Fans see hints of SHINee's Jonghyun in Mudd the Student's 'Dissonance'

South Korean rapper Mudd the Student’s single, "Dissonance," grabbed attention, as several fans pointed out the allegedly striking references to the late Jonghyun.

For his semi-final stage appearance on Mnet's Show Me The Money 10 on November 26, Mudd the Student collaborated with AKMU, who is part of the same show.

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Who is Jonghyun?

A former member of the K-pop band, SHINee, Jonghyun shook the world of Korean music when he died by suicide, back in 2017. The 2nd generation idol reportedly suffered from severe depression, a diagnosis corroborated by his agency SM Entertainment and his family.

A few weeks prior to his death, Jonghyun sent a letter to his close friend Jang Hee Yeon, where he spoke about depression. He said,

"The depression slowly chipped me away, finally devouring me. I could not beat the negativity."

Jonghyun, who happened to be SHINee’s main vocalist, was active professionally, both as SHINee member and solo artist, until his demise, and his last album Poet | Artist, was released posthumously on January 23, 2018.

The idol’s unfortunate death, incidentally, did help bring a focus on mental health, especially for artists in South Korea’s competitive landscape.

Mudd the Student’s supposed references to the late idol have stirred emotions, in fans of Jonghyun, and of Mudd the Student.

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"Dissonance" was jointly written by Mudd the Student and AKMU

While the song "Dissonance" has been written jointly by the duo, it is Mudd the Student’s verse where the references were most evident.

Check out the performance here:

Mudd the Student’s verse included phrases like

"I'm like a door of an elevator"

"Everyone is starting to get farther and farther away"

"My idol lived in a different era"

"You breathed your last breath after breathing sighs"

"Phantom pain replaced the child-like mind"

While the lyrics appear to have a general air of isolation and separation, the mention of words breathe and phantom pain stood out. Jonghyun reportedly lost his life due to carbon monoxide poisoning. "Breathe'' also happens to be a song sung by Lee Hi that was written and composed by Jonghyun. “Elevator” too is one of Junghyun’s songs, as part of side-b of one of his albums, as is "Phantom Pain ''.

Mudd the Rapper has not commented on these startling parallels, but it is no secret that the rapper was a big fan of the late idol.

Many of his fans also suggested that the lyrics to the song were an allusion to Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, given Mudd’s love for rock music.

Incidentally, Kurt Cobain too died by suicide, back in 1994.

Meanwhile, the final episode of Show Me The Money 10 will air on December 3 at 11:00 PM KST, marking the conclusion of the series.