Is ‘Love wins’ a sexual minority idiom? What IU wanted was ‘hate’ not ‘love’ [Synthesis]

[OSEN=Reporter Jang Woo-young] Singer IU changed the title of ‘Love wins’, which will be pre-released on the 24th, to ‘Love wins all’, expressing her hope to prevent controversy in advance and convey the song’s meaning properly.

On the 19th, IU’s agency EDAM Entertainment announced, “As of today, we will change the title of IU’s pre-released song ‘Love wins’, which is scheduled to be released at 6 PM on the 24th, to ‘Love wins all’.”

IU’s new song announcement comes about two years and one month after ‘Piece of Pieces’, which was released on December 29, 2021. At midnight on the 15th, a 17-second moving poster was released through the official SNS channel, introducing the new song’s title, ‘Love wins’. In particular, expectations were raised by releasing the main poster showing IU and BTS’s V sitting side by side with the phrase, ‘To a place that my poor imagination cannot imagine.’

However, after the new song title was revealed, some people claimed that ‘Love wins’ is a word exclusive to sexual minorities. ‘Love Wins’ is an idiom used to promote the human rights of sexual minorities when incidents related to sexual minority hatred occur around the world. In 2015, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled to legalize same-sex marriage, images of sexual minorities holding ‘Love Wins’ pickets were made public, and it became a representative idiom. Even now, it can often be seen at ‘queer festivals’.

One sexual minority argued, “Should we have titled it ‘Love Wins’ while singing about ‘heterosexual love,’ which has never been denied?” and added, “The desperate phrase of sexual minorities exposed to discrimination and hatred should not be used lightly in this way.” I also did it. On the other hand, there was also a rebuttal that there was no problem, saying that ‘love wins’ is not the exclusive property of sexual minorities.

Previously, IU introduced the track intro and said, “Some people say that this is an era of great hatred. It certainly doesn’t seem like a time when love is prevalent. In a gray world that becomes increasingly colder with visible hostility and indifference, it sometimes feels absurd to hope for victory using invisible love as a weapon. However, from what I have experienced first-hand, hate is always alone even when the momentum is good. On the other hand, even though it runs away, breaks apart, and fades away, love stays together forever. Love has a good chance of winning. “It tells the story of people who try to love until the end in a world that hinders love.”

He continued, “As an aside, this album contains five songs, and there are two songs dedicated to the people I love, especially my fans, and one of them is the song Love wins. From the age of 18, when I suddenly received great love and my life changed overnight, until now. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about what’s going to happen. I thought it was vaguely lonely, scary, and natural. But after thinking about it like that every day for ten years, my attitude toward it changed little by little. It’s not that scary now. I don’t think I will feel any more regretful or lonely at that moment. Above all, I don’t think it will be that close.”

IU said, “The reason why I, a pessimistic and worried child, was able to change so much is because there were people who reassured me every day without getting tired over the past 10 years. Thanks to them, when I think about it, I have never been alone for a single moment while living as IU. To my diligent fans who have never left me alone. I would like to say thank you for nurturing endless love in my heart, who is probably a naturally hard-working type. Also, I still don’t know why, but I’m really grateful that they always choose to be by my side. Just as you were with me, I want to be a person who is with you in your rising and falling moments. Next to him, ‘I’m not scared. “I want to be the person who says, ‘Let’s end the day in the most beautiful way possible,’” he said.

As stated in the track intro, IU chose ‘Love wins’ as the pre-released song, emphasizing ‘a world without hate’ and ‘love’. He added, “We accept opinions that are concerned that the important message will be obscured by the title of this song, and we want to further respect and support everyone who loves and lives in various ways.” He added, “The words that are most opposite to the message contained in the song to be released are: If there is, it would be ‘hate’. This was also mentioned in detail in the track intro released on the 18th. “I sincerely hope that all love will win in a world without hate, and that the meaning of this song will be conveyed without hurting anyone,” she explained.

IU made the bold decision to change the title of her new song out of concern that the message contained in the song would be obscured rather than causing controversy. I am looking forward to seeing what impact IU’s ‘Love wins all’, which hopes for a world filled with ‘love’ rather than ‘hate’, will have.

IU’s ‘Love wins all’ will be released on various music sites at 6 PM on the 24th. /elnino8919@osen.co.kr