On June 28, 2024, BTS’s Jimin released the pre-release single “Smeraldo Garden Marching Band” (feat. Loco) on HYBE LABELS’ official YouTube channel. BTS ARMYs were captivated by the fictional Smeraldo flower mentioned in this new song.
The Smeraldo flower, known as a legendary flower, is closely linked to BTS’s creative universe. It appears in the group’s music and videos, especially in the universe of Bangtan (BU) and HYYH (Hwa Yong Yeon Hwa), also known as “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life.”
According to the Smeraldo blog (available on Naver), which was founded by ARMYs before the release of the group’s 2017 album “Love Yourself: HER,” the fictional Smeraldo flowers were discovered on June 12, 2013, in northern Italy. Florist Teste Husso created the Smeraldo blog and mentioned in his third story how he discovered the fictional flower from a friend:
“He says that in 2013, a friend he had met at a card event five years earlier called him to tell him that someone had discovered Smeraldos in real life. He shares a screenshot of an Instagram post from June 12, 2013 (the date of BTS’s debut). The Instagram user is ‘amare_0’ and is said to be a traveler who found the flowers growing in northern Italy.” (translation by The BTS Effect).
The theme of Jimin’s song “Smeraldo Garden Marching Band”: confession
According to a press release shared by BigHit Music on January 28, 2024, on their official account X, the theme of the song “Smeraldo Garden Marching Band” (feat. Loco) revolves around confession. Jimin took the motif of the fictional flower Smeraldo from the Bangtan universe, which means “the truth that could not be conveyed.” Jimin wanted to express his immense love for ARMYs through this new song. BigHit Music stated:
“The theme of the lyrics is ‘confession.’ Jimin took inspiration from the fictional flower ‘Smeraldo,’ which symbolizes ‘a sincere heart that could not be conveyed,’ to create sweet lyrics that confess love on behalf of those who cannot express their feelings.”
The song “Smeraldo Garden Marching Band” (feat. Loco) is inspired by the album “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” by the English rock group The Beatles. During the production of his first solo album “FACE”, Jimin worked with a team of composers.
He called this team the “Smeraldo Garden Marching Band” and appreciated their participation in the creative process. With the help of his fictional team and inspiration from the rock band’s album, the idol introduced his creation “Smeraldo Garden Marching Band” (feat. Loco) to the world.
The song mixed the sound of a large orchestra with elements of hip-hop and was based on a marching band on parade. The music video showed Jimin, Pdogg, Ghstloop and Evan united as the fictional group “Smeraldo Garden Marching Band”, playing a cheerful melody.
Jimin transforms into the leader and performs with other musicians, followed by Loco’s catchy rap. The music video features children, lovers, friends, and background dancers, creating a lively atmosphere.
Memories associated with the fictional flower Smeraldo
Jimin discussed the memories and stories associated with the fictional flower Smeraldo, used by the group throughout their work. The Smeraldo was linked to the song “The Truth Unfold” from the album “Love Yourself: TEAR”.
Even in one of the concept photos of the idol’s upcoming album, “MUSE”, he is holding the blue-colored Smeraldo flower, suggesting the message he wanted to convey to ARMYs. Additionally, group member Jin shared a tweet on August 9, 2017, where he held a bouquet and captioned his post with “Smeraldo.”
Around the time Jin shared this Smeraldo update, fans dug deeper and found a blog titled “Smeraldo Blog” on Naver, created on July 4, 2017, consisting of nine stories. The blog provided knowledge and background stories related to the Smeraldo flower.
The stories presented on the blog left many clues related to the fictional flower and revealed its connection with the Bangtan universe in the original eight stories. ARMYs concluded that the Smeraldo blog was created to support the band’s 2017 comeback album “Love Yourself: HER.”
Jimin’s second album, “MUSE”, will be released on July 19, 2024.
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