Review: Do Hanse - Take Over

The Produce franchise, despite being entirely rigged by Mnet, led to the success of many minor and underrated K-Pop girl groups and boy bands. One of the many groups to rise to prominence due to the show, Produce X 101, would be Victon. Member Han Seungwoo already had a successful solo debut, and now rapper Do Hanse throws his ring into the competition.

Most idol solo rapper debuts have a habit of being a little stale. A few lines on how the member is the coolest ever or something, a trap EDM beat, probably with repeating samples, along with a feature from a prominent vocalist when the song is getting stale.

However, Hanse has more creative control over his material. Even though he did not produce Take Over (he wrote the lyrics, though), his mark is all over the song. He clearly has taken inspiration from G-Dragon, as have many celebrities over the year. The thing here is that Hanse is clearly taking inspiration from G-Dragon's now-famous willingness to experiment.

From moment one, Hanse is willing to rap at full speed. Hanse's rap flows are nothing new, even most of Victon's weaker solo singles have shown sparks or moments of great ability. However, here is the main focus, and is able to play with it. His opening flow is quite fun, pulling from a variety of styles of rap.

There is no pre-chorus in the song, just a mention of the title phrase before we are thrown into the chorus. While this is jarring, it fits well in the track, which has set from moment one that it is a little left-of-center.

The beating and living heart of Take Over is the chorus, driven by an old-school, 2000s, EDM loop. It is noisy, loud, and fits in perfectly. It is chaotic, messy, yet strangely composed. Hanse's ad-libs over it are quite fun, and make sure that it is never stale, and rather invigorating. This is new for idol rap, and it works great.

The second-verse blitz is quite amazing, slowing down for a self-aware attack at idol rap genericness while speeding up for Hanse to show why he is better than the rest. We are then dropped in the chorus once again, with nothing but the sheer thrill guiding the song at the moment.

The end of the song opts for a more ambient and moody atmosphere, which plays off well with Hanse's gritty, cut, and splintering refrains, along with the slamming EDM beat. This drives the song to the outset of an over-the-top finale, before abruptly ending. Over here, this actually works great. This song refuses to play by the rules, and each moment shows that.

Rating: 8.5/10

Image Source: Rolling Stone