On Friday, July 15th, BTS member, J-Hope released his debut solo studio album, Jack in the Box. In 10 songs, J-Hope takes his listeners along for a sort of coming of age story starring Jack/Hope. The first solo project from a BTS member since they announced their indefinite hiatus, Jack in the Box reimagines the story of Pandora’s Box through hip-hop and punk-rock sounds.
The story is split into two sections that portray Jack/Hope’s feelings and emotions in the box and when he is out.
ACT ONE: Jack is in The Box
The album opens with a spoken excerpt from the story of Pandora’s box. According to Greek mythology, Pandora was the first woman on earth, created by Zeus as a punishment to humans. The gods gave Pandora a box and told her that it contained special gifts from each of the gods, however they warned her not to open the box. Pandora tried to contain her curiosity, but it ultimately got the best of her and she opened the box, allowing hardships and illnesses to escape. Panicked by the evil spirits, she quickly closed the box keeping Hope stuck inside.
In some retellings of Pandora’s box, Hope remains in the box. However, in others, and particularly, the retelling in the album, “hope manages to escape. The last line of the song reads “hope gave people the will to carry on living amidst pain and strife.” The story of Pandora’s box has been pervasive in J-Hope’s career, even influencing his stage name.
The first act of the album comprises two songs – “Pandora’s Box” and “More”. The overall theme of the first act is yearning. Yearning for freedom; yearning for self-discovery; yearning for more. “Pandora’s Box” is a song about sacrifice. J-Hope confesses that previously, his life and his career have been for other people as “Bangtan’s Hope”. However, he has reached a point where this endless sacrifice has become exhausting and he is deciding now that he must live his life for himself.
He plays with the Japanese proverb “a frog in the well knows nothing of the sea” as he raps “the box is a frog in the well”. He is trying to break away from the stereotype he is placed in (or rather has placed himself in) so that he can reach his full potential. There is so much he can do when he is contained in the four walls of the box.
This song transitions us into the first title track of the album “More”. “More” is a fusion of hip-hop and punk rock rhythms where J-Hope compares his desire for a successful life as an artist with his knowledge that there is more to life than fame and money. His repetitions of “I want more” are ambiguous. Does he want more fame and success or does he want more than all of this?
ACT TWO: Springing Out
In the second act, Jack/Hope is finally out of the box. He can now do everything that he dreamed of. However, as seen in “Stop”, life outside of the box is not everything that he thought it would be. He is afflicted with the sight of greediness, discrimination, and violence. BTS, as a group, has not shied away from being vocal about social issues in both their music and their real life. In 2017, they launched the Love Myself campaign with UNICEF to end violence and bullying among children and teenagers. In the same vain, J-Hope urges people to spread love and stop violence and discrimination in “= (Equal Sign)”.
Just like in the story of Pandora’s box, the tiny speck of Hope is trying to reverse the damage done by greed and hate. Even when he is free from the pressures of the box, Jack/Hope still feels conflicted about his space in the world. “What If…” samples 90s hip-hop song “Shimmy Shimmy Ya” by Wu Tang Clan and Old Dirty Bastard. J-Hope returns to the reflective state he was in at the beginning of the album. While in “Pandora’s Box”, he asks what could I be when I am not living for others, in this song, he questions who he would be if he wasn’t his hopeful, luminescent, positive personality.
The second act is marked by confusion. Jack/Hope is trying to make a positive space for others while also creating a safe space for himself. The message of “Safety Zone” is sort of like the grass seems to be greener on the other side. Life inside of the box was exhausting but it was familiar and it was easier than being on the outside and attempting to forge his own path. Ultimately, he decides to stay on the outside and persevere any loneliness and anxiety he might experience on his journey. In “Future”, he admits that while being outside the box is scary, he needs to continue to bet on “courage, faith, and hope”.
The album closes with the secondary title track, “Arson”. Jack/Hope thought everything was what he wanted, but it turns out everything is not what it seems. Now he is at a crossroads and must decide which road to travel. Does he save himself or sacrifice himself for others? Does he put out the fire, or does he burn even brighter? Jack in the Box is a lot darker and more mature than J-Hope’s previous solo music in BTS. I look forward to seeing what is in store for J-Hope.