#mark's writings

[yumark-ism]

200 by mark

oh mark, how obvious can you be?

200 was released in may 2024, way before the firstfruit or depth. it's mark's first love song release and he isn't hiding anything.

it's actually quite crazy how obvious mark has been throughout his songs, you just need to pay attention.

First, you crashed into my life and you just broke My roof and my window, girl, you had me shook

because yuta was the one to suddenly give mark a rush of obsession, love and flirtation he had probably never experienced in such a way before.

I'm living again in a drama in my head

yumark is like... fanservice? like a BL? too good to be true? could yuta actually be serious, is mark asking himself to stop being delusional? heh

Who told me love would come down like a million rocks? The rock you came with was an alibi

the love yuta came with came with an alibi of fanservice, something that can be used as protection against real feelings. yuta can cover up his feelings with "it's just a joke, just for the cameras" if anyone asks or even if nobody asks, it was his way of expressing what he couldn't say or do in private.

You and I, we have the same disguise Even a long gray cap can't hide it, right? When night comes again, can we ri-ri-ri—?

without writing too much, yuta's album is all about this disguise, off the mask, the hiding, the lack of freedom, being locked up, a prisoner. i suppose that's idol life x1000000 when you're in love with your group member. they were caught on dates at night, as we have seen.

You are my rockstar Without you, I'll always feel alone When I'm lost, you guide me home, yeah You make my whole heart When nothing adds up, I'll be your number You're a hundred and six and I'm ninety-four, yeah

do i have to say anything, really? oh markie. i'm so proud of how far you have come in not caring and sharing your love! i think everyone and their mother must have thought of yuta when they hear "rockstar"

and of course it fits with the yumark dynamic of yuta being mark's protector, guidance, where he goes for his emotional support

106 + 94 = 200. mark explained this is saying that he sees the other person as more than himself rather than them being just 50/50 equals, he thought it was more romantic that way. and i honestly think mark sometimes sees yuta as this incredible person he aspires to be like. a rockstar, so fearless in everything he does, etc

and i will just go to the outro because the song is self explanatory:

You are my Rockstar, my rockstar When nothing adds up, I'll be your number Hundred and six, ninety-four, don't you know? What you know, hundred and six, ninety-four? You're my rock, my rockstar When nothing adds up, I'll be your number You're a hundred and six and I'm ninety-four, yeah

again, he uses both "rock" and "rockstar" which screams yuta. i can't count how many times on this blog i said yuta is mark's rock. they even have a secret sign of 🤘 when yuta says "my way, my way" to mark when mark gets visibly upset or uncomfortable on camera. mark has said even as an adult, he feels like a child and needs guidance. so yuta is that for him, his rock and his dominant. thank you mark for confirming, have you been reading my blog? heh

also in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBk_9ux7Thc at 1:33, mark is talking about how he couldnt make eye contact with the fans because he was too shy and yuta immediately says he however was able to, to which mark replies "that's good..." he then takes a moment to think and says "as expected from rockstar" which even the editors added the lyrics of 200 there on the screen

this confirms (as if we didn't know) that everyone thinks the "rockstar" in 200 is yuta

mark very obviously wants people to know that. this moment is from around july/august 2024, just 2 months after 200's release

the "rock" and "rockstar" are associated. it's a moment where mark is the one who needs help with something (too shy to look at fans) but yuta can do it with ease. this is the dynamic that makes yuta mark's rock and mark is impressed by yuta's natural ease with these things, how he just doesn't care, he is mark's "rockstar"

at that moment, when yuta hears "rockstar" his lips twitch and i'm sure he must have said something but it cut there. perhaps they actually spoke about 200 lyrics right there and how the song is about yuta and that's what inspired the editors to write that caption. why didn't they show us that part if it was the case? heh

either way, yuta knows 200 is about him.

