"DNA" is a song recorded in two languages (Korean and Japanese) by South Korean boy band BTS. The Korean version was released on September 18, 2017, as the lead single from the band's fifth extended play Love Yourself: Her (2017) by Big Hit Entertainment. The Japanese version of the song was released on December 6, 2017, by Universal Music Japan as a triple A-side single album that included "Mic Drop" and a new, original song "Crystal Snow", both also in Japanese. Both versions were written by "Hitman" Bang, Supreme Boi, KASS, Suga, RM, Pdogg, with the latter of the six solely handling production. A "Pedal 2 LA" remix of the track appears on the band's third compilation album, Love Yourself: Answer (2018). An EDM and pop song, the lyrics talk about fate and love at first sight.
The song received generally favourable reviews from music critics, who praised its production, sound, and the band's musical direction. It was also likened to the works of Selena Gomez, Shawn Mendes and Avicii. Commercially, the Korean version of "DNA" debuted at number two on the Gaon Digital Chart and number one on the Billboard K-pop Hot 100. It has since sold over 2.5 million digital copies in South Korea as of February 2019. The song peaked at number 67 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and at number 90 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the band's first entry on both the charts. The Japanese version debuted and peaked at number one on the Oricon Singles Chart, becoming the 13th best-selling single of 2017 in Japan. The song was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ). "DNA" received several accolades, including a nomination for Song of the Year at the 15th Korean Music Awards and the 19th Mnet Asian Music Awards.
The music video was directed by YongSeok Choi and premiered simultaneously with the release of the song. The video features the band performing complex choreography in various CGI-enhanced settings. Following the release of Love Yourself: Her, BTS promoted the song with televised live performances on several South Korean music programs, including M Countdown, Music Bank, and Inkigayo. The band's US television debut performance of "DNA" at the 2017 American Music Awards received positive reviews from critics. It was also included on the setlist of their Love Yourself World Tour (2018–19).
Background and release Following the success of their third studio album Wings (2016), and its reissue You Never Walk Alone (2017), BTS embarked on their "Love Yourself" thematic series. On August 24, 2017, the band announced the release of their fifth extended play, Love Yourself: Her which formed the first chapter of the extended three-part series. "DNA" was announced as the lead single from the EP. The song was written by "Hitman" Bang, Supreme Boi, Kass, Suga, RM, and its producer Pdogg. It was engineered by Pdogg, Wooyeong Jeong and KASS, while mixing was handled by James F. Reynolds at Schmuzik Studios. BTS recorded the song at Big Hit Studios in Seoul, South Korea.
"DNA" was released for digital download and streaming in various countries by Big Hit on September 18, 2017, as the lead single from Love Yourself: Her. A "Pedal 2 LA" remix version of the track was recorded and subsequently included on the band's third compilation album, Love Yourself: Answer (2018). The original version also appears on that album. 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 "Mic Drop" 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
"DNA" has been characterised as an upbeat EDM and pop song. Some music journalists have noted elements of soft rock, hip hop and turbo-pop. In terms of musical notation, the song is composed in the key of C♯ minor, with a tempo of 130 beats per minute, and runs for 3:43. The modern electronic production consists of whistles, added bells, and acoustic guitar. It is driven by dynamic strings and a pulsating drum-line. Instrumentation for the song is provided by guitar, bass, keyboards, synthesizer, and drums. Band members RM, J-Hope and Jungkook provided backing vocals for the track, alongside KASS, Supreme Boi, Pdogg, and Lee Shinseong, while Tim Finn provided the bass vocals.
The song opens with a whistle hook glissando, which leads to an acoustic guitar loop. The beat introduced in the next section follows an accented four-on-the-floor rhythm pattern. The pre-chorus makes use of staccato guitar strums leading to an EDM-heavy drop. The chorus utilizes an instrumental breakdown composed of rising-falling synth-line over acoustic guitar, accompanied by heavy Auto-Tuned vocals. The titular phrase is chanted during the chorus. The song features "melodic" verses, "softer" vocal harmonies and "aggressive" raps from the band.
According to RM, "DNA" revolves around "the expression of a young, passionate love" that is "very different" from the band's previous releases. Lyrically, the song explores the theme of fate and love at first sight, through lines like: "I knew you from first sight/ As if we have been calling for each other/ The DNA in my veins tells me/ You're the one I’ve been searching for. It also delves into themes of science and religion comparing love to a mathematical formula and divine providence; "Our meeting is a mathematical formula/ Religious commandments, law of the universe." The lyrics further use cosmic and corporeal imagery to display the theme of universal love such as "From the day the universe was birthed/ Over the infinite centuries/ In our past lives and probably in our next too/ We are together eternally."
