What can I say that hasn’t already been said about Kang Daniel? I mean the guy is a CEO, Produce 101 winner, the nations centre, former Wanna One member, and most importantly god Jihyo’s boyfriend. And that’s what makes much of his solo work baffling to me. With so much talent at his disposal, his solo work has largely consisted of dull, generic material almost any artist could release. Apart from digital single Touchin‘, and album track I Hope there isn’t really a song I personally enjoyed. New single 2U isn’t revolutionary, but the laid back instrumental and hook gift Daniel a nice laid back piece of pop.
To put it simply, 2U is pleasant. There really isn’t anything else I can say about it. The light bouncy instrumental is nice and provides the track with an addictive, carefree bounce. It’s all nice in the moment, and instantly catchy, but fades from memory as soon as the track comes to an end. It’s a pretty big departure from the restrained funk of Touchin’, but one that fits him almost as well. And while I really wished that he would explore that sound further, the carefree vibe of 2U injects just the right amount of fun to feel necessary in our troubled times.
This extends to the chorus, which is equally lightweight. In a way, this kind of restraint is refreshing, but also sacrifices the tracks impact. I doubt I’ll be consciously wanting to listen to this song in a few weeks time, but for now It’s a nice little aside to the issues going on in the wider world. It’s one of those songs that I can’t really say much about, but sometimes there isn’t anything wrong with that.
Verses: 7
Chorus: 7
Production: 8
Performance: 8
Final Rating: 7.5 / 10
KBopped 