LYRICAL INTERPRETATION OF TOMORROW BY BTS

One thing BTS is unarguably known for is their unwavering pursuit to spread love, positivity and growth to their fans and beyond.

When we see hate and prejudice, it’s meant to make people afraid and it’s meant to make people feel alone. And therefore without power. When you all speak about it, you speak to people in a way that reminds them that they are not alone.

Kamala Harris to BTS

BTS have released songs like No More Dream which encourages you to pursue your own dream and also reminds you that it’s okay to NOT have a dream right now, Love Myself: Answer talks about choosing to see yourself as who you are, your flaws, strengths and weaknesses and accepting all of that, So What as a reminder that things will not always go our way and we might get frustrated on the way but we should not give up.

Many of the songs by BTS have been a form of reflection for me. On bad days, reading their lyrics makes me feel at ease— songs that really tell you what you need to hear. One of those songs is, Tomorrow.

{Disclaimer: As usual, these are all based on my thoughts and theories}

LYRICAL INTERPRETATION

[SUGA]

Same day, same moon
24/7 every moment repeats
My life is in between
Jobless twenty-somethings are afraid of tomorrow
It’s funny, you think anything is possible when you’re a kid
When you feel how hard it is to get through a day
I keep feeling down like Control beat gets downed
Every single day is a repetition of Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V

You know when we were young and so excited about adulthood because we thought we would finally have the freedom to do so many things we wanted to do but when we finally reach that age, it turns out it’s not all rosy like we thought it would be. Now we’ve got tons of responsibilities on our hands so all we do is work, work and work. People that don’t have jobs end up being depressed about not being “productive at such age”.

Our lives are on repeat, nothing changes. We just follow the same routine everyday.

[V]

I have a long way to go but why am I running in place?
I scream out of frustration but the empty air echoes
I hope tomorrow will be different from today
I’m just wishing

Older adults tell us that we have a “long way to go” and “this is only just the beginning” but it feels like nothing is getting accomplished. We have all these goals we want to fulfill, projects we want to start etc, but it feels like we are just running in place, using up all our energy on things that keep repeating.

[JUNGKOOK]

Follow your dream like breaker
Even if it breaks down, oh better
Follow your dream like breaker
Even if it breaks down, don’t ever run backwards, never

In Urban Dictionary, a breaker is someone “calm whose only movement is forward. Someone who won’t be held back by walls and troubles. Usually quiet but very ruthless”.

They’re encouraging us to follow our dreams relentlessly. To not give up or retreat no matter how hard it gets.

[JUNGKOOK, JIN]

Because the dawn right before the sun rises is the darkest
Even in the far future, never forget the you of right now
Wherever you are right now, you’re just taking a break
Don’t give up, you know
Don’t get too far away, tomorrow

Don’t get far away, tomorrow
Don’t get too far away, tomorrow

“The dawn right before the sun rises is the darkest” I remember writing this on sticky note and sticking it on my bedside table to remind myself that it maybe tough right now but soon, it’ll be okay.

They’re also saying that eventually when things are going good, when the sun has risen and everything is bright, make sure not to forget the you of right now. The “you” with the dreams and aspirations, the “you” that went through the dark times.

One thing ARMYs admire in BTS is that they stay true to themselves and what they’ve always stood for. As their fame grew through the years, they never changed.

[RM]

The tomorrow we’ve been waiting for
Becomes the name of yesterday at some point
Tomorrow becomes today, today becomes yesterday
Tomorrow becomes yesterday and is behind me
Life isn’t about living along but living through
As you live through, you’ll disappear some day
If you keep spacing out, you’ll be swept away
If you ain’t no got the guts, trust
It’ll all become yesterday anyway so what’s the use?
I wanted to become happy and strong but why am I getting weaker?
Where am I going? I’m going here and there but I always come back here
Yeah, I’ll probably flow somewhere, is there an end to this maze?

A lot of us live our lives yearning for tomorrow, “tomorrow will be better” “I’ll be happier tomorrow “ “I’ll pursue my dreams later in the future”. Eventually tomorrow comes and goes, tomorrow becomes yesterday and our lives just keeps going right before our eyes. Namjoon is telling us to LIVE, do what you want to do right now before “you’ll be swept away”

[JIN, JIMIN]

I have a long way to go but why am I running in place?
I scream out of frustration but the empty air echoes
I hope tomorrow will be different from today
I’m just wishing

Follow your dream like breaker
Even if it breaks down, oh better
Follow your dream like breaker
Even if it breaks down, don’t ever run backwards, never

Because the dawn right before the sun rises is the darkest
Even in the far future, never forget the you of right now
Wherever you are right now, you’re just taking a break
Don’t give up, you know
Don’t get too far away, tomorrow

[J-HOPE]

Tomorrow, keep walking, we’re too young to stop
Tomorrow, open the door, we see too much to shut the door
When the dark night passes, a bright morning will come
When tomorrow comes, the bright light will shine so don’t worry
This isn’t a stop but just a pause in your life for a break
Turn up your thumbs and press play so everyone can see

More words of encouragement, telling you not to worry and that wherever you think you’re stuck at right now is only “just a pause”. The nights don’t last forever.

[JUNGKOOK, JIMIN]

Follow your dream like breaker
Even if it breaks down, oh better
Follow your dream like breaker
Even if it breaks down, don’t ever run backwards, never

Because the dawn right before the sun rises is the darkest
Even in the far future, never forget the you of right now
Wherever you are right now, you’re just taking a break
Don’t give up, you know
Don’t get too far away, tomorrow

Don’t get far away, tomorrow
Don’t get too far away, tomorrow

To conclude, I want to reference V’s words, “I have a long way to go but why am I running in place”.

In SUGA’s Vlive on December 14th, 2019, he termed that feeling as “being in a slump”.

He said, “There comes a time for everyone when nothing is changing. After a while, it picks up like this… then the phase comes back. Once you get through that, it goes back up… So that down time in life happens to all of us. I doubt there is anyone who has never experienced that slump.

I know how hard it is to break out of a slump but the best way to snap out of it is to just keep at it, just keep going. Don’t think about it. Just keep doing what you’re supposed to be doing, without giving it any other thought. And you’ll realize at one point that you’ve naturally broken out of the slump. Trust me. And I know people act like there are magical, special ways to fix this ‘slump’ thing. There isn’t. The only way to escape that feeling is to ride it out.

You don’t even have to feel bad about yourself because you don’t seem to improve during that sluggish time… because if you keep going anyway, at one point, you will realize that you’ve actually made a significant improvement. That’s exactly what happened to me too”.

I have his words at the back of my mind always and it cheers me up when I beat myself up over situations that are out of my control.

That concludes today’s post!

I hope you enjoyed reading! Anticipate tomorrow’s and the rest of this week. Thank you🤍

Drop a comment below telling me your favorite line from the song. What song would you like

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