A more metaphorical take on the 대취타 storyline

-a story of corruption of ideals, oppression rooted in hierarchy, toxicity of power, and ofcourse capitalism.

So I'll start by saying this whole wild spin-off of thought started with this amazing thread. If you haven't already, I recommend checking it out! & Special thanks to all the smart as h£ll ARMYs I draw from in my attached screenshots. https://twitter.com/shanxxvi/status/1263878874141650944

Although I agree with the overall characterization of tyrant vs rebel, I couldn't really understand it's connection to the lyrics or to Yoongi’s “documentation of [himself] from 2016 onwards.” (Billboard, 5/22)

So I pose the following to you: what if Agust D tyrant and Agust D rebel are the same person at different stages of this metaphorical cycle?

I’m going to argue that this isn't a story of a single tyrant & a single rebel, but instead a represention of the timeless cycle of the rebel who defeats the tyrant only to become the tyrant that will be defeated by the rebel & so on. A continued cycle of oppression & repression.

I’ll also explain why AgustD, the person, /may/ have chosen this storyline and the seesaw it /may/ represent in his life.

First, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the Tyrant & the Rebel have the same face & scar. Scars are used as an “identifiable feature.” If they were twins, or one was a doppelganger they would have the same face, but the same scar means: same history & same person.

First let’s take a look at our ‘2’ main characters. Tyrant AgustD as royalty and rebel AgustD as commoner are obvious enough, so i’ll be focussing on Tyrant AD as a once commoner and Rebel AD as soon to be royal, to show they share a past, present & unfortunately, future.

We start with rebel AD. He’s dressed simply enough, rather unnoticed by those around him (not counting jinkook hehe).

He’s clearly surrounded by loyal people. What’s interesting they’re drawn in by his attitude of underdog w/ arrogance & vision (attached), his pledge to remember where he comes from (a2), f the authority attitude*, & the value he ascribes to loyalty (a3)

* = Note from (a) we can see that it's unlikely imperial jade would belong to a rebel commoner, he must have stolen the Tyrant's keys, and rode donuts on his lot, to antagonize him enough to want to witness the Rebels execution up close (all part of the plan!)

He’s confident in his plan, knows there’s “nowhere higher.” He says “[attached],” his intention is clear, as a ruler. But before he’s even disposed of the tyrant, he says “all shit talk they got no game...Off with their heads.”

Up till now this is a line tyrant AD says, not rebel AD. This marks his change in power w/o a change in attitude. His act as savior is what ironically causes him to spiral.

We go back now and look at the Tyrant. He’s dressed lavishly, his accessories and prince’s garments marking him immediately as imperial.

It could be unintentional but his garments have a dragon with four toes. See the explanation below. This could mean nothing, but it could also play into a theory coming up. https://twitter.com/BTSARMY_Salon/status/1263856489476714496

He treats his subjects badly, bt this is surface level. What’s interesting is that despite looking like born nobility, his first line is “[a]" Followed by, “born in a ditch but rise up a dragon.” This character is from humble beginnings. Not the born aristocrat we were expecting

Despite the way he treats his people, he says “[a].” He sees himself as King Gwanghae (a2.) A pragmatic, capable & diplomatic leader, in place of the weak ruler before him. (Wiki, Gwanghaegun of Joseon) This view of himself must be who he once was.

The next extremely telling line in this same verse is [a]. This line could mean many things. First, rice chests are known for long term storage for grains and maybe even as a secret hiding place, so the line could mean he’s locked away his past to be forgotten.

The other thing this line could reference is the story of Prince Sado (a). Although heir, Prince Sado was considered mentaly unstable & abused his eunuchs & indiscriminately murdered ppl (sound familiar?) https://sidespin.kinja.com/historyspin-prince-sado-and-the-rice-chest-1166319273

Eventually the King deals with this by ordering his son be locked into a rice chest till death. The reference to prince Sado & that he uses this very specific line indicates that he didn’t just forget his past bt killed it. He killed who he once was, and what he once stood for

The only thing that remained in the mind of the Tyrant from his time as the Rebel was [a]. He failed to recognise that as his influence increased, his biased view and heavy hand had to be taken into account.

Bc he doesn’t, the valor of a rebel is transformed into the tyranny of a prince/king. Thus completes his transformation of a once “[tiger] pup” w/ ideals, loyal followers & a healthy disgust for authority to an abuser of power & a tyrant. A cycle of becoming the monster you hate.

How might this tie into the bigger picture of AD, the artist and person? And what's it's connection to the rest of the album?

I’ll start by saying I'm pulling from past quotes & his recent interviews w/ Billboard & Time bt at the end of the day I do /not/ know YG personally & can only give you my interpretation, so please keep this mind & do not accept this as fact or put words in his mouth.

We all know Min Yoongi, the person, is very aware of the downsides of capitalism, hierarchy, status and wealth but over these 4 years he’s found himself suddenly thrust to the top.

Somehow during his hard work he found himself moved from baepsae to the top of a system he once looked down on. There’s nothing wrong with a position at the top, per say, but as he says “[a]”

Daechwita’s story represents the cycle of a rebel defeating a tyrant only to lose his old perspective and become the tyrant he fought so long against and that will undoubtedly be defeated.

True to his word, AgustD rapping about his success and beginnings on top of this kind of a story, isn’t him flexing, it represents a tale of caution/a reminder to himself & a warning to others in power who abuse it & indulge in it’s toxicity.

You’ve become a king? “[Attached]” This is a message we hear repeated in his album. He’s saying, hold onto your glimpses of the ordinary (don’t bury your past in a rice chest),

Cr: @/btstills

don’t become numb to the people’s grievances or speak over them (see attached,) don’t let power overtake you, lest the cycle continue and your heart harden into a tyrant for the next rebel to shoot through.

Imo this track is Yoongi reflecting on the “monster,” once again. Now that he’s been sitting at the top for a while, w/ more responsibility than ever, & w/o falling into it’s jaws, he’s here to spook the little ones, reprimand the naughty ones & refresh the story in his mind.

Once again, I'm so sorry I couldn't post links to each tweet and had to ss, but if you want any of those links you search [keyword] from:handle or DM I'll happily send you anything!

Ty for reading this big girl I love this track and MV SO MUCH