NEWJEANS’ cover of Beautiful Restriction became the theme song for A Time Called You due to its ‘repeat listening’ quality. This fact was revealed by director Kim Jin-Won in an interview with Netflix.
Soon after production began, debates were held over which song would be the theme for the time travel romance.
A Time Called You centers around Jun-Hee (Jeon Yeo-Been), who is grieving the death of her boyfriend Yeon-Jun (Ahn Hyo-Seop). One day, she plays a mysterious cassette tape that transports her to 1998. She suddenly wakes up in the body of a high school girl named Min-Ju. The confused ‘Min-Ju’ then meets Si-Heon, who looks exactly like Yeon-Jun, and their friend In-Gyu (Kang Hoon).
The production team reviewed over 100 songs for the theme. A key question was: “What kind of song would Min-Ju listen to over and over again?” They eventually decided upon NEWJEANS’ cover of Kim Jong-Seo’s Beautiful Restriction.
Director Kim described the song as “something that effectively captures both the romance and the time-travel element of the story”.
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A star-studded OST lineup
A variety of covers and new songs are included in the OST for A Time Called You. The top priority was to select songs that would reflect the temporal context of 1998. At the same time, the songs had to capture the general mood of the series and the emotional arcs of the characters.
New Age music was used for non-lyrical scores, as the genre was popular in the 1990s. With the characters traveling between the past and the present, A Time Called You uses covers of old pop songs from the past to evoke nostalgia, while using original music for the present to ensure a fully immersive experience for the viewers.
A star-studdest list of musicians contributed to the soundtrack. These include Kim Min-seok of MeloMance (Never Ending Story), Lim Kim (Already One Year), Sondia (Love, That Common Word), and Hong Dae-kwang (Between Love and Friendship). All of them covered classic Korean pop records.
A variety of new songs have also been included to move the hearts of viewers. These include Baek A’s Melody, capturing the youthful energy of the main characters. Other songs are Kei’s Good-bye, where the powerful yet wistful vocals stand out; and Hong Issac’s Be With You, offering the masculine but nuanced vocal expressions.
A Time Called You premieres on Netflix on Sept 8, 2023.
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