i also just want to note in the same video, where yuta is just casually chatting with doyoung and johnny, no mark even around, they're talking about the meaning of love. yuta so naturally says he knows what love is and it's "MK." with how natural the answer is, it just rolls off his tongue and given the setting, this was not played up for the camera, it's just the simple and profound truth. yuta knows what love is and it's mark

[yumark-ism]

loser by mark

ever since i heard this song, i had to put my thoughts out because it's the first time we get to know about a romantic relationship mark has with someone through his music.

mark has said this song isn't about a toxic relationship itself but about him loving someone even though he's been hurt by them but despite that the love is unconditional. so maybe he is a loser.

i want to keep this brief because i have things to say about other songs on his album and i want to write everything while i am here and have time. i think a lot of the song is self explanatory anyway so i will focus on things that stood out.

"loser" as a title. the word play. most people will think it's "lose her," even the interview here mentions it to mark at 11:46 of this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcNp4h65Cx8 and you can see mark visibly taken aback and he gets awkward. from the entire time he freely spoke about his album, this is the only moment he got a bit flustered. the unenthusiastic "yeah.. yeah" when he's agreeing that it works as "lose her" as well. of course, his reaction could be because he doesn't want his fans to think he has a girlfriend but then he so confidently insists on telling the interviewer about his relationship and about that love interest so that doesn't make sense. it really looks like he unwillingly agreed that "lose her" was the other meaning. in the song itself it's "lose ya" as the lyrics. we know mark loves wordplay and double meanings. hearing mark sing "loser" it immediately makes people assume it’s a play on “lose her.” but then you listen closely and realise he’s not actually saying “lose her” he’s saying “lose ya.” it is intentional, especially coming from someone like mark, who clearly loves playing with double meanings and wordplay in his lyrics. that choice almost draws attention to what he’s not saying. he could have easily gone with “her” if he wanted to, as he uses "girl" in his songs so easily and it would have fit the expected mold of a straight love love. but he didn’t. he left it ambiguous. it made me wonder if that’s his way of sidestepping gender on purpose, keeping it open-ended either for artistic reasons or maybe even as a subtle way to not tie the emotion of the song to a heteronormative narrative. which he then explores further in the lyrics.

verse 1:

Baby, I can't sleep 'Cause you said you'd call me back Burning one more leaf All year round, seasons falling The moment you came into my life again I waited, and the sun came up The sofa turned cold My texts turned to ashes

i am simply going to link these yuta fansign moments: https://x.com/yumarkpics/status/1495729815609094148 & https://x.com/yumarkpics/status/1504444317598994434

why would friends get upset when their call is not answered? that's a lovers thing. i believe this song was written during the time yuta went to film high & low in japan (aka yuta's first time going to japan after covid so a while since mark was away from yuta like this).

3. verse 2:

Just like my empty days (What's that?) Just emptying my mind out for you (Emptying) You said you liked guys who let you win But you're the one getting mad again today Even if loving first was My fault, it's alright Rather than being the one making you suffer Should I just be what you want?

mark has many chances to not let his yearning for yuta to completely consume him. at that time even, he had a chance to preoccupy himself with dream and the child release and promo. the part about "guys who let you win" is referring to arguments. yuta prefers a lover who doesn't start arguments or if there is an argument, someone who backs down easily. i've said many times throughout this blog that mark is the insecure lover, he gets jealous, maybe sees himself as a little less or not as experienced as yuta (age, confidence, etc). maybe this has lead to outbursts from him towards yuta which lead to yuta letting him know he doesn't like that or that it's to be expected yuta will be away from him due to actively promoting in japan. yuta is the type of person that can get irritated easily (i thought of the time he snapped at jungwoo) he's a free spirit and likes to do things his way. he likes things to be the way he wants them to be, which may lead to him snapping at mark because mark is very needy- remember the moment when mark was sulking on camera and said "that's right" to yuta in a whiny/baby voice when yuta asked if he stepped on his foot on purpose. also, yuta has said many times when the camera is off, it's mark that is more affectionate or comes to him more. which might lead to mark thinking he has to be a certain way "should i just be what you want" (ie: shut up and accept this is the way it's going to be between us, you do what you want and i have to accept it). i do suspect their relationship is difficult because of the long distance nature of it, the fact they're in a big kpop group, the secrecy, etc etc i don't know how they label it, all i can say is they are each other's person, whatever that means to them.

