The Astronaut / Official MV / HYBE Labels
(Picture: The Astronaut / Official MV / HYBE Labels)Jin, the eldest member of the Korean superband BTS, has released a new single The Astronaut.
The song, which runs at close to five minutes and is a dreamy K-pop rock track, with acoustic guitar and synth sounds, has been co-written by Coldplay. An official music video was also released to accompany the new track.
In an exchange shared on Twitter between Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and Kim Seok-jin, who goes by Jin, Martin said: “Thank you for having inspired the song. When we spoke about you having to leave for a while and missing the band and your fans, it was really powerful. I think the song found its way because of that conversation.”
💌A new message has arrived from Chris Martin for Kim Seokjin.
— BTS_official (@bts_bighit) October 20, 2022
🧑🎤 안녕, 내 동생 진!
👨🚀 Hey, my bro! My Superstar💜#진 #Jin #TheAstronaut #JinXColdplay @Coldplay pic.twitter.com/h6LODffCyI
The Astronaut was also written by Norwegian DJ Kygo, and Martin’s son Moses Martin is also listed as a songwriter.
The song comes at a particularly poignant moment – in June BTS announced that the group would be taking a hiatus so that members could focus on their solo projects.
Then, just over a week ago the band announced that all seven members will be fulfilling their mandatory military service. Jin, as the eldest member of the band, is set to start his army enrolment soon as he turns 30 in December.
In South Korea, all “able-bodied” men who are under 30 years old must serve in the country’s military for 18 to 21 months. The group is currently set to come back together in 2025.
This isn’t the first time Coldplay and Jin have worked together. Last year BTS and Coldplay released the platinum hit Universe together. It was the second single from Coldplay’s ninth studio album, Music of the Spheres, which was released in October last year.
Universe went straight to number one, becoming the first song by a British group to ever debut at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. It became Coldplay’s second chart-topping track after 2008’s Viva la Vida, and became BTS’s sixth US number one.
Speaking to GQ in December, Jin said: “I’m a big fan of Chris Martin. Thinking back even now, it was truly incredible to be able to collaborate with Coldplay. It was such a precious time for me.”
Jin is reportedly currently in Argentina, rehearsing The Astronaut with Coldplay. He is set to sing the new single on stage with the band during one of their eight Buenos Aires shows taking place over the coming week. Coldplay is currently on a world tour, which is set to end in June next year in Amsterdam.
