K-pop lyricist leads ‘double life’
Ku Tae-woo has two names. He uses his real name when penning lyrics for K-pop songs, but goes by the pseudonym Ku Hyun-woo when writing poems.
He became a poet in 2014 after his creation “Dogville” — which revolves around ordinary street dogs — won the publishing company Munhak Dongne’s literary award for new writers. Only a year later, he debuted as a lyricist with the medium-tempo “Breaking Up,” sung by boy duo Super Junior-D&E.
The poet/lyricist also wrote lines for K-pop girl band Red Velvet’s track “Oh Boy,” released in 2015.
K-pop and poetry seem quite distant to each other, but Ku has been making great strides in both fields for nearly five years.
The Korea Times recently met him to learn how he has become a multi-player. Ku greeted this reporter with a warm smile at the cultural space “Secret Base” in Mapo-gu, Seoul, which he and his friend have been running to let people enjoy diverse cultural activities.
“‘Mode change’ is the key,” Ku said. “I abide by different rules for poems and lyrics to handle both. When I am in the ‘poet mode,’ I have to walk around somewhere with my pen and notebook to create something. I never use a laptop or drink alcohol. But when I switch myself into ‘lyricist mode,’ I work on the computer first and sometimes get inebriated to become more emotional.”
Ku got the idea from an unspecified English critic/novelist, who is known to have been using two desks — one for writing his stories and another for reviewing others’ products — to carry out multiple tasks.
Then, why did the poet decide to pen K-pop lyrics? “Most people think my abilities as a poet have led me to expand my career, but this is not true,” Ku said without hesitation. “My interest and affection for music were the beginning of everything. When I was in my youth, I longed to make my own songs but was frustrated because lyric-making was too demanding. Hence, I set my sights on poems, believing it might help me.”
Ironically, he gained success as a poet first. “Even after my debut as a poet, I continued studying lyrics at a music academy and could luckily seize an opportunity to become a lyricist with a track for Super Junior-D&E,” Ku said.
But Ku said he does not try to “link” K-pop to poems.
“Many people point out that my lines sound like a poem,” he said. “I think this is natural and inevitable since I am a poet, but I do not intentionally add so-called poetic expressions to my lyrics. If I make such an attempt, the lines would be incomprehensible. But I believe the lyrics for popular music should be straightforward and easy to follow.” Although Ku believes that a clear line should be drawn between poetry and K-pop lyrics, he finds both fields equally worthwhile.
“Some aspects of popular culture seem to be devalued due to their popularity, while certain artistic works are up-valued merely because they are less known,” he said. “From my perspective, making popular music and doing fine arts are equally valuable and challenging.”
As of now, Ku has a hectic schedule. He has no time to chill out, since he has to submit 11 poems and even more lyrics by November. When asked how he gets out of a slump amid a heavy workload, he provided two tips.
“The first option is to force myself,” he said.
“When I can’t come up with appropriate words or ideas, I jot down on paper every term that comes to my mind. Or I just relax and avoid reading any words or sentences. I don’t’ even look at a sign or a menu so I can stay away from my work until I get refreshed.”
Ku rounded off the interview by speaking about his dreams.