We can’t skip over Lee Chanhyuk’s masterpiece any longer — especially now that the MV for “Vivid Lala Love” is nominated for Best Music Video at this year’s MAMA Awards.

Released back in July, the song is a dazzling mix of color, irony, and philosophy — a vivid canvas of what it means to live and love fully, even through sadness.

It’s experimental, emotional, and unmistakably Chanhyuk — sharp lyrics hidden behind a playful, surreal tone.

Let’s take a look at this poignant line:

“진실로 사랑했던 내 친구여

왜 이리 좋았던 날에 슬퍼했었나”

“My friend whom I truly loved,

Why were you sad on such a beautiful day?”

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💬 Key Phrases to Learn:

1️⃣ 진실로 사랑했던 – truly loved

• 진실로 – truly, sincerely

• 사랑하다 – to love

• -았/었-던 – past modifier meaning “used to / once did”

→ Literally: “(the one whom I) truly loved.”

💡 Grammar: V-았/었-던 + N is used for memories — actions or states that used to be true.

→ 좋아했던사람 → “someone I liked (in the past).”

2️⃣ 내 친구여 – my friend (vocative)

• 내 친구 – my friend

• -여 – an old or poetic ending used when addressing someone directly (like “O my friend”).

→ Common in lyrics and poetry for dramatic, emotional tone.

3️⃣ 왜 이리 좋았던 날에 – why, on such a good day…

• 왜 – why

• 이리 – this way / like this (poetic form of 이렇게)

• 좋았던 – was good

• 날에 – on the day (날 + 에 = at/on the day)

→ “Why (on such) a beautiful day…”

💡 Grammar: 이리/저리/그리 are literary forms meaning “like this/that.”

4️⃣ 슬퍼했었나 – were (you) sad?

• 슬퍼하다 – to feel or express sadness

• -았었- – double past marker, emphasizing a completed state (“had been sad”)

• -나 – rhetorical or reflective question ending

→ Expresses wonder or lamentation rather than expecting an answer.

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💡 Grammar Tip:

The sentence structure here — 왜 이리 … 슬퍼했었나 — is lyrical and introspective.

Instead of asking directly “왜슬펐어?”, the rhetorical -나 ending adds distance and melancholy, as if talking to a memory rather than a person.

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💬 Why It Matters:

This lyric sums up the paradox at the heart of Vivid Lala Love — the coexistence of beauty and sorrow.

Through the poetic address 내 친구여, Chanhyuk turns the song into both a eulogy and a celebration.

It’s grammatically simple, but emotionally layered — a perfect example of how Korean lyrics often hide depth behind gentle phrasing.

💭 Have you ever looked back on a “beautiful day” only to realize how much sadness was hidden beneath it? Drop a 🎨 if this lyric made you think of someone you once 진실로사랑했던.