"even if loving first was my fault" i have written about mark confessing first and yuta being a little shaken by it and putting space between them. it puts them in a difficult position when things actually become real hence "Rather than being the one making you suffer" because now yuta can't just move to japan for good and have his ideal dream career there as a jrock artist and actor

4. chorus

I don't want a loser, oh (I don't want a loser) I don't want a loser, no (I don't want a loser) Yeah, baby, don't you go (Baby, don't you go) I can't say no more, 'cause (Baby, don't you go) I don't want a loser, no (I don't want a loser)

at that time, it was the first time yuta was making more friends in japan, with his co-stars of high&low etc missing mark's calls and so on. his insecurity made him think he's losing yuta

5. verse 2

Yeah, I couldn't say it back then, but Even that girl you were closest with, I hated her from the start Looking at the pictures in the album now You look like an actor, guess it's time to change my wallet too (Change that) Your makeup doesn't suit you In this flashy mess, love is the only thing that fits the view I knew all this, but I still loved you (Yeah) Maybe I'm the real loser, more than you are (Yeah-eh)

this is the part that caught my attention, and even most fans' attention. i saw this post on twitter where fans were discussing (seriously, for the first time! even mark's gf stans not shippers) about the possibility of him being queer, writing a song about a man or being involved with a queer woman. the post i saw is this https://x.com/hyutaesft/status/1909183455361183944

i've always said on this blog i think mark is gay and yuta is bi. therefore, yuta doesn't worry much if mark is with women but mark, especially due to being insecure, will worry when yuta is with women. maybe there was a woman yuta was close to that we don't know about. this is new information so we have to add it to the discussion. and it makes things even more complicated in terms of their timeline than we first thought. yuta has talked about future "wife and kids" before comfortably so it seems he entertains the possibility of being with a woman in the future. we don't know if this woman is platonic or not but i am leaning towards not. otherwise mark wouldn't be so bothered to mention it in his song.

"looking at the pictures, you look like an actor" self explanatory given the time i think this was written - when yuta went to film high&low in japan. his acting debut. also the korean word for "actor" is genderless so if you see some translations using "actress" it is incorrect. "i knew all this but i still loved you" - he knew it wasn't going to be easy, he knew there might be other people involved, but he still fell for yuta.

this verse, was very intentional and again a first time mark hints at his sexuality in his lyrics without it being too obvious. "that girl i hated" could also be read by people as his female love interest's friend he was jealous of, so it's safe.

it's also interesting how this verse is entirely in korean, like he wants the person this song is about (yuta) to be able to understand it all. and the majority of the song is in korean, compared to the other songs on the album.

the final chorus, mark finally sings "lose ya" which confirms the lyrics was never about "lose her"

[yumark-ism]

https://www.instagram.com/p/CZrNQKjJYAO/

“ depth put in by distance, but still you’re my only focus “

oh mark, could you be anymore obvious... again, it’s the writings he uses to refer to yuta, seems like it’s his only outlet 

[yumark-ism]

210930 mark’s instagram writing + more

[🔗]

sure, it really could be about glasses, but the last two sentences really suggest otherwise. no way mark could have posted a romance-themed writing without there being a twist - rumours would be flying everywhere! the glasses metaphor makes people think ‘ohh this is typical mark’ but is it really? from his instagram writings, has mark ever posted a romantic one? no. mark rarely talks about romance, often cringing like a kid when asked about it or simply saying he has not given it much thought. why is he suddenly posting things like this, in the midst of a busy comeback schedule no less? his other instagram writings have been posted outside of any comeback periods (all in february 2021). after months of no writing posts, he decided to post this. yes i believe this was directed to yuta. significantly, he posted this in a period where we have seen him falling for yuta, even casually saying he “fell in love,” being possessive and generally whipped for him. it’s a very noticeable change of behaviour for him compared to his interactions with all other members and idols we have seen with him in years. 

