i-dle are one of those K-pop groups that actively reach out to global audiences and try to incorporate cultural touchstones they may not always be well-versed in. This has led to valid criticism in the past, though their music has leaned in a more generic direction the last few years. With new digital single Mono, they attempt an uplifting rallying cry in the vein of songs like Lady Gaga’s Born This Way or the Black Eyed Peas’ Where Is The Love (one of those songs being leagues better than the other, of course!). However, once again things land in a different way than intended… at least for fussy listeners like me.
I try very hard not to be political on this blog because The Bias List is meant to be an oasis from politics and my readers generally hate whenever I bring it up. And, one of the reasons I enjoy writing about K-pop as an English-language speaker is that I can choose to ignore the lyrics and focus solely on the music. That, of course, gets tricky when a song is recorded in English and pitched toward a global audience. That gets even trickier with a chorus like Mono’s. First, I want to acknowledge that the intent behind this song is laudable. Promoting peace and unity is always welcome and featuring non-binary rapper skaiwater adds credence to the song’s inclusive vibe. However, given the current climate in my home country I struggle with the “You’re from the right or from the left” lyric that kicks off each chorus. Presumably, this lyric attempts a double meaning: the left and right channels of a speaker and the left and right parties that exist in many political systems.
To give context to my reaction, the United States is currently under siege by “the right,” up to and including innocent people being shot and killed on the streets. So no, I don’t want to “play the whole world in mono” with “the right” at this moment in history. As far as I’m concerned, the right needs to look hard at themselves and decide if they truly want to stand for blatant cruelty and authoritarianism. Those still supporting current right wing policy are not “the same” as me. Maybe we were once the same, and hopefully we can be once again. But at this point in time, that feels like a naive idea to be bopping around to with a pop song.
I guess a more critical message wouldn’t sound as nice over the ultra-sanitized dancefloor production on Mono. So, what we’re left with is well-intentioned platitudes that come across as patronizing. To be clear, I don’t want to denigrate i-dle’s stance itself. In general, I believe that extending an olive branch is always the best approach, but when one side is offering a branch that has been sharpened into a weapon it would be foolish to assume you won’t be stabbed. I guess I’m simply tired of hearing how both sides of a system need to work toward unity when one side bears all the power and actively uses it to squash the other. I would love a civil discussion about the benefits of working together in spite of our differences. That discussion only ever seems to spawn from one side of the aisle.
For those who believe I’ve completely misread the intention of Mono by bringing politics into the equation, I’ll simply say that each of us brings context to any piece of art we experience. Of course, i-dle are not from America and have no obligation to represent that audience. They are not burdened by the assumption that any English-language material will or should be aimed at just one of the many English-speaking regions in the world. But, when you release a globally-minded song like this you do so understanding that the music will be seen through a variety of diverse lenses. As always, I can only speak to how I receive a song, knowing full well that my takeaways may not match others’ perception or experience.
Mono may inspire someone somewhere to make a powerful and positive change and I love it for that. But even taking personal thoughts out of the equation, I struggle to understand the core message we’re being asked to contend with. “Mono” is confusing symbolism given the song’s plea for the embrace of diversity. In audio terms, mono results in a central, focused sound. In visual terms, it’s kind of like “2D” to stereo’s “3D.” It seems like a track with Mono’s theme would urge listeners to “play the whole world in stereo” instead. I think the lyrics are trying to say that, despite differences of opinion, culture and sexuality, we all have a common thread of humanity that links us together and that connection can be harnessed with something as universal as music. But then, the song encourages listeners to dance to their “real vibe,” highlighting their uniqueness and loving themselves. It’s all a bit clunky and vague. Maybe the core message is simply: “whatever your demographic may be, please stream this song!”