Critical reception
"DNA" received generally favourable reviews from music critics. Writing for Idolator, Jacques Peterson regarded the song as "fizzy, candy-coated EDM" and likened the acoustic guitars in the production to that of Swedish DJ Avicii. Peterson also wrote another article for the same publication where he praised the "musical bells and whistles" in the song's production which "completely transcends racial and language barriers for a truly global sound." Do-heon Kim from IZM praised the song's "detailed" production, labelling the track as a "moment of peak." Reviewing for Vulture, Dee Lockett stated that the song evolved the band's sound and was "unlike so many of the songs that made them an international phenomenon," calling it one of the better singles of the year." Billboards Tamar Herman appreciated the balance of "powerful EDM elements and softer harmonies" and likened the whistling to Selena Gomez's song, "Kill Em with Kindness" (2016). Caitlin Kelley, also of Billboard, cited the track as "one of those rare instances when a K-pop act's transmutation of their American influences was reflected back at the U.S. in full Technicolor."
In The Korea Herald, Dam-young Hong felt that the track displayed a new musical direction for the band as opposed to their signature hip-hop styles and wrote that the song "is a hint of the group's resolution that it will continue trying different musical approaches." Hyun-su Yim, also of The Korea Herald, acclaimed the song for its "whistled hook", "feather-light guitar riffs" and "generous use of the pop-drop." Elias Leight of Rolling Stone enjoyed the track, describing it as "a jauntily strummed pop tune." Reviewing for The New York Times, Jon Caramanica favoured the "shuddering club-music drops" in the production and also likened the guitar intro to that of Shawn Mendes. In another review for the same publication, Caramanica cited the song as a "peak hypercolor pop." Taylor Glasby from Clash magazine praised the track, calling it an "idiosyncratic earworm," which "struck a chord." Tamara Fuentes of Seventeen liked the song and deemed it as "fun and infectious." Writing for The Malaysia Star, Chester Chin shared a similar view, describing the track as a "livewire EDM banger." In a mixed review for Spin, Monique Melendez regarded the song as an "outlier" as compared to the band's previous songs but panned the use of heavy Auto-Tune.
Accolades "DNA" became the first-place winner on various South Korean weekly music programs. The song won a total of 10 music show awards including a "triple crown" (three consecutive wins) on both Music Bank and Inkigayo. The song also achieved five consecutive Melon Weekly Popularity Awards due to its substantial success on digital platforms. Billboard included "DNA" in their lists of greatest boy band songs of all time and 100 best songs of 2017. The song received several accolades, most notably Best Music Video at the 2017 Melon Music Awards and a nomination for Song of the Year at both the 15th Korean Music Awards and the 19th Mnet Asian Music Awards. In 2023, "DNA" became one of the first K-pop songs (along with Blackpink's "Whistle") to be inducted into Korea World Music Culture's Hall of Fame.
+Awards and nominations for "DNA"Award-giving bodyYearCategoryResult Melon Music Awards 2017 Best Dance Best Music Video Mnet Asian Music Awards Mwave Global Fans' Choice Best Dance Performance – Male Group Qoo10 Song of the Year Korean Music Awards 2018 Song of the Year Best Pop Song Radio Disney Music Awards Best Song That Makes You Smile Annual Soompi Awards Song of the Year Fuse Video of the Year Best Choreography Korea World Music Culture Hall of Fame2023Hall of Fame
+Music program awards (10 total) Program Date The Show September 26, 2017 Show Champion September 27, 2017 M Countdown September 28, 2017 October 5, 2017 Music Bank September 29, 2017 October 6, 2017 October 13, 2017 Inkigayo October 1, 2017 October 8, 2017 October 15, 2017
Commercial performance "DNA" debuted at number two on South Korean's Gaon Digital Chart for the chart issue dated September 17–23, 2017, and sold 224,178 digital units in its first week of release. The song remained in the top five for four consecutive weeks before falling out of the top ten for the week of October 15, 2017. "DNA" was the sixth best-performing song of the September 2017 issue of the Gaon Monthly Digital Chart based on digital sales, streaming, and background music (instrumental track) downloads. It eventually became the 56th and 22nd best-performing song of 2017 and 2018 respectively in South Korea. As of February 2019, "DNA" has sold over 2.5 million digital units in the country. Additionally, the song peaked at number one on the Billboard K-pop Hot 100 and at number five on the Billboard Japan Hot 100.