Coming into the spotlight through Unpretty Rapstar 2, rapper Heize has made a comeback with “Star.” A different song in theme and feel from her recent releases like “And July” or “Shut Up and Groove,” “Star” is a melancholy song that recalls all the things that have been lost and the feelings that come with reflecting on those lost things.
It’s not a new theme. When winter comes, music takes a shift from upbeat love songs with cheery choruses to slow ballads of lost love or Christmas songs. This song falls more into the former category, with Heize using her singing abilities to talk about the pain of separation. In the description for the MV, Heize explains the title of the track in the following way:
I have compared the stars to all the things that have parted ways. That could be family, friends, lovers, a pet cat, or even a time to which you cannot return… Even if you can’t see it with your eyes, or touch it with your hands, if you believe that it is out there somewhere, then your heart will become a little warmer
It’s not a hard connection to make. The thing we are separated from… Being so far away from it makes us seem as isolated and distanced as the stars in space. The video highlights this by showing Heize alone in a room floating in the middle of space and her sitting by herself on the moon watching the earth below.
Even this darkness night is gone and the morning is coming
And I can’t see you because you’re covered with clouds
I know you’re always there
But when I can’t see you, I’m worried
I pray that those clouds will be rain
These lines tie into the loneliness theme and the visuals in the video. It’s much easier to think about the sad things when you’re alone in the dark. It seems more private that way. When the sun comes up and the day starts, there are other things to focus on besides being sad and lonely. In the video, Heize is gazing up at the planet Earth. Depending on where her ‘star’ is, the view of them from so far away can be obscured by clouds or other weather anomalies.
The rest of the song continues the lament, though about midway through Heize makes a very important statement: “This time is one of processes”. Losing someone and missing them is a process. It takes time to sift through your thoughts and feelings to get to a point where you can truly begin to function normally.
What I only can do is
Believing that you’re looking at me at this very moment
I don’t have any memories since you left
Even I don’t have any clue
Why I can see you everytime but I can’t touch or hug you?
It’s almost a lyrical representation of the five stages of grief — denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Heize expresses them a bit out of order, but they’re all there. Especially the beginning lines of this stanza, where she accepts that no matter how she feels there’s only so much she can do about it. In the video, there’s a cord that’s plugged into the wall. The cord has been gradually unraveling, but comes out of the plug near the end of the song, right along with this verse.
The only negative I have for this song is the actual rap. Heize has shown better raps before, yet this one seemed stale. Her singing was light yet emoted what the song was meant to get across, but the rap would have been better executed by a lower toned female rapper.
Rating: 4/5
(Allkpoplyrics, Youtube, Images via CJ E&M Entertainment)