I’m sure a number of you are screaming at this review and wishing I’d stop over-analyzing what’s meant to be a simple, good-natured pop song. And this, readers, is why I choose not to write about English-language pop music. I’d be insufferable! (even more so than usual) Simply as a piece of music, I find Mono fashionable but quite dull and flat. It’s certainly catchy, though the lyrics muddy the overall effect of the melody. Regardless, the rating below does not take into account those lyrics and I promise I won’t be framing my reviews this way on a regular basis.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7.5 |
Grade: C
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
I like the song😍(that’s all I say because this political stuff is so terrifyingly real and sad and I don’t feel like getting into it😢
8.5/10❤️
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Im also not well educated enough to comment as I don’t keep up enough to formulate an well based opinion an do not live in the us
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Also do not feel like fighting with the right winged because I’m certainly not like them idle! 😑
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There is a Korean phrase in the song said by Soyeon, “이제는 머린 뮤트해, 심장 박동 노래해”, which means “Now mute your mind, let your heartbeat sing its song” in English. I’m sure I didn’t need to point it out as people probably heard that while listening to the song. I’m just pointing out that it’s not all in English, and there’s that one part sung in Korean. Anyways, I enjoyed the song way more than I thought I would.
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it feels so weird that they did that like now you can’t call it an English song because of one Korean line. At that point, just make the whole song English if 99% of it already is?
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Nick, thank you for all your thoughtful commentary. It really is reassuring that there are other sane people. Don’t let commenters silence you! These are not merely small disagreements or opinions on minor political issues, it’s is the fabric of a democracy that’s being dismantled.
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Louder for the people in the back‼️‼️
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As an avid consumer of (curated) well-written essays, reading this made me happy. I know churning out a 6-paragraph essay will never be sustainable with a 7-days-a-week blogging routine and variety *is* the spice of life…but I’m glad I read this post today.
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Honestly, as someone from a heavily right-wing country (India), I understand why you feel iffy with that line (honestly, Indian right-wingers are even more diabolical than anything but I’m gonna avoid getting too political here) cause tbh… I too wouldn’t wanna vibe or dance with the rw of my country 🥴
But anyways, for this song, it’s a serviceable dance track, prolly the type you’d hear at your local H&M.
Rating’s the same.
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And I’m not very well-versed in US politics so I can’t comment much on it but I can draw parallels between the politics of our countries, how it’s getting more right-centric, almost an oligarch and divided heavily, but most importantly, the democracy’s dying. It’s truly the dark ages if you think about it but I hope for the best for this mid-terms and for 2029 here.
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Hi Nick,
Thanks for sharing your opinion! What you’re saying is completely valid and I hope that this song doesn’t affect you negatively. Though I’m not well-versed in the current political climate/situation in the US, please continue to stay strong and hang in there! It’s perfectly fine to primarily focus on traditional K-Pop and disregard global pop songs like this when it comes to music journalism.
Thank you so much for your courage in writing this incredibly thoughtful article for all the Americans and hopefully all things would heal eventually.
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Just want to say that I appreciate your thoughts Nick! Don’t feel that you shouldn’t be able to speak about politics, especially in times like this. Even though I’m in Canada, it’s incredibly scary seeing what’s happening and anyone speaking up is much appreciated.
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I ain’t listening to this song but you ate with this review.
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One last thing I think is important to note is that idle( more specifically soyeon) had no part in the production, composition or writing of this song!
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As someone who also lives in the shithole known as the United States, I’m gonna choose to belive that I-dle meant that no matter who you are, you should just be ok with yourself. Of course, there is a chance I could be wrong about this and I completely understand your points if tha line sounded tone deaf to you
as for the actual song itself, it’s a nice little dance track. Might not blast it often but it’s cool
8/10 (7, 8, 8, 9) for me
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I live in the south. The Monks for Peace just walked through our town, bringing more poignant and timeless message of hope and unity than this song.
And boy do they walk at a brisk pace, far faster beats than this song. We followed them in their walk for a few miles and it was a good 4-5 miles per hour. Each day, every day since November.
Also, the best protest song these days is a thirty-year old one from David Bowie.
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Adding: so here is the thing. I am a child of the 80’s, and lots of songs on the charts were protest songs or songs of unity and justice. They were written nearly always by the artists themselves, sincere, strongly held, and strongly worded. U2 “Sunday Bloody Sunday”. Genesis “Land of Confusion”. “We are the World”. More.
So too with David Bowie’s 1997 song goes “I’m afraid of Americans” which is starting to go viral this week in my circle, it is self-penned, sincere, strongly held, and strongly worded.
Here, idle. Its a nice dance song. They didn’t write it, they don’t act like they believe it themselves, and the performance is pleasant. I have been following kpop for over a decade now, and I don’t think kpop has ever touched their North-South divide. Third rail. So what and who are they singing about? It comes across as not credible.
