Rookies MCND, which stands for Music Creates a New Dream, made their summer comeback with title track “nanana” for their mini album Earth Age. Unlike their winter and spring releases, “Ice Age” and “Spring” , “nanana” is less obviously tailored to the season that it is being released in. In “nanana”, MCND continues to showcase their determined rookie spirit while showcasing a new side of themselves.
The message behind “nanana” is familiar for those who have checked out their previous releases; their latest comeback builds off of their message that MCND is ready to prove themselves and that they are working hard towards achieving their dreams. Indeed, “nanana” showcases challenges that MCND has faced and will continue to face as they work to achieve their goals. However, “nanana” is different from previous releases in that it also signals the group’s evolution into passionate, even more determined artists.
As a group who debuted earlier this year, MCND say that they have a long journey ahead of them filled with challenges that they must overcome. The sets and props used throughout the MV signal some of these obstacles as some of the individual sets for the members are smaller, enclosed spaces. For example, Castle J stands in a room with security cameras with a screen of digital numbers behind him; some scenes even show him from the point of view of the security cameras. Huijin’s individual set also features screens and cameras, adding to the effect of surveillance. Inside these spaces, they are watched and judged; as K-pop idols, MCND will face public scrutiny and judgement. Though this pressure exists for all celebrities in general, MCND are proclaiming that they are prepared to overcome these pressures to achieve their dream. It is a fitting proclamation for a group less than a year into their career.
Despite the overarching message that ties “nanana” to the group’s other releases so far, MCND claims that “nanana” is a new page as they are now one step closer to living out their dreams. The colour red is used to signify this shift, as MCND claim that their grit and passion will help propel them through this new era.
Flames and explosions can be seen throughout the MV as one example of the use of red. The screen behind Castle J that depicts numbers changes to an explosion, signalling the countdown and launch of their new start. They have reached a new, colossal moment that advances them forward as a team and as artists.
Break, break through yeah, we ready to die
Music Creates New Dream we have no doubt
Try it even though it looks impossible, can’t give up, go
Keep walking and walking like there’s no tomorrow, live
They have worked hard for this moment, and are ready to showcase a new side of themselves. In one group shot, MCND sits on a disassembled white car that seems to have crashed into the ground. The white is reminiscent of their debut song “Ice Age”, and the car suggests their journey from debut until now. The car is incapable of going any further, however, and MCND as well is ready to turn over a new leaf. If they debuted with “Ice Age”, their latest comeback and new mini-album Earth Age is yet another beginning.
Again, the colour red is important in representing this change. As all of MCND stands on a cliff, they are bathed in red lighting, with what looks like lava on a screen behind them. The group, still in the early stages of their career, are full of passion and determination and ready to take on a new era filled with challenges, but success as well. The camera is angled upwards so that the audience is looking up at them; they have nowhere to go but up, and through “nanana” MCND proves that they are only starting to reach these new heights.
In “nanana”, MCND continues their narrative of proclaiming themselves as unstoppable rookies while showcasing a new grit and passion. Though the narrative that MCND have made for themselves over releases in each season of their rookie year, the sets and colour palette of the MV signal a new turning point for them. The overarching message about working hard towards your dreams can be cheesy, but MCND puts a new spin on it with each release that tracks their own growth. Fans can anticipate their next release, which will probably be sometime in the fall, as they have promised.
(YouTube, Images and lyrics via TOP Media)
