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In North Korea, songs are utilized as instruments for glorifying the leader and promoting the system. All songs are conceived under state direction and are produced and distributed only after undergoing stringent censorship and control. Even instrumental compositions without lyrics are based on themes and backgrounds related to the leader or the regime. While songs that seemingly deal with love or daily life do exist, these are often interpreted as performances of apoliticality meant to conceal political messages.

In this environment, North Korean citizens alter song lyrics to reflect their own realities and emotions. In a society where personal artistic activity is prohibited and freedom of expression is thoroughly restricted, rewriting lyrics is virtually the only form of creative expression available to individuals. This practice bears a dual meaning—it serves both as a satire of regime propaganda and as an outlet for expressing everyday feelings.

The North Korean authorities define such lyric rewriting as "distortion (외곡)." According to the Korean Language Dictionary (Vol. 2), published by the Social Science Publishing House, distortion is defined as "being twisted and bent; the act of fabricating or describing something falsely in a way that does not correspond with reality" (Pyongyang: Social Science Publishing Company, 1992, p. 1765). This is regarded as an act of undermining ideological integrity. In fact, Article 41, Clause 11 of the Law on Guaranteeing Youth Education, enacted in 2021, explicitly prohibits "singing our country's songs in a distorted manner or dancing in a way that is not in our style" (Seoul: National Intelligence Service, 2024). This explicit ban suggests that the practice of rewriting lyrics is widespread within North Korea. Such acts of rewriting may be interpreted as the emergence of private discourse that weakens the controlling power of official discourse and ideology. They also signify cultural fissures and emotional resistance arising from within the system.

I. The "Real" North Korea Reflected in Rewritten Songs

The altered songs commonly circulated in North Korea often bear little semantic relationship to the original lyrics. Citizens either sing rewritten versions they have heard from others or participate in the rewriting process themselves by freely modifying nouns or verbs within existing sentence structures. This act of lyric transformation is often driven by a sense of playful competition among peer groups to devise more clever or daring lines. Notably, these rewritten lyrics naturally incorporate personal experiences and desires, suggesting that citizens continuously reproduce an unofficial language to reflect their feelings and realities even within a society that places severe restrictions on creative activity and expressive freedom as does North Korea.

1) Food Shortages and Jangmadang

The most frequently rewritten themes revolve around food shortages and the jangmadang (informal markets). One example is a parody of the song "Let's Sing a Song, Young Comrade," which retains only the first two phrases of the original introduction, after which the lyrics diverge entirely. While the original song paints a pastoral image of an ideal homeland where children grow and flourish, the parody transposes this scene to the stark reality of the "Arduous March" period, where corn is stir-fried out of desperation. This juxtaposition dismantles the symbolism and authority of the original through humor and irony, eliciting a collective sense of empathy.

"Let's Sing a Song, Young Comrade": Original and Parody Lyrics

Original
In the land of freedom, we grow up
In the paradise of peace, we bloom
Children of the new nation, let us sing
What in the world is there to envy

Parody
In the land of freedom, we are dak-ing(닦다: husking) corn
[1] Grandpa, Grandma, please try some
My teeth hurt, I cannot eat this, you eat it
You dusangtaegi (두상태기),[2] you'd better just starve

The jangmadang frequently appears as a backdrop for parodied lyrics. The original song, sung by Ryom Chong from the Wangjaesan Light Music Band founded in 1983, extolled the leader as the sun and the people as satellites. The parody shifts the scene to a market, depicting merchants fleeing from enforcement officers. The tone is lively and humorous, and the parody cleverly adapts the original's syncopated rhythm to enhance the cadence of the new lyrics.

"Let Us Be the Satellites of the Sun": Original and Parody Lyrics

Original
Benevolent rays of the guiding sun
We receive them all as one
Born anew, we chose our place in life
By his side we stand
Sun, sun, our sun, let us be your satellites
Sun, sun, our sun, let us guard you as satellites
Let us be the satellites that serve the great general

Parody
The Security Officers (안전원: anjeonwon) are coming, the vendors are running
The man selling cigarettes, the granny selling tofu
Everyone's running away
Stop right there, stop right there, if you're caught, you're taken in
Run, run, run, if you're caught, you'll be fined
We still have energy left, so let us keep running

The theme song of the children's film A Squirrel and a Hedgehog, originally titled "Let Us Build a Fortress of Stone," is also repurposed in a parody set in a market where a starving kkotjebi (꽃제비: homeless person or child), steals tofu and flees. The original message of collective unity and defense is replaced with a humorous scenario in which a merchant grandmother chases the child but falls over. The result is a vivid, comedic representation of poverty and chaos within the everyday market.

