Good Luck Getting Tomorrow X Together's '9 And Three Quarters (Run Away)' Out Of Your Head

It's been seven months since Tomorrow X Together made their anticipated debut, and right now the K-pop rookies are continuing their whimsical coming-of-age journey with new single "9 and Three Quarters (Run Away)" — an energetic song that streams common teenage angst into something magical and exceptionally catchy.


"9 and Three Quarters (Run Away)" is all about breaking free from everyday burdens and running away to a special place where you could forget your troubles and be yourself alongside your best friends. But even more so than that, it's a song about the magic that occurs once you're together. If "Crown" tapped into the emotional and physical pangs of adolescence — the uncertainty and the abundance of feelings — then "9 and Three Quarters (Run Away)" refers to finding strength in sacred moments shared among friends.


Of course, there's still a fair quantity of angst, moreover to the heavy bass line and explosive hook. "It feels like everybody's happy although me," Beomgyu sings. "It hurts more any time Whenever I smile than Once I cry." Although these moments subside, as they so often do as soon as you have companions to weather the storm with — or give a Band-Aid as soon as you need one. "In moments like those / Any time tears fill your eyes / Hold my hand tight," Yeonjun sings. "Should we run away?"


And while the lyrics and visuals make obvious references to the magical world of Harry Potter — summoning spells, departing trains (bibbidi bobbidi!), Rewinding clocks, wands, and the titular Platform 9 3⁄4 — the Boy Who Lived is never referenced by name. (Though, J.K. Rowling, you are right now obligated to stan Tomorrow X With each other) The magic in question, although, isn't so literal. It's a feeling, one that TXT first evoked in "Crown" with the lyric, "Your existence changes my world like magic."


At their media showcase in Seoul on Monday morning (October 21), leader Soobin mentioned the song captures the "magical moments that we have together."


"9 and Three Quarters (Run Away)" is the lead single off the group's first studio album, The Dream Chapter: Magic. The album is an eclectic mix of genres, yet it's one that feels distinctly TXT. From the sentimental R&B of "20cm," to the charismatic swagger of "Angel or Devil," and the fizzy pop of "Poppin' Star," Magic diversifies the group's sound without fully losing their signature energy and stylistic flourishes. It also further establishes members Soobin, Yeonjun, Beomgyu, Taehyun, and Huening Kai as versatile performers who can sing, rap, and dance. Case in point, it's that playfulness and their willingness to try just about anything that makes the young categorize jump out among their peers. (The spell-binding narrative cooperates with the too.)


Still, as Big Hit Entertainment's second-ever boy categorize — the initial being global superstars BTS — TXT know that all eyes are on them and their second release. "It could be a lie if I mention I don't have any pressure," Beomgyu mentioned at their media showcase. "There is pressure, however it also gives us driving force to create harder."


"We are aware BTS and Big Hit gave us big wings," Soobin added. "In categorize to fly high with the wings, we require a strong body. That's why we are preparing hard."


Perhaps that's why any time asked if they had their own Platform 9 3⁄4, somewhere special they go to escape the world for a little, Soobin thought of a recording studio indoors in the business. "I can be by myself," he mentioned, "watch movies, or write song lyrics and listen to music and sing." However the most "precious place" of all for this formidable fivesome is the practice room. "It's where we spend the most time," he said.


Watching Tomorrow X With each other perform "9 and Three Quarters (Run Away)" for the opening time — all "precise movements and raw energy," as Yeonjun likes to mention — and it's clear that all that time has paid off. And that dynamism and teamwork is exactly what makes them so magical.