So, this is an old music video. It was released in 2013 actually. I watched it the day it came out. It appeared to have so much depth and symbolism and it really made me excited. I noticed a lot of people in the comments of the video referring to one article in particular, explaining the meaning behind it. It wasn’t an official release, just someones speculation. But this article became very popular and most people accepted those interpretations as solid. But when I read it… I was disappointed. I thought the music video must have more to it than that. The interpretation was disjointed and neglected to address a lot of imagery from the video, and it addressed the symbolism without clear direction or coherency. So earlier today I revisited the video and really fleshed it out from my point of view. Combining my media student knowledge with my pretentious art student ability to pull meaning out of nothing; here is my full interpretation of G-Dragon’s ‘Coup D’etat.’

We open on GD crouched over looking pretty awful. He is facing a wall and we see his hand pick up a red stone. Red being the symbolic colour of revolution. We will come back to this later.

Next, and throughout the video we see a swinging pendulum/ wrecking ball with GD trapped inside a large tower. The ball smashes against the walls, and that’s about it. To be honest I think this is the only shot in the video that could be interpreted anyway you want and it would still be correct in the context of my interpretation. A pendulum representing the passing of time as GD gets older, a huge weight hanging over him swinging around causing damage by its momentum, and my favourite, the wrecking ball trying to break the walls of GD’s tower prison confinement so that he can escape. Either way, it works in this context. So lets get into the chronological order of what is happening in the video.

Child GD is looking at a large stone structure with his right hand over his heart, suggesting that it is a tomb or memorial. We cut to current GD in the same position. This memorial is symbolic of an ideal death or the ideal memory of him. One of two death motifs in the video. This is how many people would like to be remembered. Both him and his child self have a red glove over their hearts, and are at the same tomb. Suggesting he still has the same desires for himself that he did as a child.

Next we cut to women searching around behind trees. They are blindfolded, but they are dressed in red; the colour of revolution. They are free. But their blindfolds suggest they are looking around blindly and not really seeing. They could represent the greater public, his fans inclusive. They do not really see him they are just looking and searching. This is particularly relevant when it comes to female k-pop fans, particularly in S. Korea, with the issue of sasaengs and people just seeing what they want to see, not the real person underneath the idol exterior. GD enters the frame dressed in white, but there is a red patch over his heart. This could symbolise his desire for revolution, as well as heartache for those who cannot see him as he truly is.

This leads into a shot of him at the ticket booth, drawing parallels to his music career. It shows the outside of the booth but when we switch to a shot from the inside, it becomes clear that there is a lot more hidden than once thought. Recording equipment and microphones. People are swarming all over the booth, but they are unaware of the inner workings. On their end, its just about a concert ticket or an end product, but for GD there’s a whole other hidden process involved which they may not feel sympathy for.

Next, GD is sheltering under a tree. A woman stands in the background, another woman behind her, and it appears to be more people lining up in the distance. The women are sheltered by umbrellas and are holding chainsaws. This represents the faceless, sheltered people who could destroy GD’s shelter and growth. Netizens perhaps? A person that could be involved in a scandal? It could be a range of people, but the idea is that they have all the power to destroy his livelihood, his shelter, his image, his safety, the tree. And they are lining up to do so.

After that, GD is sitting at a desk while money cooks around him. He is not cooking it himself, it is cooking as he sits there. This could illustrate the nature of an idol life, they are the image but the money is made because other people cook it and prepare it. The idea of cooking money could also symbolise the perpetual income he has now, and he just has to sit there relaxing and money will cook. There is a lot in this video that you could argue is just an aesthetic thing, such as what I am about to speculate on, but I think it actually ties in: The money is covered in black liquid. I would say the black liquid represents GD and his own emotions and being. He earned the money by giving away parts of himself, such is the life of a musician or indeed any kind of artist. This black liquid idea ties into something else later so sit tight.

Next, GD is in a dressing room, siting in a chair. But he his twitching and writhing, indicative of his discomfort for his image or the idea of an idol; reflected in the nature of the dressing room. The wrecking ball from the tower is also hanging above him, but it is perfectly still. This could illustrate how when he is not trying to break out of his constraints (as the wrecking ball was in the tower), he is just an idol in the dressing room, doing as he is told, and being insanely uncomfortable while being forced to do so.

Next are some very cool alternating shots. GD stands in front of a large image of eyes, but he is blindfolded. Shots are being fired at him, but are just hitting the wall. GD is unable to see the shots. The shots being fired could symbolise all that comes GD’s way, particularly in regard to criticisms, comments, opinions, scandals etc. But he does not deal with them, the huge eyes in the back do. I believe this represents the higher power of his company. In K-pop, record labels are a big deal, and the company handles a lot of the work for the idol, as well as making decisions for them. GD is unable to see, and thus has to trust the company to handle these things right. So in the end, he is an image, being controlled by something larger. But this is inter-cut with him in his ‘revolution ninja garb.’ Now he is covered, but his eyes aren’t. He can see, and the shots have stopped firing. Now there are many faces on the wall behind him, he is attracting a lot of attention, but now he is in control of himself and the large, overseeing eyes have gone.

Next we see GD sitting while blindfolded reporters desperately search around for him. Pretty self explanatory here; criticising the media and the paparazzi. Their desperation, their blind ambition to get whatever piece of GD they can. This is inter-spliced with the second death motif in the video. GD laying in a puddle surrounded by pecking crows and bugs. This is the current state of GD. The ideal tomb/ memorial situation that he wished for as a child and still wishes for in his heart is not here, instead he is being picked apart and consumed. Criticising the entertainment industry most likely. taking what they want from him with disregard for him as a person, as opposed to respecting and celebrating him, as it was in the tomb situation. Obvious assimilation between the crows and the reporters.

Now this is where the black liquid comes back in. The next scene has a wall of GD face masks, crying black liquid. This image was the symbol of his ‘Heartbreaker’ album; his first solo endeavor. It is commonly known, however, that GD looks back on this album regretfully and wishes to separate himself from it. The album, though praised, was an image that was decided for him. The faces on the wall all look the same. It wasn’t really him or his artistry, but more a network of people from his company and the K-pop world pulling the strings, deciding his image and what was best. The little black teardrop is the image of the album and what was reflected of GD in it. But this mass produced image has momentum, and the small back tear begins soaking his image and multiplying. This image is now widespread and continues to build on itself, as reflected in the tear. But GD is starting his revolution now, he takes the Heartbreaker mask off his face and underneath we see the real GD, drenched in the black. All that he is is shown now that he has shed that image, and he breaks the mask. This black liquid is tied to the black liquid on the money, being symbolic of GD and the emotions and parts of himself.

GD strolls through the ruins of himself, pretty self explanatory.

We return to the hunched figure from the beginning. He slowly picks up the red rock and hurls it toward the wall, breaking it. Then he rips off the old ‘skin’ as bright light shines through the wall. Again, quite self explanatory regarding revolution and rebirth.

Finally, we close on a shot of GD in his ‘revolution ninja garb,’ this time entirely in red. He is free and liberated. There are large red flags flying, again, a symbol of revolution.

So that’s my interpretation of it. Late, I know, but I didn’t fully agree with any of the other ones out there and I think this description makes the most sense in the context of the video. The symbolism in the video is consistent, with the black liquid, the wrecking ball, the red, etc. Also everything in the video ties together and builds upon itself. The idea being that GD is criticising the life of an idol; the fans, the companies, the higher powers, the media, the image, all of it. So he aims for a revolution, where he is liberated and able to reinvent himself. And this video is stunning. Like, really beautiful, everything looks absolutely amazing. As a media student, I’m a bit jealous.