After a particularly long day at school, I got in my car and, as is my habit, turned on Apple CarPlay to listen to music. On autopilot, I moved to click on my favorite playlist, but I hesitated when I saw something pop up in the “New Releases” section. The worldwide famous K-pop group Seventeen, which has 13 Daesangs (the K-pop equivalent of Grammys), had a new single, “Tiny Light.” However, there were zero promotions, zero news on their social media about the single after it was released (as of Mar. 1), and very little information was put out about this new music.
“Tiny Light” is one of the very few fully English songs from the group (only in 2022, seven years into their career, did they begin to release music fully in English). Originally, I was going to mention how the production style and instrumentation sound straight from an anime, but while researching, discovered that it actually is, serving as the ending theme for “BEASTARS FINAL SEASON.”
Honestly, as much as the typical pre-release teasers contribute to the fun and anticipation of new music, the lack of promotion ensures the listeners do not have any unmet expectations. This also means there is no background information or context to help audiences interpret the song; there are no interviews or other media in which the artist explains the true meaning or inspiration behind the track, making it more difficult to understand.
Fortunately, I don’t think “Tiny Light” needs this. Whether this is a good or bad thing is up to the listener, but it’s clear what the song is trying to convey from the lyrics alone, no explanation needed. I typically praise music that requires complex thought and analysis to fully enjoy it, but I think this kind of music wouldn’t be valuable if not for songs like “Tiny Light” that simply hand the message to its audience, served up on a silver platter for easy consumption.
One only needs to listen to a few lines of the chorus to grasp the story Seventeen is telling: “This tiny light is burning / I feel it on the palms of my hands / Your quiet breath warms me up / Makes me feel so alive / …So I will hold on reaching for you.” It’s a classic love story—whether it’s romantic or platonic is a gray area—that is the perfect happy ending to an anime. I particularly enjoy that it doesn’t specify the nature of the relationship portrayed, giving some rare representation of platonic love.
The chorus, which opens the track, is definitely the song’s highlight. There is no fade-in or slow intro; one vocal and an uplifting piano line come in without hesitation, then are joined by synth-sounding strings to fill in the empty sonic space. Eventually, the classic anime-style drop comes in, with a drumbeat pushing the tempo forward and the melody being taken over by an electric guitar. These two instruments, occasionally accompanied by strings, carry the rest of the track right to the end. While this progression is a little predictable, it’s also classic and undoubtedly brings a pleasant nostalgic feeling to its listeners.
Despite its relative simplicity and the nature of it being a commissioned track, “Tiny Light” still fits perfectly with Seventeen’s signature style and sound, continuing to demonstrate their talent for sound design to convey meaning. Woozi, Seventeen’s lead vocalist, who wrote and produced this song, often talks about his love of anime and has written many tracks for Seventeen in this style, a prime example being “Run to You.” This is to say, without the context of it being written for an anime, it doesn’t feel out of place in the group’s broader discography.
Seventeen’s release of “Tiny Light” was perfectly timed, giving me just enough renewed springtime joy to push through the end of this seemingly interminable winter. My only issue with this track is the concerning number of times I will be listening to it in the next few weeks.
