You’ve gotta hand it to JYP. He sticks to what he excels at… and often takes a mean promo shot to go along with it! I’m loving the styling and the pose of the picture above. It’s weirdly flattering, even if its inspirations lie in a bygone era. But really, JYP has made a late-career surge on mining past eras for new hits. Some songs have been more successful than others, but he’s one of the few K-pop acts going full bore on beloved genres like new jack swing, disco and swing. There’s no half-stepped here! He dives right into the cheese.

Changed Man is the latest in this long line of pastiches. This time, he’s taking on high energy synthpop. The song kicks off with a bombastic riff, pulling us right into this sound. From here, the track never looks back. There’s no empty space to be found as Changed Man bounds from verse to chorus and back again. The production is incredibly busy and a little chintzy, but that’s in keeping with many of its influences.

JYP’s vocal further highlights the song’s nostalgia play. He imbues Changed Man with a sense of desperation, matching the intensity of the synth as he attacks the chorus. Like many of his hooks, I imagine this will sink its fangs into our collective memory before too long. Regardless of what you think of this very specific genre, there’s no denying he knows his way around an earwormy chorus.

Grade: B+