HOPE ON THE STREET VOL.1

The record

HOPE ON THE STREET VOL.1 is a j-hope special album, released on 29 March 2024 with six tracks. The title track is ‘NEURON (with 개코, 윤미래)’.

The album introduction says the record takes street dance, the root of his artistry, as its subject. Four new songs are joined by a solo version of on the street (with J. Cole) and a dance mix of ‘What if…’ from Jack In The Box. j-hope wrote on every track, and the record was made alongside a documentary series of the same name.

By the same introduction, the title track’s ‘NEURON’ names both the cell that passes a stimulus on and the dance crew j-hope belonged to before his debut, and it sounds the same as the ‘NEW RUN’ the song repeats.

Reviews

IZM’s Son Ki-ho, reviewing the title track, wrote that where j-hope dug for his own roots in dance he found the nourishment of 2000s hip hop, and that with it he is ready to run back toward where he started. The same review said the vocoder-wrapped vocal samples, the keyboard sound and the plain chorus that gets a head nodding realise the period thoroughly, and that Gaeko and Yoonmirae, over the barest instrumentation, each show with their own rapping why they have been called the best from that time to this. It closes by calling the song plainly a work of conscience.

NME’s Rhian Daly gave the record four stars. “That unbreakable bond with dance fills ‘Hope On The Street’, the six-track soundtrack album for his docuseries,” she wrote, and: “Much like the docuseries it accompanies, ‘Hope On The Street’ takes something of a global approach. You can feel that in the genres it runs through and the collaborators it collects.” The review closes: “‘Hope On The Street’ is bright and brilliant and a tantalising reminder of its creator’s multi-faceted talents.”

Clash marked it seven out of ten. “Released alongside a docu series that showcases j-hope’s influences and artistry as both a dancer, and as a musician, the project provides an insight into the artist’s past and his reflection on his career so far,” the outlet wrote, and: “With a long list of significant featuring artists, ‘Hope On the Street Vol.1’ pays homage to j-hope’s musical influences by working with pioneers of the genres.”

Among the tracks

Of the closing ‘NEURON (with 개코, 윤미래)’, Clash wrote: “In true j-hope fashion, he goes all out on final track ‘Neuron’. Featuring two of the greatest Korean rap influences, Yoon Mirae and Gaeko, of the group Dynamic Duo, j-hope pays homage to his Korean roots. Utilising an early 2000s hip-hop beat, the three rappers join forces to give a message of love, highlighting the importance of family and peace.”

The same outlet wrote of ‘i don’t know (with 허윤진 of LE SSERAFIM)’: “Reminiscent of something from j-hope’s 2018 project ‘Hope World’, ‘i don’t know’ perfectly encapsulates the modern pop song. A blend of glossy synths and a throbbing bass, the track depicts a hopeless romantic fantasising about the night to come.” NME put the same song first: “On album highlight ‘I Don’t Know’, that attitude grows even stronger.”

Of ‘i wonder… (with Jung Kook of BTS)’, Clash wrote that “their relationship is highlighted in the lyrics as they converse about the importance of love and sentimentality”. On ‘lock / unlock (with benny blanco, Nile Rodgers)’ the same review said j-hope enlists Nile Rodgers and Benny Blanco to combine Rodgers’s signature funk with his own polished vocals.