We were introduced to SUGA's alter ego, Agust D in 2016. He was this angry, rage-filled persona that bore a fire far from the youthful idyll of the coming-of-age story BTS was piecing together at the time.

While SUGA was accepting the uncertain future with open arms, Agust D demanded success. Even when they shared similarities in speaking about themes of anxiety and fear, SUGA did it with care and a flickering light of hope in his heart while Agust D held no restraint, spitting the truth with vicious candour and angst. 

In Agust D’s eponymous debut mixtape, he had something to prove, wanting to reject the claims that he’s forgotten his underground rap roots while still trying to validate his rising success in the world of K-pop. One side of the mixtape sees him boast that he’s taking over the world, that no one even compares to him, while the other has him grappling with depression and his insecurities as he tries to figure out his place in the world. He’s arrogant yet unsure of himself, expectant of only the best yet still finding his footing. 

Four years later, Agust D rides his pride high with the release of his sophomore mixtape D-2. Humble bragging without the humble, his unbashful confidence edges towards conceit (an idea he explores in the eminent music video for ‘Daechwita’) as everything he’s rapped about—a Billboard hit, reaching the top of the industry, and more—comes in arm’s reach. 

But, unlike his first mixtape, Agust D digs deeper, realising the burden of his past on the present and the fear he has for the future. The introspective record sees the rapper struggle with the realisation that your dreams lose their glittery glamour and lavish gravity once you get close to them, that his biggest enemies weren’t the haters that questioned his worth but rather himself, and that what he longed for was true freedom.

Today, we see the final chapter of this trilogy for Agust D, a sort of rebirth from the wrath of his beginnings.

His new album, D-DAY begins with an almost untroubled note: “Future’s gonna be okay,” he declares in his opening track—the most positive we’ve ever seen the rapper. While familiar tinges of existentialism and angst still run through the new record, Agust D hints at a new sense of freedom. 

You hear it in 'Haegum'—which refers to both a traditional Korean instrument (which you can make out throughout the song) and the Korean word for 'liberation'—where he questions conformity, capitalism, prejudice, and even YouTube. Delivered in the bubbling heat we know so well, Agust D spares no one as he breaks free from the shackles of society. 

In a similar way, 'Polar Night' criticises the social divide caused by righteousness and the notion of selective political correctness. While the rage-fueled 'HUH?', which features fellow BTS member j-hope, challenges the rumours and false accusations he's faced as a celebrity, as the question "What the sh** you know about me?" rings repeatedly. 

5 lessons to take away from BTS' SUGA's 'Road To D-DAY' documentary

D-DAY also sees a tender side to Agust D, one that was previously masked by fury and dread. In what is arguably his most revealing track yet, 'AMYGDALA', he breaks free from the pain and anger that haunted his past as he delves back into some of his most painful moments—from his mother's heart surgery to his shoulder injury to his father's liver cancer. He handles these topics with raw complexity, acknowledging that it's led him to the person he is today but also not hiding the hurt and trauma it has caused him. 

Even in 'Snooze', which features the revered Ryuchi Sakamoto and Korean rock act WOOSUNG of The Rose, Agust D is gentle and caring, unveiling the hardship that's lined his journey. “It might look like it was all flowers, but everywhere, foes," he echoes. In what he shares is his advice to aspiring artists, the track—along with 'SDL' and 'People Pt. 2', the latter of which features IU—is a comforting reminder that the future is worth pushing forward for. 

Agust D is unapologetic, callously himself. Whether it’s against the anger of his past or the contentedness in the uncertain future, the rapper has never shied away from speaking his truth, never holding back from what he believes, even when it’s not pretty. While he’s still as honest as ever, the rapper has come far from the brutal, arrogant, and dangerous persona we knew all those years ago.

D-DAY comes to an end with 'Life Goes On', Agust D's take on the heartwarming BTS hit. The track plays with the idea that things will fall apart and people will grow distant but even then, life goes on and that's a good thing—a perspective that circles back to the very beginning of the album. 

D-DAY is the light at the end of a dark tunnel, the conclusion to a chapter of healing from pain and searching for your place in the world.

Rich in both sound and story, it's a record that only SUGA's Agust D could have made, having gone through the gut-wrenching process of digging up the past, reliving heartache and misery, and questioning the complacency of his life today. 

Whether this is the end of Agust D is unclear, but the lessons he's imparted will live on forever. 

Listen to Agust D's D-DAY here.