iKON is finally back after a year and a month absence from the stage with Why Why Why. The new release follows Dive, their title track of their previous comeback. Since then, things have been quiet for iKON until most recently. Bobby made his solo comeback with U MAD in January of this year, while iKON was also confirmed to be a participant for their upcoming show Kingdom. Hopefully 2021 is a more eventful year for the group, with Kingdom already making it look promising.

Honestly, I don’t have much to say about Why Why Why. This may sound like a bad thing to start the review off with, but I felt the song was straightforward enough to describe what it felt like for me. And honestly, it felt like a really great addition to their discography. Why Why Why is probably iKON’s most smoothest and melodic comeback to date. To me, I felt everything glided along with the acoustics of the instrumentation. I quite liked that. The song largely feels like a ballad, with the tiniest hint of a hip-hop influence in Bobby’s rapping in the second verse. I thought the chorus was a really nice ring to it in terms of melodies. Paired with the vocals, you could feel the heightened heartbreak behind their voices. Why Why Why undoubtedly shows us a more fragile and delicate side of the group. Their vocal delivery during the chorus made it feel like the song was going down a power-ballad route. I did wish they committed to it more, with a featuring of more powerhouse vocals and some high notes from the members to potentially make the song even better than what it is. I did like the emphasis on the raspy and huskiness of their voices, which comes naturally with some of the members. While it might be a whole heap of praise, I have to note that Why Why Why is no mind-blowing song. It isn’t unfamiliar territory for the group, who have had a string of melodic hip-hop centric releases in the past – Love Scenario being the most well-known example from their discography. Does that impact how much I like the song? No, not really. Why Why Why managed to reel me in for all of the above praises and it has definitely maintained its appeal to me.

To match the song’s ‘sad reflection’ tone and showcase some of the fragility, the members appear quite sullen and heartbroken throughout the video. You can tell they did a good job at conveying those emotions throughout the video if that is what is coming off it. The lonely scenes of the members and the amount of space the cameras managed to really capture in their solo shots stood out for me. And loneliness is probably one of the best ways to showcase those emotions. The simplicity of their choreography scenes was also quite aesthetic. I also find the purple/blue sky to be potentially quite iconic, as it is the most memorable element of the music video for me. The burning bus (that they were travelling in) was a very riveting image, yet extreme step in getting over this relationship that had left them heartbroken.

The choreography actually looks quite nice. It starts off with just five members, before Bobby is introduced into the choreography during the second verse through his rap sequence. Unsure why this is the case, though it could be related to potential overlap with practice and his solo promotions. I thought the last addition made the performance look somewhat unique. The chorus looks quite nice, while the final moments of the routine during the song’s balladry moments were quite nice.

Song – 9.5/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 9.3/10