The video reminds me of the Benetton ads in the 1990’s with all the large printed faces, b+w instead of vivid color, and add a soundtrack. I feel like I am back in a Benetton store.
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We could really use a good new protest song. I miss them. I miss that fiery energy and conviction mainstream artists used to wield.
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Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t SNSD into the new world used for some protests?
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i mean political stuff aside im a huge fan of many artists in/adjacent to the scene skaiwater comes from so to say i got whiplash seeing their name on this is an enormous understatement. a true polar bear in arlington texas (iykyk) moment if ive ever seen one
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As a long-time i-dle fan and a queer person… Yeah, I agree with your review. For how centrist the message of the song ends up being, I suppose this bland uninspired sound is oddly fitting.
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I’ve always found i-dle’s output very hit or miss. I don’t think they’ve got a recognizable sound, though I mostly associate them with pop-rock, it’s crazy to see them dropping these types of bland dance-pop tracks but also the cringest overproduced and uncatchy stuff like Super Lady.
As per the other aspects of the song, I feel like i-dle and their songwriting teams have always missed the mark with English lyrics. Most of the times, they sound cringe or a bit out of touch, with the latter being the case for Mono.
It’s a bit crazy to me that their team, which I pressume has English speakers, heard this song recently and didn’t feel that something was slightly off? I’m not saying the lyrics are super offensive. I just think given the current climate, (not only in the United States but also more countries across the world) I would’ve had that “from the left or or from the right” line rewritten, because I feel like it automatically raises eyebrows.
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You are right about i-dle in general, especially when it comes to English in their songs. If your boob and booty hot, sometimes you just gotta holy moly shit.
However, I must disagree with your assessment of Super Lady. The overproduction is glamorous and glorious!
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Thank you Nick. I appreciate your honesty here. I had similar reactions when I heard this today.
I agree there were good intentions. And it’s absolutely true that not everything revolves around the US, especially kpop. But intentions are not impact and this is not just an American issue. Authoritarianism is on the rise globally. As of last year 72% of the world is now considered to be living under authoritarian rule, either fully closed or partially through democratic backsliding. Which is all to say your feelings are completely valid and “both sides”ing a human rights debate, particularly in this dark period of our collective history, comes across as woefully tone deaf. It misreads the room, significantly so. We’re long past “can’t we all get along” “gay or straight it doesn’t matter” platitudes. Because it does matter and real lines have been drawn. I can feel your frustration because I feel it too. At this point, either make a real strong statement or don’t wade into the conversation.
Purely speaking about the melody, I thought it was pleasant and a little different from what I’ve heard from I-dle in the past. I don’t think the feature adds much if anything to the song sonically, which is disappointing. Minnie sounds great in the chorus though.
I don’t mean to rip the girls, especially when they didn’t take part in the writing here as another commenter noted. I like I-dle and “good thing” was one of my most played songs last year. But we’re in a precarious moment and I would guess even their home audience could’ve used something stronger than this. It definitely missed the mark for me.
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I simply have no interest in this song or anything else right now. The frustration mixed with sadness and a sense of powerlessness is at a peak.
maybe tomorrow will be a better day.
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I felt that this song was unlike anything G-IDLE would do.
I looked it up and found out that the members were not involved in the production of this song.
It’s very refreshing because it’s different from something Soyeon would create.
So far, I haven’t been able to confirm that the members have spoken about the meaning of the lyrics of this song.
https://news.nate.com/view/20260127n03842
My guess is it’s meant in a broad, simple way — like “it would be nice if the world had less conflict.”
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Well written and nuanced, I agree with basically all your points (being from another part of the world, I still think you handle your eventual bias very well). I find myself really liking the beat and flow of the song, but I also have a problem with the lyrics being a bit “on the nose” (is that the right way of saying it?) and thereby making the song more trivial. I hope for a korean language version…
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Yes! It’s painfully on the nose, which is something I wasn’t able to articulate because the review was already too long. The obviousness of it makes the song feel like a marketing slogan rather than authentic protest.
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I can’t speak as an American but I can speak as an Australian. Australia day just happened, on the 26th, and there were clashes between the invasion day protesters (the 26th of Jan is known to be the day that English ships found land here, starting the process of colonisation and genocide against the indigenous people) and neo-nazis who think there isn’t anything more aussie than having the Union Jack on our flag. Safe to say that I don’t really wanna hold hands with conservatives right now, not when our national holiday symbolises systemic failures that have murdered the first people here.
