It's easy to assume that 2NE1 is just a frivolous K-Pop act. Decked heavily in Jeremy Scott couture, we recognize 2NE1 as a band of fearless young women boasting about swagger and sass. Personally, I've always seen 2NE1 as a multifaceted group, but it's no secret that their girl power agenda has come across as a bit limiting to some.

It is arguable that 2NE1's amplitude of success has been limited by a key element of pop music: love. It's the one obvious medium of song that this group seems to shun, whether it be because they feel it's overdone, or simply because it deviates from what they stand for. In fact, their most recognized ballad, "Lonely", is actually a self-centered break-up song. Although the ladies of YG brushed upon heartache before, their 11th single as a group, boldly titled "I Love You", is the love confessional that we've all been waiting for.

"I Love You" is 2NE1's first real love song, which therein lies the split reaction from many fans. 2NE1's previous lead single, "Lonely", had a complete acoustic approach giving it an automatic dismissal as a daring single. Sonically, "I Love You" sits somewhere between ballad and dance pop, inherently giving off an impression of a somewhat muddled approach to its concept. Now, group all that with a not-so-straight forward music video and it's no surprise that many fans were left feeling divided with "I Love You".



A notable feature for almost all of 2NE1's singles is the unique song structure that YG's in-house producer, Teddy Park, established for the girls. Specifically, "I Love You" bares a strong resemblance in structure to their previous hit "Can't Nobody", featuring multiple hooks and choruses that alternate throughout the song. Stylistically, "I Love You" is a fusion K-Pop track binding a reggae-pop rhythm with a typical progressive-house pluck, but to Teddy's defense, the results are nothing short of brilliant. Personally, the moments where the song is stripped bare with just 2-3 layers are the song's most defining moments.

So the verdict here is that 2NE1's new single is not their most direct song, but that might actually be a good thing. The real issue with 2NE1's previous mini album was that it was a combination of strong pop singles that bore no relation to each other in sound or meaning. It was a random conglomerate of acoustic folk, electro house, urban pop and rock music with little to no lyrical relevance to each other besides the obvious girl power theme. With "I Love You", we're experiencing a compensation of sound and musical direction in order to fit a certain theme. Of what exactly? I'm not exactly quite sure yet, but the context clues are all there. What we can expect, though, is that "I Love You" is an appetizer for something much greater.

"I Love You" serves as a pivotal role in the development of 2NE1, adding a brand new dimension to their forthcoming music and overall presentation. Not only is 2NE1 bold and wild, but they're now also expressive lovers as well, which seems to be their current concept. Bring forth themes of authentic love to your music, and it's only natural there will also be themes of maturity. While I don't think we'll be seeing anything mature in the sense that we'll be calling them 4TE1 anytime soon, I think their music video serves as enough evidence that they will be portraying more adult themes, shedding off some of those frivolous misconceptions. "I Love You" may not be the most crowd pleasing single, but surely it's a slice of flavorful pop music for the more-mature and open minded listener.


What are your thoughts on 2NE1's "I Love You"? Leave an honest rating and your thoughts in the comments below.


Note: this article does not reflect the opinions of allkpop, only the author.