before i get into the content of the post, let’s look at the brief yumark-related events that happened around the time mark posted it. 

on 18th sept, 127 had their comeback show, on 19th they had inkigayo, then from 20-22nd it was national public holidays for chuseok. yuta mentioned on his radio show this week that while all the members went back home to their families, he went to a hotel ‘vacation’ to relax and he has been thinking about doing this.so the next time we publicly saw yumark was on the 24th and 25th. probably the next time they themselves saw each other if they didn’t return to dorms on 23rd. doyoung had a musical show on 22nd and some 127 members had the huya live schedule so this day was not a holiday for them. maybe yuta returned to the dorms or not. anyway, i already wrote about the tension at the music shows on 24th and 25th, here. i mentioned in that post that on 25th, this was the first time yuta was so intense with mark this year so far. couldn’t take his eyes off him. this photo was also later released and it is from the 25th - no context, they are having a sincere moment again. they had a music show on 26th and 28th but just a performance.

the 30th (the day mark posted the writing) is when we see yumark in publicly again. when yuta spoke in japanese for the ment, mark immediately paid attention to him and once he finished, he immediately supported with a “woo!” his reactions to anything yuta does are very quick. the cute sticker moment happened. why did mark feel the need to walk over just to give yuta his sticker? he put haechan’s on for him because he was close by but somehow mark knew yuta wouldn’t wear his sticker. yuta looked a little surprised by the interaction (maybe because he gave taeyong his sticker and thought mark saw that? mark didn’t). mark smirked a little after putting the sticker on - he just wanted an excuse to interact with bae. and then they stayed beside each other with yuta seductively dancing behind mark. they also filmed the relay dance the same day and mark was very attentive to yuta - he seems in a giddy loved-up mood.

later that night mark posts the writing. 

the next day yuta looks giddy and happy when mark is bought up in his fancall.

the day after, the promise you stares and hearts happen (i have not analysed any of these moments yet. i will maybe do it when i have time but they’re pretty self-observable as to what is going on... fluster, shyness, panic, intensity, giddiness) 

the day after, they were attached during the encore, making each other laugh, and celebrated their first inkigayo win together with stares and handholds. that was the end of sticker promos.

so as you can see, it was an intense but passionate few days. even from the few minute videos we see, their interactions were charged. they couldn’t get enough of each other. yuta didn’t hold back at all like he was during the summer. 

mark’s writing and why it’s just so yuta.

your absence is more than just a feeling of vacancy yuta was apart from him on chuseok. in fact, yuta was alone in a hotel. on chuseok. they’ve spent a lot of time together as they’re in the middle of a busy comeback so the sudden loss would naturally hit home.

i know you mean more to me than what the world may think fans asked yuta if he loves mark more than mark loves him, they’ve mentioned to mark that yuta said mark doesn’t show his affection for him on camera as much as he does off camera. mark responded that he thought he was showing it even on camera. they are aware what fans say about them because fans have no shame and ask them things like this directly. 

without you i’d be helpless like a lost heart with no match this is clearly romantic. i can’t think why mark would use this as a metaphor for his glasses??? he’s letting us know he’s found his match, he’s fallen.

i need you to clear up my vision and hopefully my mind too  indeed the first part relates to glasses but the mind part reminds me of all the times mark has said he admires yuta’s heart and way of thinking of things. his straightforwardness and assertiveness, how he doesn’t hold back. yuta is mark’s dominant, his rock to lean on and pick him up when things get too hard. yuta has mentioned they have an unspoken understanding of each other, they understand each other’s loneliness, he wants to take care of mark.