Anyways, I find this song horribly tasteless. Would love to know what Korean (nationals’) takes on this song are, if they’re different or not.
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Boy do I feel you on this one. The song is pleasant but if it’s supposed to make me feel empowered or hopeful, it doesn’t. It’s just…pleasant.
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I love deephouse, so this song is an automatic pass. the video is very Vogue, though updated, and definitely looks like something Maddie herself might have dropped in 2026. though it can use another chorus refrain imo.
Now, onto the message.
You hit the nail on the head; the song aims for a global audience. And for the global audience, the will get some side eyes with the lyrics equating the left and the right are the same. Just girls, no.
Not right now, and not only in the States. I love the girls, and awesomely noble intention, but read the room.
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I honestly don’t mind if you do reviews like this (as long as the stuff stays tame and you go over some of the music itself). I’m not that into politics but what is happening in the real world with America and Trump is terrible, and it’s interesting hearing your point of view.
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Surprisingly, this song is more sufferable than their previous comebacks since Nxde. The lyrics are so Born This Way I couldn’t stop thinking about it from the very first time. There’s nothing grammatically wrong with the lyrics, I just feel like they’re more well-suited for a TedTalk than a song, not exactly cringe, just… too formal. 7/10 for me.
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This is the most out of touch review you’ve ever written.
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I think youre missing the entire point of the song lmao. The world IS mono. Nothing is black and white. That includes politics. You cant say the left is 100% good and the right is 100% bad. Everything is grey. And the right isnt neccesarily maga you know? Way to miss the point. There are plently of people from the right that dont support the current administration. Because neither the right or left are all at one extreme. It’s a scale. You cant villianize an entire party. Maybe you should learn to play the world in mono because you sound out of touch and ignorant.
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wait you ate this
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Maybe you should learn to shut your fucking mouth.
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They’re welcome to say what they want, though I do disagree.
I don’t think “mono = grey” is symbolism supported by what “mono” actually means, which is why I have issues with the lyrical construction in this song from a purely songwriting level.
And yes, of course neither party is 100% a monolith, but we’ve now had five years of this current administration. The right (or whatever you want to call it) holds all levels of power, including the supreme court. After everything that’s happened, I find it very difficult to trust or embrace anyone who still supports this… either because they’re hardcore MAGA or simply because they vote along party lines (or don’t vote at all). No, I don’t hate them, but I also don’t feel like our values or understanding of reality are at all the same and I just don’t know how we bridge that gap. Platitudes like the ones in this song certainly won’t do it.
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that isn’t really what was being gotten at at all. but if we want to get into it:
sure, yes, not all right wingers, yadda yadda. but you do know the age old adage about that kind of saying, right? if you are the group bring complained about, yet the complaint doesn’t actually apply to you, then it’s not about you?
that’s what we tell men who get their tighty whiteys in a twist when we complain about the shitty creepy men in our life. if you aren’t a shitty creepy man, mind your own business. it’s not about you. don’t get defensive.
so… what’s the point of getting defensive here, exactly? because i don’t think anyone is thinking about the non-offending right wingers who hate the current admin and everything that’s happening as much as we do. we aren’t talking about them.
we’re talking about the ones cheering for unadulterated, completely immunized murder, because “well, our brave federal agents are just doing their jobs!”
those jobs being to brutally kidnap people, never to be seen again, and murdering people in the streets.
and that’s only what’s happening in america.
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If you identify as politically right, you don’t support gay people (unless maybe, you are just a hypocritical homonationalist.) Simple as that. You don’t deserve to claim to stand for both when you actively vote against gay rights.
I’m not American and couldn’t care less about American politics. In my country we have multiple parties, not just one leftist one or one rightist one. And yet I still understand that the lyrics of this song don’t make sense.
If people in the past had thought left or right didn’t matter, homosexuality would still be illegal everywhere. You are the one missing the very sensible point this reviewer is making. Go take your enlightened centrism bullshit elsewhere. You’re insulting the work of decades of activists by saying it doesn’t matter. Taking a stand does matter. Be it in Korea, the usa or the rest of the world.
It’s nice that the girls tried to make a point but this is a stupid way of doing it.
