Sitting on the Lodges’ bus — inside the second row on the left — the day before the first snow of fall, I found myself reminiscing about a secretly-coveted school bus seat: the heater seat. It is a small luxury I had completely forgotten. On Oct. 30, after 10 long years, I felt the bliss of the heater seat once again. I went to class severely underprepared; my feet were freezing in my fuzzy socks and slides. After walking 10 minutes to the bus stop and waiting an additional 10, the hot air thawing my popsicle-toes felt absolutely luxurious.
Life is made better by little unexpected luxuries like coming home to a package delivery, finding a vintage pair of Levi’s at the thrift store, treating yourself to a nice meal after payday, staying in bed past nine on Sunday morning or discovering new music.
“Being” by Tabber (feat. Yerin Baek) is like the heater seat on the bus. From the funky synth bass to the saxophone, the instrumentals create a decadent backing track for Tabber and Yerin Baek’s rich vocals. This song is sexy; it embodies luxury.
Tabber is a South Korean rapper who debuted in 2020 with Deep End Mix Tape. “Being” is part of his first album, Madness Always Turns to Sadness, which was released Oct. 25, 2023. Tabber produces his music under DEAN’s indie label, you.will.knovv, along with R&B artist Rad Museum.
Unlike his popular songs “007 (feat. Syd)” and “Honey!,” Tabber relies on his vocals rather than rapping on “Being.” His deeper, raspier voice, harmonized with Baek’s high vocals, raises goosebumps. As the most listened to song off his new album, it could grow to one of his most popular songs to date.
And to the haters of K-pop: Korean music extends far beyond BTS and TWICE. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to expand your music horizons. Tabber is an artist worth listening to. “Being” might just be that little unexpected luxury you need.
