"Mic Drop" (stylized as "MIC Drop") is a song recorded in two languages (Korean and Japanese) by South Korean boy band BTS. The Korean version was originally included as a B-side track on the band's fifth extended play, Love Yourself: Her (2017), and later remixed by American producer and DJ Steve Aoki. The remix was released as the second single from the EP on November 24, 2017, by Big Hit Entertainment and features a guest appearance by American rapper Desiigner. It was serviced to US contemporary hit radio on December 5, 2017, as a single in that country. The Japanese-language version of "Mic Drop" was released on December 6, 2017, by Def Jam Recordings and Virgin Music as a triple A-side single album that included "DNA" and a new, original song "Crystal Snow", both also in Japanese. Both the Korean and Japanese versions of the song were written by Supreme Boi, "Hitman" Bang, J-Hope, RM, and Pdogg, with the latter of the five solely handling production. The remix version was also written by the same songwriters, with additional songwriting by Aoki, Desiigner, Tayla Parx, Flowsik, and Shae Jacobs. It was produced by Aoki, with Pdogg providing additional production. A hip hop song, the lyrics celebrate BTS' numerous achievements.
The song received generally favourable reviews from music critics, who praised its beat, sound, and musical styles, and picked it as a standout track on Love Yourself: Her. Commercially, the remix version of "Mic Drop" debuted at number 28 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming the band's first track to reach the top 40 on the chart. The song appeared at number 37 on the Canadian Hot 100 and number 46 on the UK Singles Chart, in addition to reaching moderate peaks in several other territories. The Japanese version debuted at number one on both the Oricon Singles Chart and the Billboard Japan Hot 100. It was the 13th best-selling single of 2017 in Japan. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ).
Two music videos were filmed for "Mic Drop", one for the Korean remix version and one for the Japanese version. Woogie Kim directed the music video for the Korean version which premiered on Big Hit's YouTube channel at the same time as the song's release. The video for the Japanese version was uploaded to Universal Music Japan's YouTube channel on December 5, 2017. Both videos depict the band performing powerful choreography in various settings. Following the release of Love Yourself: Her, BTS appeared on several South Korean music programs including M! Countdown, Music Bank, and Inkigayo. They promoted the remix version of the song with performances on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and Saturday Night Live, amongst others. It was also included on the setlist for the band's Love Yourself World Tour (2018–19).
Background and release South Korean boy band BTS had achieved consecutive entries on Billboard charts with The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Pt. 2 (2015), The Most Beautiful Moment in Life: Young Forever (2016), and Wings (2016). The band further garnered major attention in the United States after winning the Top Social Artist award at the 2017 Billboard Music Awards, becoming the first K-pop group ever to be nominated for and win a Billboard Music Award. They released their fifth extended play Love Yourself: Her on September 18, 2017, to commercial success. The EP debuted and peaked at number seven on the US Billboard 200, becoming the first Korean album to enter the top 10 on the chart. Originally included as a B-side track on Love Yourself: Her, a remix of "Mic Drop" by electro house DJ Steve Aoki featuring American rapper Desiigner, was announced for release as a single on November 7, 2017. In an interview with Billboard magazine, Desiigner stated that he had met the band at the Billboard Music Awards earlier that year and became involved in the collaboration.
"Mic Drop" was released for digital download and streaming in various countries by Big Hit Entertainment on November 24, 2017, as the second single from Love Yourself: Her. Big Hit and RED Music later serviced the song to contemporary hit radio in the US on December 5, 2017. An extended version of the remix appears on the band's third compilation album Love Yourself: Answer (2018). A Japanese version of the song was digitally released for purchase on December 6, 2017, by Universal Music Japan as the band's eighth Japanese-language single album, together with the Japanese version of previously released Korean single "DNA" and a new, original Japanese track "Crystal Snow". It was also released as a four-version CD single in Japan on the same day, with a regular edition and three different limited editions: A, B and C. All four editions contain "Mic Drop", "DNA" and "Crystal Snow" as a triple A-side. Individually, edition A includes a DVD with the music video for the Japanese version of "Mic Drop" and a dance version video of the song, edition B comes with a DVD that contains behind the scenes footage of the music video for "Mic Drop" and the making of album jacket photos, and edition C contains a 36-page photobook. The Japanese version was later included on the band's third Japanese-language studio album Face Yourself (2018).
