SUGA | Agust D Released D-Day and Currently on Tour

On Friday, April 21, BTS member SUGA released his first official solo album D-DAY under his other alias Agust D. Three years after the release of his mixtape D-2, D-Day will serve as the conclusion of Agust D’s trilogy.

D-DAY is jam-packed with hip-hop music in Agust D’s signature hues. The album comprises a total of 10 tracks: lead tune “Haegeum,” pre-release single “People Pt.2 (feat. IU)” published on April 7, “D-Day,” “HUH?! (feat. j-hope),” “AMYGDALA,” “SDL,” “Polar Night,” “Interlude: Dawn,” “Snooze (feat. Ryuichi Sakamoto, Woosung of The Rose),” and “Life Goes On.”

D-Day’s theme is ‘freedom.’ It muses on the significance of focusing completely on ‘oneself’ and the ‘now’ in today’s culture, where information pours at unbelievable speeds. Each song emphasizes the importance of focusing on the present rather than regrets from the past or anxiety for the future. SUGA contributed to the songwriting of all tracks as well as the full production of D-DAY, demonstrating his unrivaled ability as a musician and producer.

The main single “Haegeum” puts a Korean traditional string instrument haegeum sound on a hip-hop track. The word ‘haegeum’ has two literal meanings: the name of the instrument and the word ‘freedom.’ The song addresses the issue of freedom for individuals who appear to live freely but, in reality, are subjected to societal constraints in their daily lives.

The official music video for “Haegeum” features noir-style images with intriguing narrative and dramatic aspects that add tension to the scenario. SUGA’s acting in the music video is accentuated by his double role. The video closes with an unexpected twist when the two characters from the concept photographs ‘Being’ and ‘Exister’ confront each other.

On April 26, 27, and 29, SUGA launched his solo global tour SUGA | Agust D TOUR ‘D-DAY,’ with two nights in Belmont Park and one night in Newark. The whole U.S. tour was sold out early, with about 43,000 people attending the events at USB Arena and Prudential Center over three nights. 

Each night, SUGA delivered a show-stopping performance, using a variety of unique elements to tell his story as both SUGA and Agust D. He confidently performed music from his solo discography.

 
The opening VCR showed SUGA and Agust D at various points, culminating with SUGA resting on a rainy street. Then he arrived on stage, being carried by the dancers, bringing the VCR scene to life. The event began with “Haegeum,” the lead single from his latest solo album D-DAY, followed by “Daechwita,” “Agust D,” and “give it to me,” which immediately warmed up the crowd. He told the crowd, “Tonight, you will see many things I’ve never shown you, as SUGA of BTS.” SUGA performed an acoustic version of “Trivia: Seesaw,” as well as “SDL,” “People,” and “People Pt.2,” demonstrating a softer aspect of his music. Then he switched it up with “Moonlight,” “Burn It,” “Interlude: Shadow,” a medley of “BTS Cypher PT.3: KILLER” and “BTS Cypher 4,” and “UGH!,” “Ddaeng,” and “HuH?!”

SUGA also played the piano for Agust D’s rendition of “Life Goes On.” Before singing “Snooze,” SUGA paid tribute to his role model, the late Ryuichi Sakamoto, who appears in the song. He concluded the evening by staging “Polar Night” and “AMYGDALA.” Closing the first night, SUGA said, “I had a lot of thoughts while preparing for this tour. I was worried and excited at the same time. But right before I got on the stage—I’ve been to a lot of stadiums—I didn’t feel nervous at all [this time]. [I thought to myself] Let’s just show them everything I prepared. Today is the first day of the tour, and there are more shows left. Please enjoy the show until the end,” wrapping up the show with “Intro : NEVER MIND” and “The Last.

SUGA: Road to D-DAY, SUGA’s first solo documentary film, was also released globally on April 21 via Disney+ and Weverse. The film, which stars SUGA, follows SUGA on his journey as a musician and producer as he travels across the world in search of new musical inspiration. He also announced that he would be hosting a special in-person fan event called ‘D-DAY: Movie Night’ on May 20, in celebration of his album release. ‘D-DAY: Movie Night’ takes the concept of a film preview, inviting 350 fans for a special stage and talk session on behind-the-scenes stories of the album making and more. 

SUGA | Agust D TOUR ‘D-DAY’ IN U.S. will continue to be held in: Rosemont, IL; Los Angeles, CA; Oakland, CA until May 17. Then, the tour will hit Asia: Jakarta, Indonesia; Bangkok, Thailand; Singapore; Kanagawa, Japan; and Seoul, South Korea until June 25.