Prod. Min SUGA Genius
Having broken many pop culture stereotypes in recent years, along with receiving critical acclaim for his musicality and lyricism, we need no introduction to the genius of SUGA. His musical capabilities have put him on top of his game!
SUGA has worked with both South Korean and foreign artists; he has produced, composed, and even featured on songs for artists such as IU, SURAN, Halsey, Juice WRLD, and Max, just to name a few. He has gone past his comfort zone and has showcased his production skills through the various genres he has worked on. His caliber is undeniably top-notch!
SUGA goes by the name “Agust D” while working on his own music aside from BTS. He refers to Agust D as his alter ego. In an interview for Grazia Korea, he expressed his desire to release his music for free in the form of a mixtape, commenting that an album "has a feeling of being trapped in some sort of framework.”
On May 22, 2020, SUGA dropped his second mixtape D-2. The mixtape features Max on the track Burn It, as a collaboration between the two artists. Burn It offers us a sonic spectacle of a drama being played out between one’s past and the present. The second collaboration between the two was in October 2020, when SUGA featured on Blueberry Eyes by Max, which charted on Digital Song Sales and Pop Airplay charts.
Countless artists have been lining up to score a collaboration with SUGA. Just having “Prod. SUGA” on the track sets the song up for success. The last track on his mixtape Agust D, So Far Away featuring SURAN, is synergic and powerful. SUGA’s first time producing for an artist other than BTS was for SURAN’s Wine. The track is a mix of R&B, hip hop, and electro-pop. Wine was the first chart-topper both for SURAN since her debut and for SUGA as a producer. This collaboration earned the two artists the Hot Trend Award at the 2017 Melon Music Awards.
Apart from collaborations, SUGA’s own songs have their own style as well. Whether it’s his voice, production techniques, tools, mixing, or the lyrics he writes, it is in no doubt phenomenal. From the use of traditional Korean instruments in Daechwita to smooth guitar riffs and funky bass lines in Moonlight.
SUGA left everyone mesmerized when he showed us his singing capabilities in SUGA’s Interlude on Halsey’s album, Manic. Another collaboration we didn’t know we needed was the masterpiece eight by IU. Co-produced by SUGA, eight is a pop rock song that fuses acoustic EDM and trendy rock sounds. The song went on to win the Mnet Asian Music Award for Best Collaboration. It also swept both national and international music charts.
SUGA has been producing songs even before BTS when he worked under the alias “Gloss.” Even Samsung, the brand which BTS are ambassadors for, is lucky to have a version of Over the Horizon produced by SUGA.
Under the names SUGA and Agust D on Spotify, he has surpassed more than a billion streams and has almost 10 million monthly listeners on the platform! We are proud of this achievement! The Korea Music Copyright Association attributes over 130 songs to SUGA as a songwriter and composer. The recent success of Stay Alive, Girl of My Dreams, and That That, all produced by SUGA, has garnered the artist coveted accolades.
It is indeed mind-blowing how intricately SUGA uses every choice from sampling, his rap and instruments, production and composition, and in return we receive a splendid song! It leaves no doubt that he is a genius in every sense of the word. We look forward to more songs from our talented SUGA!
Written by: Pluto
Edited by: Lisa K
Designed by: Martinadhana
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