Revisited: Seungri's What Can I Do

I know this song dropped months ago, but during its release, I was too busy with work and other things, and so only heard VVIP (the title track).

Fast forward a few months, and revisiting YG Entertainment tracks, I came across this little gem, which also served as VVIP's follow-up.

My thoughts on the track after the break.

The first thing I found interesting was Seungri's voice. While he may not have the smoothness of Daesung, or the high and lows of G-Dragon and T.O.P respectively, Seungri's voice is a producer's dream. He is just able to work with almost any kind of sound, without sounding dull to the point of "sing-talking" or tuned to the point of "squeakiness".

He just has, in my description "a utility player voice, sounding good with anything", largely like SNSD's Seohyun or T-Ara's Hyomin.

There are hints of vocal processing in the sound, but it never comes across as heavy handed, distorting the voice or taking away from the song. Instead, it just serves as a fine addition to the singing. In fact, if you were not listening closely, it could come across as natural. That, is the mark of good auto tune, adding to the song without dominating.

The tune also deserves plaudits. While there are many individual sounds in it, they all come together to form one cohesive, and hummable tune. None of the elements dominate each other and blend well, but they can still be told apart and heard individually. It's such that one can split the sound apart mentally and hear the music threads on their own, or just enjoy the song as a full package.

Even the "dance break" also flows nicely, instead of sounding like a jarring break in other songs. And finally the use of synthesizers is the best I've heard in a long time, blending in to sound sophisticated, and not cheap and jarring.

If you enjoy your k-pop with some of the Western influences and a more developed sound, this track certainly is one to check out. Seungri fans would also be impressed at the maturity the Big Bang maknae shows, which is not forced, nor trying too hard (which is what Strong Baby could be at times), just a natural evolution that comes with age.