My Universe Is A Declaration Towards Happiness
In the duration of the existence of our universe, the creativity of the mind has always been adored and viewed from a hand’s distance, with caution. Creative means- such as music, writing, and dance- have found themselves at the core of human expression of their feelings and beliefs. More often than not, music has found itself to be at the forefront of revolution: the rise of individual expression and of the fight to achieve happiness in a world that places society at a higher pedestal than the individual and their needs and aspirations. Music provides us with a space to be ourselves; even if it is the melodies that are crafted by others, with its aid we create our own universe and therefore, make our own solace and our comfort. It heightens the connection between the self and the mind: as well as the connect between people who might not even know of each other’s existence.
This notion is the primary focus of the song and music video for the 2021 song ‘My Universe’. The song- released by two of the most popular acts in the world, Coldplay and BTS- is one that transcends all boundaries of country, language, race, gender, sexuality. It is a song that is crafted out of the bond of love, and the lyrics talk about how the passionate feelings of love that one holds for another can turn even the universe from a being that isn’t understood to one that’s your very own: one filled with the thoughts of their person everywhere. Chris Martin’s roughened voice in the pre-chorus is joined by Jungkook’s soft tenor that makes the listener transcend into outer space itself; whereas the end of the song is like trudging into a quasar filled with radio waves (which, in reality, can definitely harm you- don’t do that) that feel harmless to your skin. As much as I can talk about the song and lyrics, today I’d love to talk about the music video more.
The music video begins like a fairy tale: it’s set in the very distant future, in a very authoritarian and dystopian society spread across the reaches of space. It’s one where music is banned- which can also be a metaphor for censorship and the suppression of creativity- with people in place to punish those who defy them called the ‘silencers’. And like every fictional dystopia in existence, there are the ones who revolt against the system, in the form of DJ Lafrique who plays music from their secluded spaceship from three ‘holobands’ (bands who perform in the form of holograms): BTS, Coldplay and Supernova, which could possibly also allude to one of the remixes of the song, promptly called the Supernova remix. The scene then cuts to them setting up their systems; pulling gears and switching on technologies set in place to ensure that the performances are broadcasted everywhere, while the song plays in the background and the bands gear up for their song.
As we move to Coldplay’s scenes, we see a sign that says ‘absolutely no music’, and someone spray-painting on it so that it says ‘absolutely all music’. This could be a declaration to go against the authority and play the kind of music they love. In a real world context, this could also refer to the elitism within certain musicians; as a person surrounded by Indian classical musicians, I’ve witnessed the amount of superiority they carry within themselves. This could be a way of Coldplay and BTS- two of the most influential pop acts now- to say that every kind of music has a soul that can’t be differentiated. To say that one kind of music has soul while the other doesn’t for being significantly different is wrong. Coldplay begin singing the first hook of the song, and the camera pans to another drone watching them sing and potentially reporting them; but it miraculously shuts down. They’re joined by Jungkook and the rest of BTS as the chorus rolls by: they represent the idea of freedom and free expression, with their enjoyment and chanting along with each other.
The scene shifts to V singing in a post-apocalyptic alien planet with the other members, singing alone surrounded by broken spaceships. This could be a physical imagery of the times we feel alone, feel broken in our lives; and the two bands singing together is the realization that music heals hearts- that with the lyrics and melodies and the hands of the ones who sing to comfort us- we can smile. In a defiance to authority that prioritizes its own image over personal happiness, V throws something at the drone that cracks the camera; and the scene changes to a warmer tone of colour. The two bands join Supernova, a band made up of extra-terrestrial beings, and they celebrate their individuality through singing and dancing: making eye contact with each other and fueling confidence in one another.
The transition from a blue landscape to a yellow one is a shift from the frigidity of the system that bogs them down to a revolution of happiness: the idea that any kind of music can create joy and giddy euphoria that is constant unlike its connotation. Yellow is a shade of warmth that conveys through the song; J-Hope’s verse is like the sun shining upon us as he serenades Angel Moon, one of the members of Supernova. They are the representation of BTS and ARMY, Coldplay and their fandom; the perfect moniker for these scenes would be the ending lines from BTS’ ‘You Never Walk Alone: A Supplementary Story’: ‘When we are together, we can smile.’ This scene could also be a form of coming together of communities that have had to reduce physical gatherings to nil because of the Covid-19 pandemic: which also includes concerts for musicians like the above, which have just begun with the long-awaited performance of Coldplay at the Global Citizen Live 2021, and the announcement of a physical concert for four days by BTS.
However, the silencers finally find the spaceship that controls the holobands: the holograms stop, the sky darkens as if doom is approaching, and the musicians watch the skies with bated breath as the largest space-craft in this universe faces the core of the rebellion herself. DJ Larique watches the red core extend in front of her, threatening to destroy. The colour red is one of caution and control, but the act that she does after she watches it completely changes the meaning of it. She presses the button on her control panel and the music begins all over again; with the musicians now singing from their own spheres. This is representative of the mode of enjoyment in this pandemic: artists performing from their own countries to people across the world that love and cherish them. And the colour red becomes not of control, but of revolution and rebellion: it stands for the people against society trying to subvert its power and restore the right to create music- and therefore gain their right to creativity once again.
My Universe is therefore not only a representation of the history of transcendental love: it is also of the resilience of human expression and creativity that lives and thrives even in a dystopian society. The cycle of creating life goes on.
Pictures from the My Universe Music Video.
