Much has been said about how handsome BTS’s Jin is. But not enough has been said about him as a singer and songwriter.

Jin is one of the best singers in K-Pop. His talent was made evident when BTS’s comeback trailer for their 2018 compilation album Love Yourself: Answer was released. The trailer featured “Epiphany,” a solo song by Jin. Co-written by ADORA, Bang Si-hyuk, and Slow Rabbit (who also produced the track), it’s as an alternative rock ballad with acoustic guitar and wavy electric riffs.

On “Epiphany,” his vocal range spans from D3 to F5, which makes him a tenor. In BTS, he’s the vocalist with the highest pitch (- G2 – Bb5 – B5) and widest range. The area of Jin’s voice where he has the most notable control and power lies in the middle-low portion of his voice, from an F3 to a D4. He’s also best at emoting within that range.

He’s one of the most talented yet underrated vocalists in K-Pop, because he’s not super visible as a singer outside of BTS. Aside from his amazing range, he has a beautiful tone and great control over his instrument. He sang “Epiphany” so well that last year, it made Meaww.com’s list of best self-care songs. Here’s what that web site wrote about Jin’s solo song:

“An epiphany is a sudden or powerful realization. And on 'Epiphany,’ you get just that—the realization that you are perfect as you are and worthy of self-love. Part of the Love Yourself series, this song was sung by BTS member Jin and carries an important message that not only are we each worthy of love, we are also capable of unconditional self-love.

 

“The music video depicts Jin in a seemingly grey and loveless world, but gradually with tiny steps he finds his way to a more positive space, filled with color and joy. The journey he invites us to go on with him is one that encourages us to love ourselves—despite how difficult and lonely the act may seem—because there’s no greater undertaking in the world than the realization that we are worth the effort.”

Meaww.com’s comments say a lot about Jin’s talent. You have to be a very intelligent singer to be able to convey a song’s message so well that those who listen to you can understand it clearly.

Jin has also begun to write more songs. Last year, as a birthday gift to ARMY, he dropped one titled “Abyss,” which is about burnout. It’s a very personal song for him, so when it hit two milestones on YouTube in under a year after it was released, ARMY was thrilled for Jin.

On July 9, he became the first Korean soloist to reach three million likes on an audio with “Abyss,” which also has the most number of comments—not just among Korean artists, but also globally. It crossed the 559,000-comment mark around the same time. What’s more, it’s the only audio by BTS or one of its members in the Top 200 most-commented on videos in YouTube history. (Several of their music videos are in the Top 10.)

Jin co-wrote “Abyss” with Pledis Entertainment’s BUMZU (who produced it as well), Pdogg, and RM. BUMZU is a producer and soloist who belongs to the same company as the boy group SEVENTEEN. He’s also the leader of the music group PRISMFILTER. He performed alongside BTS and the rest of the HYBE family at last December’s New Year’s Eve Live concert.

When he released “Abyss,” Jin posted a letter to ARMY on BigHit’s blog, in which he talked about the story behind the song. “Recently, in a press conference, I said I don’t like sharing sad feelings with the fans because I only want to show them the good things. However, I feel differently if it’s through music,” he wrote.

Further on in the letter, he admits to feeling burnt out and doubtful due to BTS’s success.

“Many sent me their congratulations, but I wondered if I really deserved such things. I received counseling about this issue and spent time talking to Bang PD, who asked if I wanted to express my feelings through music. I told him I didn’t have the confidence to do it well, was worried the end result wouldn’t be very good, and was at a level where such things weren’t acceptable. But Bang PD said that wasn’t important. But if I was to do it, he promised I would do well, and he would find someone who would match well with me,” he recalled.

Bang Si-hyuk introduced Jin to BUMZU, whose real name is Kye Bum-ju. He and Jin hit it off right away, and so “Abyss” was born.

“BUMZU is a very bright and positive person who told me that he wanted to help me. He said, with positive strength, ‘Let’s try writing about many anxieties. If doesn’t work out, we can simply try again.’ That brightened me up. We talked about plenty of things and he was able to make a track for me that expressed my feelings as they were in that place. I used it as a vehicle to write about the things I wanted to say, and so ‘Abyss’ was finished.”

Here’s hoping Jin releases more self-written songs soon. He’s known for his visuals, but his vocal performance on “Epiphany” and all the hard work he put into “Abyss” prove he’s not just a pretty face. He’s a deep thinker and talented musician who deserves every bit of success he’s had—both as a member of BTS, and as a solo star in his own right.