Asian Junkie Asian pop. Without discretion.
Some legitimate bops have come from popular musicians teaming up with brands to release a song, so NewJeans joining with Coca-Cola/Coke Zero for a single didn’t faze me at all. But what did faze me was the chorus of “Zero“, which seemed less like a catchy pop song or harmless advertising and more like some kind of malicious hypnosis attempt.
Things actually started out well, though. “Zero” still has the club beats that they’ve used to great effect in the past, weaving Jersey/Baltimore club and K-pop together for a song that’s otherwise quite good again. However, instead of their usual understated but melodic hooks that burrow into your eardrums, it gives us repetition of “Coca-Cola mashitda” and “see you looking, catch it, here’s your cola” that’s recited in a way that made me think I was in the MKUltra program or something. Like what in The Manchurian Candidate is happening here?
I would say it’s subliminal messaging but it’s not subliminal, it’s like we’re already hypnotized and now our They Live sunglasses are perpetually on as they do experiments on us. Maybe this is a simulation? Maybe this is purgatory? Who knows, but a pop song advertisement giving one an existential crisis and making the customer contemplate consumerism is maybe not the best sign of a successful campaign.
