Itzy’s Gold album is the group’s first comeback since main vocalist Lia returned from a 10-month hiatus. They opted to release dual title tracks, starting with the brash, bombastic, and ultimately polarizing “Gold,” intended to highlight the group’s bold charisma and powerhouse performances. “Imaginary Friend,” however, is the hands-down highlight of the comeback for its ethereal vocals, meaningful lyrics, evocative music video, and expressive dance. While previous Itzy releases highlighted their confidence, “Imaginary Friend” takes a more introspective direction. In fact, it may be the group’s most artistically rich work to date.
Upending expectations for an Itzy title track, “Imaginary Friend” feels dreamy, with gorgeously atmospheric layered vocals. The song has a simple structure, twice repeating a sequence of verse, pre-chorus, chorus, and instrumental break. The instrumentation shifts enough to maintain interest, however, adding in thudding beats or guitar at key moments. Vocally, Yeji and Ryujin’s melodic rap section in the second verse adds variation, particularly with Ryujin’s vocal fry at the ends of her lines. The song’s balance of structural simplicity and texture makes for a compelling listening experience.
Itzy have always been known for their strong dance performances. To showcase choreography, “Imaginary Friend” intentionally includes two instrumental dance break sections, one after the first chorus and another during the outro. Chaeryeong particularly shines in these breaks with her sharp movements and precise body lines.
In contrast to Itzy’s typically intense and energetic choreography, however, this dance is more deliberate and expressionistic. The MV’s choreography fuels storytelling, with members’ movements and formations often directly interpreting the lines. Most prominently, when they sing “when there’s monsters in your ceiling,” they make whacking movements with their arms. The song’s performance video reveals even more moments: when they call themselves “different shapes of your illusion,” they create other shapes with their upper bodies. For instance, when Yuna calls herself a “fallen angel,” the other members stand behind her, their arms forming a wing pattern. As the imaginary friend, they mold themselves into what they need to be.
After the second chorus, however, the MV adds background dancers, to ambiguous effect. At times, they double the members’ motions, and at other points seem to restrict or guide their movements. In any case, there is a shift— instead of being imaginary friends, Itzy members have their own. At the end of the video, each member does Itzy’s signature crown pose, but with one hand from the backup dancers. In a sense, they become integrated with their imaginary friends.
In addition to the choreography, the enigmatic lyrics and MV imagery allow multiple interpretations. Parasocial relationships have been called “imaginary friends for adults,” and the lyrics can support this reading. Idols can serve as a source of comfort “when there’s monsters on your ceiling,” as well as assurances of connection, promising, “It’s you and I until the end.” Sung in beautiful harmonies, these lines feel hopeful.
The MV, however, suggests that for idols, there may be a cost. The beginning of the MV emphasizes bloody wounds on the members’ hands and faces. Ryujin backs up against a wall under a harsh spotlight, while Lia attempts to run away from a dark room full of overhead spotlights. In one overhead shot, all five members run in circular tracks resembling a bullseye — as public figures, they are exposed and often targets of hate. The song’s mood, comforting yet vaguely unsettling, matches the dual nature of idol life: meaningful, but often challenging.
In a behind the scenes video, Yeji and Chaeryeong pondered whether their imaginary friends are angels, devils, or “myself.” The MV is also full of imagery suggesting that the ’imaginary friend’ is another side of the self: shadows dominate the video’s first half, until the black-clad dancers embody the “shadow” sides of the members. Reflections also appear as a repeating motif, particularly with Ryujin and Yuna singing in front of infinity mirrors. This doubling hints at an internal struggle, suggesting that the members are confronting unresolved feelings within themselves. Their struggles only resolve when they move in harmony with their shadows, coordinating with the dancers to form their ending crown poses.
Regardless of how one interprets the lyrics and music video, “Imaginary Friend” is the most complex and mature MV of Itzy’s to date. It feels like a breakthrough for Itzy, stretching their artistry In new directions. “Imaginary Friend” may not usher in a new sound for the group, but Itzy’s delicate vocals, artistic dance, and rich storytelling in this MV suggest promising paths for their future work.
(YouTube: [1][2]. The New York Times. Lyrics via YouTube. Images via JYP Entertainment).
