Fiona: Oh
Wow
Okay—what— how did that just happen??
Umu: Now you’re reacting to the 9 member girl group Fromis_9 and their 2019 release called FUN!
Aaron: FUN!
Umu: This song is about breaking out of routines and doing the unexpected.
Aaron: I counted them I’m sorry...
Umu: The lyrics explore the idea of using your imagination to create a different world where life is more FUN!
The video continues these themes by having the members star in parody versions of popular commercials.
The song is composed by Drew Ryan Scott, Sean Michael Alexander, and Melodesign.
*Kevin singing Love Rum Pum Pum*
You gotta listen to Love Rum Pum Pum guys!
Gotta check that stuff out. It’s like a retro-disco-y thing that Fromis_9 did and I can’t get enough of it!
And the live version is faster, for some reason, than the studio version, and I like both of them!
Umu: Okay, let’s go! Henry: That is all Fanta
...oh it’s “FUN-ta”! Jesus Christ... Cloud: FUN-ta
Cloud: It’s kinda weird...
Daniel: Like already they’re introducing- like a melodically unstable line with a chromatic descending
Fiona: Yeah!
Oooh that was nice contrast.
I love her hair!
James: I like that. Uh!
Melissa: Wait those lyrics are fun though.
James: Oh my god, hi violin!
Isaac: Why are they holding? Oh, that’s a good bow! Kevin: So far so good...yeah not bad and she’s singing a low one (?)
Okay the conducting is...
Henry: Oh, hey! Yo look at that pattern, Cloud: It’s okay they’re kinda doing it on purpose- the one holding it like that
That conducting pattern!
Henry: *laughing* Cloud: Yeah...yeah okay, we're good
Aaron: Wait, does it count as a lament bass if you do chromatic?
Nick: Yeah, that's a chromatic lament bass.
Aaron: Well that’s what they’re doing and it sounds cool.
It’s FUN!
Fiona: Oh....
Wow!
Okay, what—how did that just happen, just now?
UGH I love that *sings melody*
Isaac: Ah Cup Noodles!
Kevin: It’s such a weird chorus, it almost feels not grounded but maybe that’s the point.
Aaron: This makes me feel happy! Like, I don't know, think it’s the upbeatness
and power chords…’cause I love power chords.
Nick: Yeah, it’s super open harmonically.
James: Yeah, that’s cool. It’s a cool bassline
Melisa: The bassline reminds me of the descending chromatic line that has been happening. I wanna play violin.
James: They’re playing their hair!
Melissa: I don’t have any hair...
...or else I would play violin like that
Kevin: Is this a one-chord song? I never paid any-- no no no there’s that one pre-chorus!
It’s almost a one chord song.
Alright, rhythmic changes.
Isaac: Oh L’Oreal!
Kevin: And then...and then we’re in minor!
James: Oooh hello! Mix...Mix! Fuck it up!
Wow, cool!
So what I mean when I say "mix" was
she was singing that like little high bit at the end
A lot of times when people hear high you think, "Oh that‘s in falsetto"
or what like most people know as falsetto.
But essentially what she was doing there, was it wasn’t in falsetto
and it wasn’t what is below falsetto
which is called chest voice, which is basically your speaking voice.
It’s a technique that singers do where they will like
essentially "mix" both of them together
and find this like weird in between range where it sounds really piercing
like you’re belting in chest voice but you can bring that up to notes
that are higher than chest voice would usually go. Which she was like—
That was a great textbook example of mixing that I would like, show.
Cloud: That was great, FUN!
Henry: Aw man, that was cute
I really liked I mean--I can't—it’s such a copout to say “oh love that chromaticism” but it was really catchy.
Cloud: I definitely heard like the dudududu a lot of like club hits or like
Henry: No, I'd also
Henry: I also liked...yeah I’ve heard that in Spongebob before
Cloud: Yeah
Umu: So what separates this from being a Spongebob tune?