just stay on my face so that we won’t fall apart stay with me, don’t look at anyone else, be mine (possessive mark anyone? we’ve seen a lot of him recently!)

they say you’re no good for me but i think otherwise this one really gives it away. nobody says glasses aren’t good for people. they do however say yuta isn’t good for mark. again, fans have publicly told mark him calling yuta oppa is weird and he should stop. mark took it to heart. there were even articles about it. mark hasn’t called him oppa since. people talk about their age difference, they’re fanservice, shove more popular ships in their faces. korean support for the yumark ship is nowhere to be seen. there could be so many forces telling mark that yuta isn’t good for him that we don’t even know about. this line is so obviously about his situation with yuta.

ignore them in the way you naturally are because you look good in noir again, a painfully obvious line. how can this be about glasses? this is about a person! as i’ve mentioned in my revealing interviews post, yuta has also taken fans’ comments to heart recently and has publicly pulled away from mark during 2021 compared to 2020. they have probably discussed this and mark is simply telling yuta to go back to his normal self - the yuta who doesn’t care what people think. and hasn’t yuta done exactly that? sure, he has his reservations, but that’s natural when real feelings are involved, but the intense stares and flirting is back. he doesn’t care who sees that. “you look good in noir” it’s quite confusing, mark liked the picture yuta posted on instagram of his black hair but that seems out of place and random to mention in this writing. he could just be saying yuta looks good as he naturally is - that’s the best yuta.

i believe mark would have told yuta the post was for him, even translated it to him before posting it, which would make yuta happy. yuta often desires mark to be more open about his feelings with him on camera, hence the change in yuta’s behaviour also.

[yumark-ism]

thelma & louise is crazy, my lesbian aunt who’s 50 said it’s like a classic lesbian theme movie they had when she was younger, how are more markfs not talking about this???

yes it’s known as the “two lesbians who run off in the sun together”

and i’m not sure. maybe because in the nct fandom people usually talk about members being gay if it’s to do with a ship. but of course, members’ sexuality has nothing to do with ships. for example, it’s easy to tell mark’s sexuality (and why i think he is gay) if you watch the difference between him with men and women. i recently saw the performances for designer where mark is with the male dancers/actors who act as his “stylist” and it involves close contact with them. for example putting his shoe on their knee for them to pretend to polish, them wiping sweat from his neck and face, putting a jacket on and off him and he can barely look at them. he gets very flustered and shy. similar behaviour when he does dance challenges with male idols. and we cant forget the moment he met kang daniel. whereas when he does dance challenges with female idols he doesn’t get shy like that and looks more comfortable.

[yumark-ism]

thanks for all your new lyrics analysis! ur right it's actually crazy how obvious mark is. everything in his songs - there's an actual yumark moment for it lol but anyway, i do think the rockstar thing is so insane - of all the things he could have called the love interest ROCKSTAR if this was markhyuck or something who had such a significant word, idk what is haechan knows as? fullsun? bear? so if mark said "you're my bear" then i know everyone would be tallking about it, sigh

yes, they would be claiming markhyuck have set a date for their wedding if it was "my bear"

this is BIG big. very obvious. too obvious. and yet... nobody talks about it. even with how yumark's relationship is always presented by yumark themselves as nonplatonic. it's crazy how nobody cares......... but of course neither mark nor yuta needs their validation

[yumark-ism]

watching tv by mark (thelma & louise)

i'm surprised nobody is talking more about this song and the obvious lgbt theme running through it

watching tv's original title was "thelma & louise" which is found in the credits of mark's album. mark has also said the song was inspired after he watched thelma & louise. and of course the lyrics:

"When I'm with you I feel like Bonnie, Clyde, Thelma and Louise's something"

watching tv is obviously a love song about wanting to escape mundane life and being on a thrilling adventure with your lover. it's also about how that lover has changed you as a person, so much that, as the lyrics state:

I don't let them make you up I would be somebody for you I go wildish I don't think twice if you want me Can rob a bank you want (You want) I'm fearless man somehow (Somehow) Nothing scares my love for real

thelma & louise is about two female friends who would die for each other, their bond is that strong. although the film itself isn't formally recognised as an lgbt movie, many queer spaces believe that the two women were in love with each other, especially as at the end they kiss on the lips and decide to ride off in the sunset or unalive themselves together in euphoria. their bond is shown to supersede the relationships they had with men which were toxic and abusive.

i wonder why mark was so drawn to this movie that it inspired a whole song?

i believe mark saw himself as thelma, and yuta as louise. thelma is the younger, more naive and submissive/obedient one who is married to an abusive man and hasn't properly lived life, never been on adventures or taken big risks in life. louise on the other hand is stronger minded, lives life on the edge, she smokes, she is the one that kills thelma's rapist, etc

throughout the movie you begin to see how thelma starts to take on more of louise's traits. one of these being at the start when thelma copies louise and starts smoking and even imitates louise saying "hey look i'm louise" as she smokes. this made me think about how mark has had yuta as this inspiring presence in his life, allowing him to become bolder, try new things, experiment with his style (i recall yuta saying on his radio that mark has become more like him in terms of his physical style). it also seems mark is a very "yes" man when it comes to SM and the company, whereas yuta is the type to put up a fight and defend himself against the company. maybe this is why the movie resonated so much with mark because he has always admired this part of yuta, which has allowed himself to be more free and take more risks.

throughout the movie, thelma becomes more confident, and even robs a bank which mark also mentions in his lyrics "Can rob a bank you want (You want)." she starts to let go of her previous vulnerable wife identity and becomes a strong woman who's bold and takes risks with louise by her side. and as we have seen, mark is not as shy as he used to be in expressing his love for yuta. many fans are even shocked that mark is this affectionate with yuta. fans were shocked to hear mark's whiny tone in the stepping on yuta's foot video - they have never heard mark like this with anyone before. out of so many members, yuta brings this raw side of mark out.

going back to the lgbt romance theme. although some argue that the movie was not sapphic, mark clearly did not think so, having made the entire song about love and romance. the lyrics are not platonic. and the fact he chose to say "Thelma and Louise's something" because he knows there was something going on between them even if they appeared like just best friends or sisters to other people.

another lyric that stood out for me is: "I don't let them make you up" which made me think back to the glasses post from 2021 when mark says people think yuta is bad for him and around that time when yuta began supressing his "obsession" for mark in public, toning it down. and mark essentially said, don't do that, just be how you naturally are. so i think this lyrics is another ode to that. yuta should continue to love mark as openly as he wants which has been the case over the past few years again.

anyway, the rest of the song is pretty self explanatory - about a secret relationship that he doesn't care what people think of it, they can gossip, he won't care. it reminds me of the negative opinion the fandom has about yumark and i can't imagine what people at the company have said about them.

again, i think this is mark playing around to hint at his sexuality publicly but in a safe way. he chose a same sex "friendship" with a history of queer commentary around it as the main relationship this love song is about. why is that?

bad euphoria by yuta - parallels with watching tv by mark

i noticed the themes are very similar. it’s almost like in this song yuta takes on the character of louise (who killed thelma’s rapist hence they are on the run in the story), as he keeps mentioning going to prison. which in the actual movie, louise at points says she might as well just give herself in.

these lyrics in particular:

I’m not interested in the goody little you, baby

A teaser where you can already tell the ending?

it’s like an ode to the predictable, goody little thelma in the start of the movie, who listens to everything her abusive husband says and never lets her hair down. again, that’s very mark in nature, who listens to everything the company says, wasn’t so bold or the one to take risks, but that’s changing now (as we also learn from watching tv’s lyrics). it’s also interesting how yuta talks about a teaser and ending - which are associated with movies and well, watching tv, heh.

another running theme in bad euphoria is again, the feeling of being on an adventure with no care in the world, escaping mundane life.

