NCT 127’s Taeyong teams up with EXO’s Baekhyun on SoundCloud drop ‘Monroe’

K-pop stars are increasingly using streaming platform SoundCloud to release experimental tracks, and the duo are the latest to do so

The vibrant Monroe, its tune inspired by Marilyn Monroe and mixing jazz, R&B and pop sounds, blends the pair’s voices in a song about love

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Taeyong of NCT 127 dropped a new track with Baekhyun of Exo, called Monroe, on SoundCloud this week. They are the latest in a long line of K-pop stars to drop a track on the streaming platform. Photo: Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images

Published: 11:45pm, 4 May 2021Updated: 10:44am, 5 May 2021

K-pop stars are increasingly experimenting with their sounds on streaming platform SoundCloud. Boy band members are especially using the site to share music beyond their group work.

As the clock struck midnight in Seoul on May 3, new song Monroe by Taeyong of NCT 127 and featuring Exo member Baekhyun, dropped on the music site. The pair work together in SuperM, a group featuring artists from across South Korean company SM Entertainment’s boy band roster.

The Marilyn Monroe-inspired tune leans into jazz, R&B, and typical pop sounds to create a vibrant tune that blends the pairs’ voices as they sing about classic love tropes and passion.

TY · TY x BAEKHYUN - Monroe

Monroe is the fifth original song Taeyong has shared through his SoundCloud account since he opened it in mid-March. He also uploaded a remix. Since being uploaded, Monroe has been streamed over 800,000 times; his other songs each have anywhere from 1 to nearly 4.5 million streams.

Taeyong is one in a long line of K-pop boy band members who have used the platform to share solo projects. Others include Got7’s JB, Exo’s Chanyeol, Stray Kids’ producer trio 3racha, Day6‘s Jae, NCT and WayV’s Kun, Pentagon’s Kino, and Monsta X’s Joohoney.

Far fewer female K-pop stars use SoundCloud, although soloists such as Baek Yerin and some members of girl groups Lovelyz and Dia have accounts.

Baekhyun of Exo shares vocals with Taeyong of NCT 127 on their new SoundCloud release Monroe. Photo: THE FACT/Imazins via Getty Images