Cloud: ‘Cause they switch it up! It’s not always just like dudududududu
Cloud: But like—
Henry: You know why I’m thinking of Spongebob right? Cloud: I hear that from everywhere
Cloud: I don't watch Spongebob, I'm sorry.
Henry: Okay! It's that episode
Cloud: I have no cable so...
where Spongebob has a bunch of jellyfish over and they're dancing
and he gets these huge speakers and he’s like dadadadadadada
and they’re just waving their arms like spaghetti. And it’s really really great.
Cloud: But then it's like you play that then everyone's like "I know that bop!" Henry:But they took that like uh it’s dance! This is EDM
of like...you know, early 2000's Spongebob.
Cloud: Or just early 2000’s...
specifically EDM of Spongebob Henry: Yeah, actually, yeah you’re right *laughing*
That, I think makes everything super relatable for the populous.
So you hear that and you’re like, “Ahaha hey I know that we’re having FUN!”
Cloud: Yeah like parody it all! Like, do the parody of the rituals
Henry: Full circle, F is for friends!
Cloud: And do parody of the music stuff.
Aaron: I like that, that was really cute.
It’s an earworm, it’s stuck in my head and probably will be for a little while, so
Nick: Was this song inspired by the American...
Ah, shoot are they an American or English, band of the same name?
FUN! With an exclamation point.
Because they’ve got like all of the same things going on harmonically.
Like, all of these open fifths and fourths.
And then they’ve also got like really normal just root position chords
with nothing else going on above or below them.
Except for the cymbals, but that’s not something you hear that often in music, but they both do it, like a lot.
Daniel: Yeah I think that one of the main things, or the elements, are the melodic and the harmonic elements
in this piece is the chromatic descending line also that was introduced very much in the beginning
and then it becomes reintroduced in like the basslines as well as the piece further progresses.
I think it adds to a certain kind of instability,
definitely a type of movement
especially when they’re like switching between so many of these different types of attitudes and characteristics
about you know like in the commercials they’re wearing like
Adidas, featuring that and like there was one about Fanta, and then the Pocari Sweat
I wasn’t sure though about those two elements
kinda like came together like what...
How did that chromaticism what is this what does it melodically imply
Like, where does "fun" fit in? You know what I mean?
I was just kinda... Fiona: In my opinion it kinda seems like a little
mischievous. There's a famous horn solo from Till Eulenspiegel
*singing the horn solo*
Fiona: And... *sings FUN!*
Like it’s a weird kinda rhythmic thing
and like the repetition of it. I think it implies a little sneakiness
like how they’re being sarcastic.
Daniel: Oh...
I think the chromaticism = sarcasm which is like, represented in the video.
Isaac: *pop pop pop* because they have a very repetitive bassline but
it definitely highlights the melodic line that’s
either descending/ascending. It kinda reminds me of Power Up (by Red Velvet), I don’t know why.
Kevin: Oh, it’s in the same key!
Isaac: It's in the same key?
Kevin: And also, yeah, it reminds me of Power Up as well
Isaac: A little bit, but hey it’s very exciting
Kevin: It’s clear that they made a deliberate choice to be so repetitive in the chorus
but every time there was a verse or a bridge
I just didn’t know what was going on...
It was so much, I can’t even remember—I think the first verse
was a sort of melodic, major melodic sort of thing.
And then, the second verse was this rap break followed by
this Middle Eastern groove thing that goes on.
Okay, the pre chorus is like sort of the quiet moment
that where we get to catch our breaths.
I think I would’ve liked the song less if it didn’t end with that weird minor ending.
Because for me the chorus sounds very floaty *da da da da*
And anytime,
I think any pop song goes too chromatic
in like the repetitive chorus I go like,
“Okay, so what am I supposed to latch onto in the song?”
Because the chorus is the part that repeats the most.
But by ending it in a minor in a very unconventional choice almost feels more grounded to me.
I don’t know why, I really like that.
And they also rhymed Ariana Grande with something Korean
And they also rhymed Ariana Grande with something Korean and I think that’s iconic.
Isaac: That's very creative! Kevin: Yeah