Having left to complete his military service on April 18, 2023 j-hope, a member of the group BTS, reveals his new album HOPE ON THE STREET VOL.1 released on March 29. In the handwritten letter shared by his agency BigHit Entertainment/HYBE, he mentions the album's theme of “good music makes a good dance.” For this album, which reflects his artistic roots, j-hope participated in the writing of all the songs. This opus also offers great collaborations as evidenced by the title song “NEURON,” an old-school hip-hop song from the 2000s that highlights his collaboration with Gaeko and YoonMirae.

HOPE ON THE STREET VOL.1 was revealed through several teasers of the eponymous documentary which includes six episodes, the first of which was released on March 28. It features j-hope during interviews and sincerely delivers his love for dance, but also his feelings and reflections experienced since the start of his artistic journey. “Just dance” says j-hope, an expression that he likes and which characterizes him. Returning to the meaning of dance in his life, he expresses that without dance, he would not be j-hope, but a different person.

This documentary inspired by street dance takes j-hope around the world, from Osaka, Japan to Paris in France, but also to New York in the United States, as well as Seoul and Gwangju. Furthermore, the album presents two versions: PRELUDE GWANGJU & SEOUL and INTERLUDE OSAKA & NEW YORK & PARIS. The album's photobook respects the documentary spirit well: it contains interviews with j-hope written in English and Korean. Dance photos with different styles and dancers enrich the pages.

J-hope – HOPE ON THE STREET VOL.1 – TRACKLIST

01. “on the street” (solo version)

02. “i wonder..." (with Jungkook of BTS)

03. “lock / unlock” (with benny blanco, Nile Rodgers)

04. “i don't know” (with HUH YUNJIN of LE SSERAFIM)

05. “what if…” (dance mix with JINBO the SuperFreak)

06. “NEURON” (with Gaeko, Yoonmirae)

The latest title track “NEURON” depicts his musical roots, motivations, and expectations. NEURON is also the name of the first dance group j-hope belonged to before his BTS debut. “i wonder…” a collaboration featuring Jungkook, also a member of BTS, is an electro-punk song for ARMY. “i don’t know” adopts a house genre with the participation of HUH YUNJIN from the group LE SSERAFIM.

To celebrate the release of this new album, a “HOPE ON THE STREET”POP-UP store will open from March 30 to April 5 in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. It’s a space dedicated to the universe and passion of j-hope where a dance workshop will be offered in which visitors can participate.

Edited by Vivian N.