.twitter.com/BwHkJUHY2t
Yena proved to be anything but a one-dimensional artist with this new release! These two songs go so well with each other and we seriously can’t stop replaying them. Yena never fails and Love War clearly proved she can do it all.
Are you loving this new side of Yena as much as we are? Do you like ‘Wash Away’ or ‘Love War’ more? Be sure to let us know by tweeting us at @thehoneypop or visiting us on Facebook and Instagram.
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