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Hones
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I thought was gonna be top tier because of way people were talking about so highly but it’s so bad that it sounds so performative, but I know idle wouldn’t be performative it’s just bad to the point where it’s sounds performative.
4/10
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This song has fallen for me a bit, but I wouldn’t skip it if it came on random shuffle.
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The song just rose a bit for me again.
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korea is separated in half
tensions between china and japan
a big war going on in europe
american unc:
this should cater to ME and MY political tastes
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Yes, I addressed this:
“Of course, i-dle are not from America and have no obligation to represent that audience. They are not burdened by the assumption that any English-language material will or should be aimed at just one of the many English-speaking regions in the world. But, when you release a globally-minded song like this you do so understanding that the music will be seen through a variety of diverse lenses. As always, I can only speak to how I receive a song, knowing full well that my takeaways may not match others’ perception or experience.”
A listener from any of those countries you listed will come away with their own reaction based on their own experience and are welcome to write their own review if they want.
Yes, the performers of this song are Korean, but the price of K-pop’s global promotion is that its product will filter through various global viewpoints.
If you want to have an actual conversation about this I’m always happy to, but we’re not gonna do the “american unc” thing because that just makes your comment look trivial. Also, we’re far past “political tastes” at this point…
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the difference is you have a platform. and you’re using it to push very american-centric culture war politics. in a blog about pop music. in a review of a song about unity and love. if something swims like a duck…
we’re far past “political tastes” at this point
that’s a slippery road. how long until you start calling some people subhuman?
If you want to have an actual conversation
not my first day here, seen enough dogpiles to not do that
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Yes, I have a platform, however limited it may be. And yes, this one time I choose to use it to express frustration in a moment where I – and many others – feel very powerless. Whether or not you feel the same way or agree, the lyrical content of this song struck a nerve with me and opened an avenue to express something I couldn’t separate from the music. At the end of the day this is a personal music reaction/criticism blog and occasionally (very rarely, actually) that will intersect with the context of the day’s news.
“that’s a slippery road. how long until you start calling some people subhuman?”
I don’t know where you’re getting this from. As I expressed in my writing, my frustration is that – for years and years now – there’s been a double standard where one side of the political spectrum must constantly be above reproach, take the high road and extend the olive branch while the other side gets to spout dangerous rhetoric (like painting certain groups as subhuman, actually) and now even deploy troops to occupy cities. And still, songs like this encourage us to all get along as if those in power aren’t actively trying to divide us. For me, the message as it’s presented here is naive. That doesn’t mean anyone is “subhuman.” It just means we need a more nuanced message. I’ve always had an issue with songs that dip their toes into this thematic territory without bolstering their platitudes with specificity. I just don’t usually write about them because they’re not K-pop.
And yes, this all hinges upon my personal context, which happens to involve American politics because I live in America. I was open about that in the review and recognize that it will not appeal to every reader. I was also clear that there is no assumption that this song must address one territory or culture. I completely own that I am transposing it onto my own experience at this time, just as most of us do with pop music written in a language we can understand. I don’t intend to inject this kind of commentary often, but I truly didn’t know how else to write this review after responding to the song the way I did. And, I think anyone who witnesses injustice has a duty to respond – especially if they have a platform. Given that the majority of my traffic comes from America, I felt the need to at least let readers know where I stand. I didn’t expect this song of all things to be the trigger for that, but that’s the way things lined up and now I can go back to simply focusing on the music.
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wow, it’s almost like there’s a global rise of fascism via far right authoritarianism all across the globe and if you go through the comments there’s at least two different comments talking about examples of this in their own countries
of course nick is going to talk about what he (and many of us) know. the point is that the lyrics resonated… badly. and it didn’t just resonate badly with him, but with a lot of us around the world who are victims of the rising far right extremism that is costing people their lives. in some ways that’s legally, via terrible legislation. in other ways that’s literally, via war and militarized police.
you are very ignorant. get it together.
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I really liked this beefy post even if it was very political. I think with international music you get more of a pass to avoid politics but if course it’s gonna come up every now and again and you shouldn’t shy away from that. Frankly, I think your feelings on the lyrics should be reflected in the score, they’re still part of the experience and like everything else about the song being viewed in your particular lens
I won’t be streaming this, because the message is so clunky and easy. The production doesn’t do much to improve. Imagine girls day female president’s instrumental with this? Theyd be forced to belt a little more too
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