Set fire to this boring world

Isn’t it lacking some thrill?

I’ll invite you right now, my bad, bad euphoria

he’s bringing mark to the wilder, dark side of nakamoto yuta’s carefree world:

Take your mask off

Unleash your desires

I’ll invite you right now, my bad, bad euphoria

it’s also interesting how this song is centered around a “euphoria” and in mark’s watching tv his is centered around a “utopia”

and isn’t it interesting how many times both mark and yuta have said this is mark’s favourite yuta song so far and how much he loves it. i thought about the parallels between bad euphoria and watching tv even before i found out that mark liked it so much.

[yumark-ism]

Not sure if this is still active - your analysis is always interesting! Just wondering how Mark's Golden Hour fits into ur idea that Mark is gay?? personally it came across as very heterosexual (or at minimum, bisexual) to me. genuinely asking respectfully and you can ignore this ask too if you want! i wont take it personally

this was sent to me two years ago. maybe by now you have realised how mark uses the word "girl" as a space filler or a deflection to a very obviously gender neutral/male love interest song, although golden hour isn't one of them. i think the purpose of that song was different.

golden hour doesn’t change my view of mark being gay at all. if anything, the overtly straight-coded language, especially lines like “ladies wait for me” feels more like performance than personal truth. "ladies" meaning fans, because he knows the majority of his fans are girlfriend stans who are obsessed with the idea of fantasising about themselves with him. look at the reaction of his fans when he gifted lee youngji a rolex watch, which she made public knowledge, as it was harmless gift between friends. but his fandom didn't cope. look at their reaction to mark calling yuta oppa, they hated it. they hate any image of him being something unavailable to them, whether that's gay or dating a woman. and i can't imagine a genuinely straight male artist saying “ladies wait for me” with a straight face, it’s kind of cringey. it doesn’t sound like something a secure straight guy would say; it sounds like someone trying really hard to appear straight - like he’s playing a role he thinks he’s supposed to fill, not expressing something real.

mark also uses the word “girl” a lot in his lyrics, sometimes in places where is doesn't naturally fit, and it often comes across less like genuine romantic expression and more like a placeholder. and sometimes, it gives more of a “doth protest too much” energy. it's leaning really hard into a heterosexual image, which makes sense considering most of his fanbase is straight girls who project a romantic fantasy onto him.

it's also worth mentioning that golden hour is an ego rap song, the kind of song where rappers hype themselves up, show off skills, and assert their status. in such songs, women are often used symbolically, as status symbols or trophies. it's entirely possible (and likely) that this framing was encouraged or suggested by his A&R team, who help shape the themes and tone of his solo work to align with trends and appeal to the market. mark has said before that he collaborates with his team on concepts and lyrics, so it’s reasonable to assume some of those hetero-coded lines or ideas aren’t entirely coming from him, they're part of building a marketable image that resonates with his biggest demographic.

i have seen the same recently with exo's kai (also an SM idol) who i also suspect to be queer, who has recently been getting a more masculine image catered towards his older, female fanbase and ever since he started releasing solo albums. he is also one of the few (only?) popular idol in the entire industry that has had two dating scandals with very popular female idols. this image is usually pushed in the songs/stage performances whereas offstage he is a lot more feminine, cutesy, introverted and nothing like his stage persona.

anyway, back to golden hour. it is mark's first ever solo release after child. child shows mark's innocence and well, basically a childish and pure image. golden hour shows a more sexy, adult-like version of him, so of course there should be sexier lyrics. how do people show sex appeal? by showcasing how much they are wanted and desired. i doubt he will be able to write "they all want me" or "men or women both want me." his sex appeal has to be shown through a heterosexual lens.

of course, it is totally fine if others interpret the song differently and it makes them think mark is into girls. but from a queer lens and from watching mark's behaviour for many years, i don’t think it reads as deeply personal or revealing, it reads as branding.