Knee Jerk Reaction: “All Your Fault” by Yugyeom

Yugyeom’s move to AOMG wasn’t that all surprising to me when the news came out. I remember the early days of GOT7 when he would talk about being heavily influenced by Chris Brown hip hop and R&B, so it seemed like a natural progression for him as an artist all these years later. I thought AOMG would suit him well musically and stylistically, and his solo debut definitely confirms that. While I don’t really want to compare him to BamBam since they’re each doing their own thing, I find it fascinating how “All Your Fault” is basically the polar opposite of “Ribbon.” It’s very dark and serious, and it’s left me with a strong impression from the get-go.

“All Your Fault” is a smooth yet emotional R&B song that’s an excellent match for Yugyeom. I’ve always thought he had a very pleasant and unique sounding voice, which I definitely enjoy listening to. And though he got more lines in GOT7 title tracks as time went on, he’s not the main or lead vocalist – so I’m glad to hear a song that fully showcases his singing abilities. I don’t really know Gray that well (though I’ve heard him feature on other tracks), but I think his deeper voice provides a nice contrast to Yugyeom’s higher and more breathy singing.

While “All Your Fault'” seems to mostly be a brooding contemplation of a relationship that went wrong, there are decidedly sexy undertones to it as well. Actually, a couple of my friends who also like GOT7 have been thirsting after Yugyeom the past couple of years. I was always a little taken aback by that – not because I think he’s unattractive, but because part of me sees him as a perpetual teenager. (Keep in mind that I’m seven years older than him, and I discovered GOT7 when he actually was a teenager.) But when I listen to and watch “All Your Fault,” I can objectively see it. He definitely has a charismatic aura that’s appealing and draws you in, and that’s more apparent now that he’s working as a solo act.

Given that Yugyeom is the main dancer of GOT7, I’m a little surprised that the choreography for “All Your Fault” seems rather toned down. The moves are eye-catching and match the music and rhythm well, and he obviously looks great while performing it like he always does. However, I don’t necessarily think it showcases all of the skill and technique that I know he has. That being said, I think he focused more on singing because he’s already well-known as a dancer. Maybe he felt like he wanted to use his solo debut to prove himself as a singer. And if that’s the case, he definitely accomplished that goal.

When I first watched the music video, it was very obvious to me that Yugyeom was intentionally tackling a more mature and grown-up concept. “All Your Fault” sees him immersed in the role of a bad boy giving into his self-destructive tendencies. I think the music video was really well-made, and his acting was both impressive and believable. However, I have to be honest: I’m not thrilled by the plot. In this video, Yugyeom’s character gets drunk, picks a fight and gets beaten up badly, then shoots up a casino and kills Gray’s character. It turns out all of this destructive behavior stems from him seeing his girlfriend with another man. (Was it supposed to be Gray? It’s hard to tell, but that makes sense narrative-wise.) At the end of the music video, he drunkenly runs over his ex. And that makes me uncomfortable, because it takes me out of the mini-movie feel of the music video and makes it a lot more real.

To be fair, I don’t think my reaction is necessarily what the music video intended. It’s probably supposed to be a commentary about how damaging fallout from a bad relationship can be both to yourself and your former partner, and how easy it is to blame someone else for your own actions. And it’s not like I don’t understand the appeal of Yugyeom’s character; I’ve always loved (fictional) bad boys, so I certainly get it. But at the end of the day, that message is more implied than explicitly stated – and the final and most memorable images are of his character hitting his girlfriend with his car. So many women are killed by their partners and lovers that I just find this storyline too unsettling for a K-pop music video… especially if it can be interpreted to romanticize violence in any way (which was my initial read). But those are my own personal feelings, and I’m not counting that against Yugyeom or his music.

MY OVERALL INTEREST LEVEL

(NOTE: My options for each category are “Love,” “Like,” “Neutral,” “Not My Style,” or “Dislike.” But I rarely dislike anything, so I’ll mostly be using the other four.)

Category	My Opinion
Song	Like
Dance	Like
Music Video	Neutral

Like I mentioned in my post for BamBam, I’m fond of all GOT7 members but don’t follow their individual activities that closely – which has made me all the more curious about what each member’s future career will look like. I’ve always had an inkling of the kind of music Yugyeom would do as a soloist, so going the R&B route doesn’t surprise me. However, “All Your Fault” has allowed me to see so many new and interesting things about him. (I’m really enjoying his album.) I guess a plus to GOT7 all striking out on their own is that I get to see and appreciate the members in a different light, and I think Yugyeom is a great example of this. I think he did an excellent job with his debut, and I’m so proud of him. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing how his solo career plays out.

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(“Knee Jerk Reaction” is a column I created to talk about comebacks or debuts when I don’t have a lot of time to write in-depth reviews. A knee jerk reaction is like an automatic response, so it’s a post about my initial thoughts on the song, the music video, and the performance if it’s available. Compared to my reviews, everything is more stream of consciousness and less analytical. And everything is 100% my own opinion!)

SOURCES: Featured image and music video belong to AOMG.