Music and lyrics
Musically, the album version of "Mic Drop" has been described as a groovy hip hop number backed by heavy bass and sampled gunshots. The remix version introduces EDM synths and trap-infused beats over the original hip hop melody. In terms of musical notation, the original version was composed in the key of F♯ major, while the remix was composed in A♯ minor. Both versions have a tempo of 170 beats per minute and last for 3:58. Two versions of the remix were released: the studio version released on digital streaming platforms featured Desiigner, while the version accompanying the music video replaced the rapper's intro with Korean verses from the original album version. Both the original Korean and Japanese versions were written by Pdogg, Supreme Boi, "Hitman" Bang, and band members RM and J-Hope, with production handled solely by Pdogg. The remixed version was also created by the same songwriters, with additional writing by Aoki, Desiigner, Tayla Parx, Flowsik, and Shae Jacobs. The latter was produced by Aoki, with additional production from Pdogg who also served as one of the recording engineers of the track. Band member Jungkook provided backing vocals for the song, alongside Supreme Boi, Docskim, Hiss Noise and Pdogg. It was mixed by Jaycen Joshua with assistance from David Nakaj and Ben Milchev at the Larrabee Sound Studios in North Hollywood, Los Angeles, while mastering was handled by Randy Merrill at Sterling Sound in New York City.
The song incorporates a dark percussion line and Lil Wayne-esque cadences in its composition. As opposed to Aoki's signature build-and-drop house music style, it makes use of an uptempo "cluttered" production, which loops its starting rhythm with trap and a pulsating synth-line. Instrumentation is provided by keyboards, synthesizer, and guitar. The song is further driven by drumbeats and features repetitive chanting from the band. The opening verse features Desiigner's "fast-talking" followed by heavy Auto-Tuned vocals and "super-aggressive" English verses from the band.
According to RM, "Mic Drop" was inspired by former US president Barack Obama's mic drop at his last White House Correspondents' Dinner in 2016. Speaking about the song in an interview, Desiigner said: "What ["Mic Drop"] means to me is definitely—like when you really amazingly, tremendously kill the beat. And you just drop the mic after that. You just know that you did your thing on that." In the song's lyrics, BTS celebrate their global popularity, narrating their hard work and numerous achievements through lines like: "Another trophy, my hands carry 'em / Too many that I can't even count 'em (turn it up now) / Mic drop, mic drop / Be careful of your feet, be careful of what you say."
Critical reception Upon release, "Mic Drop" was met with generally favourable reviews from music critics. Writing for The Malaysia Star, Chester Chin praised the song as "a brilliant display of artistry," calling it "an explosive and menacing track with some dirty bass to boot." Jeff Benjamin from Fuse lauded the cohesiveness of the song's diverse musical styles, writing that the Steve Aoki remix "wasn't just brilliant for its blending of different genres and styles, but how all those elements enhance one another." He further stated, "Desiigner's ridiculously awesome flow fits perfectly alongside BTS' braggadocio, with it all backed by a mainstream-accessible Aoki beat." Reviewing for Clash, Taylor Glasby viewed the track as a "scorching, hater-baiting" song and deemed it as the "sonic outlier" of Love Yourself: Her. Rhian Daly of NME regarded the song as "a swag-filled rap-led track full of their very own mic drop moments." In his review for The Korea Herald, Dam-young Hong cited the track as "an artwork, offering listeners a flash of footprints BTS have left in the K-pop scene over the past few months." Music critic Sunmi Ahn also wrote an article for the same publication where she praised the song's production and lyrical content writing, "With a killer beat and smart yet frank lyrics, it's a song that describes how BTS got to the top." IZMs Do-heon Kim favoured the aggressive guitar riff in the production, likening it to that of '90s South Korean music group Seo Taiji and Boys. Mike Nied of Idolator deemed the song "one of the hardest hitting on an album of iridescent pop hits."
Reviewing for Vulture, Kim Youngdae and Park T.K. wrote, "The beat is distinctive, making every part of this song instantly recognizable." In The New York Times, Jon Caramanica shared a similar view, favouring the sound of the song and labelling it as "a fantastically squelchy beat." Billboards Caitlin Kelley cited it as one of the best songs of BTS and wrote, "the intensity of the song is the product of a potent mixture: an ominous, trap-infused beat rages against boastful lyricism befitting a world class act." Emlyn Travis of PopCrush called "Mic Drop" BTS' "quintessential hip hop track", noting that it evolved the band's sound "while keeping their old roots intact." Chris DeVille from Stereogum viewed the song as "tensely jittery" in which the band "never cease sounding like a boy band even as they lean liberally into hip-hop." In a mixed review for Spin, Monique Melendez felt that the song is "inspiring in its lyrical confidence" but "doesn't push any musical boundaries."
Accolades + Year-end lists for "Mic Drop" Publication List Rank Billboard 10 Best Dance/Electronic Remixes of 2017: Critics' Picks align="center" Fuse The 20 Best Songs of 2017 1 YouTube Rewind Top 10 Most Popular Music Videos in Korea From 2018 3
Commercial performance