We Will Go to Mount Paektu

"We Will Go to Mount Paektu" is a 2015 North Korean light music song in praise of the country's leader, Kim Jong Un.[2][3]

"We Will Go to Mount Paektu"
Song by Moranbong Band
LanguageKorean
Released20 April 2015 (2015-04-20)
GenreLight music
Length4:03
Composer(s)U Jong-hi
Lyricist(s)Ri Ji-song
"We Will Go to Mount Paektu"
Chosŏn'gŭl
가리라 백두산으로
Revised RomanizationGarira Baekdusaneuro
McCune–ReischauerKarira Paektu sanŭro
[1]

The song is important politically, and its lyrics recount a highly symbolic trek onto Mount Paektu, important in North Korean propaganda, by Kim Jong Un.

The song is associated with the Moranbong Band but has been performed by other North Korean artists as well. Slovenian avant-garde group Laibach recorded an English-language cover version of the song and wanted to perform it in North Korea. Authorities of the country asked them to leave it out of their concert and the group complied.

Lyrics

Background

Songs had played an important part in the cult of personality of Kim Jong-un, whose succession of Kim Jong Il was accompanied by the song "Footsteps". Likewise, the purge of Jang Song-thaek, a major political event in Kim Jong Un's early career, was accompanied by "We Will Follow You Only". The release of "We Will Go to Mount Paektu" in turn coincided with soon-to-be-purged Minister of People's Armed Forces Hyon Yong-chol's visit abroad in Moscow.[2]

The lyrics of "We Will Go to Mount Paektu", by Ri Ji-song, were released in Rodong Sinmun on 20 April 2015. The lyrics recount Kim Jong Un's trek to Mount Paektu, important in North Korean propaganda and described as the "sacred mountain of the Sun that gives [the people] the spirit of victory" by the lyrics of the song.[2] The chorus of the song says:

The song took the center stage in Moranbong Band's concert on 28 April 2015.[2] The song became one of the biggest hits of 2015 in North Korea.[4] Other North Korean groups that have performed the song are the State Merited Chorus[5] and the Kim Il-sung Youth League Art Propaganda Squad.[6]

Laibach cover version

Slovenian avant-garde music group Laibach released an English-language cover version of the song.[7] The band intended to play their version for a live audience in North Korea as part of their Liberation Day tour there,[4][7] but North Korean officials censored them for having altered the song.[8] Ivo Saliger of the group told Rolling Stone:

We wanted to present three important and well-known Korean songs: "Honorable Live and Death," "Arirang" and "We'll Go to Mt. Paektu." In the end, their censors asked us to take out "Honorable" and "Mt. Paektu," because we had changed them too much from the originals, and they are extremely sensitive about their own culture.[9]

The row was apparently over the tempo of the song.[8] Norwegian director Morten Traavik, who arranged the tour, said:

Both 'Honorable' and 'Mount Paektu' are songs that have a special significance politically and ideologically in North Korea [...] When Laibach did their versions... the songs were no longer recognizable to [the censors]... They were worried that the audience would react negatively and think that Laibach was making fun of and disrespecting the Korean culture.[10]

See also

References
  1. Korhonen, Pekka (11 October 2015). "2015.10.11". Moranbong Band Discography. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  2. Cathcart, Adam (16 May 2015). "Purges, Baekdu, and the Moranbong Band: Data Points around General Hyon". Sino-NK. Translations by Steven Denney. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  3. "New Year Concert Given by Chongbong Band". Rodong Sinmun. 7 January 2016. Archived from the original on 28 April 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2016 – via KCNA Watch.
  4. Vincent, Alice (19 August 2015). "Who are Laibach, and why are they playing in North Korea?". The Telegraph. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  5. "DPRK State Merited Chorus Gives Performance for Guests of Honor in Khabarovsk". KCNA. 4 September 2015. Archived from the original on 24 January 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  6. "Events Held to Mark Day of the Shining Star (KJI Birthday)". North Korea Leadership Watch. 16 February 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  7. Morton, Elise (13 August 2015). "Slovenian band Laibach release North Korean cover". The Calvert Journal. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  8. Monroe, Alexei (16 September 2015). "The Great Divide: On Laibach In North Korea". The Quietus. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  9. Grow, Kory (25 August 2015). "Cannabis and 'The Sound of Music': What Laibach Learned in North Korea". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  10. Liu Yutong (December 2015). "Rocking the Boat". NewsChina Magazine. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
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