From “Lie” to “Set Me Free Pt.2”: A Journey From Darkness to Liberation
With everything that has been happening…I’ve been thinking about these two songs a lot lately. About the journey between them. About what they mean for Jimin, and honestly, what they mean for us watching him grow. So bear with me as I try to articulate this overwhelming feeling. Also bear with me as this may come across as inauthentic…I read quite a number of articles when prepping for this post and it may not have passed the plagiarism test. I’ve tried linking all the sources below but forgive me if I left any out. I just really wanted to create this post because it’s something I’ve been obsessing over.
The Darkness of “Lie” (2016)
When “Lie” dropped in 2016 as part of WINGS, it hit different — dramatic, dark, with these sharp violins and distorted rhythms that just created this haunting, unsettling atmosphere. And here’s the thing that makes it even more personal: Jimin was involved in both writing and composing it. This wasn’t just a song he performed. This was his story.
The lyrics speak to being trapped. Lost in something you can’t escape. Desperately searching for freedom from an internal prison you didn’t even know you built. And the performance? His fluid, expressive movements conveying emotion in ways that still captivate people years later — it’s art, truly.
That moment when the dancers lift him up, then bring him down and he collapses to the ground? It’s the perfect visual for someone completely consumed by their struggles. No escape. No freedom. Just… trapped.
The Liberation of “Set Me Free Pt.2” (2023)
Seven years later, and Jimin comes back with “Set Me Free Pt.2” which is an intense hip-hop track where he refuses to let anyone bring him down, with “finally free” echoing throughout as he overcomes those demons and breaks out of every single box people tried to shove him into.
The Panopticon: Always Being Watched
The music video’s setting? Brilliant. Intentional. When the teaser dropped, many fans noted that the circular space looks like a panopticon — that prison design where you’re always being watched from every angle, based on philosopher Michel Foucault’s work on surveillance. It’s the perfect metaphor.
Because think about it: isn’t that exactly what idol life is? One mistake and it’s over. BTS’s success didn’t give them peace - it gave them more eyes watching, more people ready to criticize, more pressure to keep producing content.
In the video, watch how the dancers move? I do not want to go into analysis because so many better bloggers have already done this when the song dropped but the dancers symbolise prison walls, the thoughts in his head, the bullets he shielded himself from (take your pick).
He starts in all black — combat gear, tough exterior (would have drawn parallels from his Proof photoshoot but may be that’s for another day).
These ‘dancers’ swarm him, staring, pointing, mocking - virtually harassing him. It’s “Lie” again but worse — because now there’s nowhere to hide. Every direction, someone’s watching. Someone’s judging. Someone’s waiting for you to mess up.
The dancers could represent the thoughts in his head too. He has talked about thinking more positively, about not making it harder on oneself by thinking negatively. That growth is from a lived reality - he faced and conquered the demons plaguing him.
The Battle Within: Those Vocals Though.
The vocal choices in these songs tell their own story.
Jimin’s voice has this unique quality where it shifts between mature and youthful tones. In “Lie,” he leaned into those deeper, darker registers. The way “caught in a lie” repeats and repeats? It feels like echoing endlessly. You can’t escape it. It just keeps coming back, over and over. The demons plaguing him.
But “Set Me Free Pt.2”? Completely different game. Yes, there’s heavy distortion and Auto-Tune, and I know some people had feelings/thoughts about that. But here’s what I think — it’s not just sonic choice. It’s part of the larger narrative.
Throughout the song, Jimin moves between Auto-Tuned vocals, his natural voice, and falsetto (again, not a trained singer so forgive me on this). In my view, the auto tune use was very intentional - the Auto-Tune kicks in hardest during the rap. You know, that part where he’s basically saying he’s done with all the noise, all the opinions.
It’s sharp. Aggressive. Almost like he borrowed from Suga’s playbook - using that processed sound to make his point hit harder. He’s exhausted. Fed up. And the Auto-Tune isn’t masking that - it’s amplifying it. Like he’s telling those voices in his head, those demons, those critics: I’m tired of this. Stop messing with me.
And THIS is what gets me: Jimin isn’t fighting others anymore. He’s fighting himself. All his personas. His shadows. The versions of him that existed for everyone else’s comfort. The idol vs. the person. The product vs. the artist. The question: who is Jimin? What does Jimin want?
When the song ends, there’s the use of his natural voice coupled with his transformation into white. This symbolises that he won the battle.
The Ending: Everything Coming Full Circle
The choreography at the end is where I lose it every time. The “Set Me Free Pt.2” choreo for me is reminiscent of the “Lie” performance. Dancers mob him, grab at him, lift him up, crash to the ground with him — it’s that same moment of being overwhelmed, consumed, destroyed.
But this time the story doesn’t end there.
From beneath everything, Jimin rises — in soft white, standing alone, all the dark, the grey fallen around him - like he cleaned himself of the dust. I so badly want to segue into Like Crazy here but this post is not it.
The transformation from dark combat gear to pure white is like watching a butterfly emerge, as if he has defeated everything trying to hold him back or as if he has decided to shed the harshness holding him back or plaguing him. He stands free, victorious by his own strength.
White symbolizes rebirth, truth, purity. In “Lie” he was searching for “the me that was pure.” In “Set Me Free Pt.2”? He found him.
We come full circle. After that final “set me free,” everything goes quiet. Jimin is. Finally free.
The gap between the two songs is a bridge made of growth, struggle, criticism, success, pain, healing. From the suffocating darkness of “Lie” to the triumphant liberation of “Set Me Free Pt.2” — this is Jimin’s journey laid bare.
The panopticon — that prison of constant surveillance — was his reality. The nearly identical choreography isn’t coincidence. It’s intentional storytelling at its finest.
Where “Lie” ended with collapse under judgment and lies, “Set Me Free Pt.2” uses that same moment to show rebirth and victory. Where “Lie” used echoing vocals to show the inescapable trap, “Set Me Free Pt.2” uses multiple vocal personas to show Jimin fighting and conquering his internal battle — proving the only voice that matters is his own truth.
He broke free from the panopticon.
Will I find my pure self? This is Jimin’s answer to his own question. This is freedom.
One of the most beautiful artistic journeys I’ve ever witnessed.
You know what really gets me though? How Jimin handled all this recent chaos. The privacy invasion, the scrutiny, BigHit’s vague statement — it could have broken someone. But not Jimin.
He showed up at the airport with that blonde hair, waving at fans, looking absolutely stunning. Then he went to Paris for Dior PFW, his first official schedule post-military, and absolutely dominated (don’t know the stats but apparently he trended the most?).
But for me what is important is what he said during his live. I paraphrase.
He said that living life well as an adult was not easy. To me that spoke of the maturity he has to keep displaying, even when perhaps he doesn’t want to. Then he reassured fans about his well-being, telling them not to worry — lovingly but firmly. Like: I’ve got this. Don’t carry this burden for me.
That’s growth. That’s someone who knows how to deal with his own matters. That’s Jimin showing us he’s free — not just from lies and judgment, but free to handle his life on his own terms, with grace and maturity. Someone who knows the importance of being an idol. But who also knows where to draw his boundaries with his fans. And that is why I love him so much.
Happy Birthday, Park Jimin 💜
Allkpop - several articles