2) Romance, Love, and Marriage

The second most frequently adapted theme in North Korean parody songs is that of "romance, love, and marriage." The theme song Star of Love from the film Thaw of Spring Day (1985) originally conveys emotions of love through ambivalent and lyrical expressions. However, in its parodied version, only the first two words of the original are retained, after which the lyrics diverge significantly from the original, articulating emotions in a direct and unembellished manner. The new lyrics depict a woman, having experienced hardship, expressing her emotions toward a man in coarse and confrontational terms. Vulgar expressions are sometimes included, and the song's lyrical sensibility is deliberately dismantled, almost in mockery. In this way, the rewritten lyrics reverse the tone of the original by grounding it in the language and sentiments of lived reality. Through this transformation, the once-refined expressions of the original are rearticulated into overt emotional outbursts, subverting its initial aesthetic restraint.

"Star of Love": Original and Parody Lyrics

Original
At the window of my heart, you quietly descended, a star that called to me
It brought happiness to my dream-filled heart, I love you
Oh, dear star of my love
You tapped softly at my window and woke me
You shed bright light into my shadowed heart, I cannot forget you
Oh, dear star of my love
You gently opened the door of love and embraced me
You gave my heart hope and a vision of the nation, I will follow you
Oh, eternal star of my love

Parody 1
At the sleeping window, you pounded ferociously, waking me up

Parody 2
You bastard who kicked open my heart's door with your front foot and closed it with the other
I can get married without you, bastard
Give me back the motorcycle that I bought you
What a fledgling bastard 

Parody 3
If we're in love, then be it, but why are you grabbing my hand?
Why are you touching my breast?

The theme song "Toward the Fountain of Youth," from the 2001 television film The Strange Cave, produced by the Chosun Film Studio, has also been widely parodied (Pyongyang: Literature and Arts Publishing Company, 2002, p. 180). In the parodied lyrics, the original meaning is discarded entirely. Instead, the verses express, respectively, the male and female perspectives on the practical realities of dating and marriage.

"Toward the Fountain of Youth": Original and Parody Lyrics

Original
Who wants to be young again
Who wants to live a hundred, a thousand years
If you seek long life, come to Ryongmun Cave
Even underground in this land of golden rivers and mountains
A paradise unfolds
One look gives ten years, two looks a hundred
The cave of laughter that brings youth
The elixir of life unmatched on Earth is found only in Joseon (조선)
If you miss it, you'll regret it forever
Even in the earth below, the bright sun spreads love and laughter
In the enchanted Ryongmun Cave, born of benevolence
If you miss it, your whole life will be one of regret

Parody
Men only need one outfit for going out
Women have more than twenty
And the cost of makeup is no small thing
I cannot live like this, I cannot live like that
How can I spend my life with you forever?

Women eat just one bowl of rice
Men go through more than a whole pot
And they waste even more on cigarettes and booze
I cannot live like this, I cannot live like that
How can I spend my life with you forever?

3) Military Service

Parodied lyrics centered on the theme of "military service" encompass a wide array of motifs, including aversion to conscription, dereliction of duty, denigration of military power, and exposure of the duplicity among soldiers. In the example of "My Song in the Trenches," the structure preserves the original lyrics in the first half, only to subvert them in the latter half through lyrical transformation. Whereas the original emphasizes loyalty and glorifies sacrifice on the battlefield, the parody shifts the focus toward survival, thereby inverting the song's original message. Particularly notable is the technique of preserving the original setting while reassigning its meaning in diametrically opposed terms, an intentional maneuver that serves as a strategic device for undermining the authority of the official narrative.

"My Song in the Trench": Original and Parody Lyrics

Original
My song in the trench, echo to my hometown
I've held my rifle for three years and three months
To defend the land of the fatherland
Even amid the hail of enemy bullets
I fought, mindful of the order to attack
I fought, remembering the order to press forward

Parody
My song in the trench, echo to my hometown
I've held my rifle for three years and three months
When bullets rained down, I quietly dodged to the side
My comrade behind me got hit and died
Yes, my comrade behind me was struck and died

The parody of "Little Ttangkkeu[3] Moves Forward" presents a direct critique of the military's inefficacy. Although the original refers to an actual North Korean tank, the parody reflects the public's perception of malfunctioning weapons and poor conditions, indicating a sense of internal cynicism about the country's military strength.

"Little Tank Moves Forward": Original and Parody Lyrics

Original
Little tank moves forward, our tank moves forward
Crushing American bastards, little tank moves forward 

Parody
Little tank moves forward, our tank moves forward
It keeps going even when told to stop
It cannot shoot when told to fire, it just keeps rolling

4) Corruption and Injustice

Parodies centered on corruption often feature explicit satire of real-life abuses. In the parody of "The Bitterness Will Be Avenged," the theme song of the film Rim Kkok Jong, the original's classical language is interspersed with modern slang like "Golban ppopda (골반 뽑다: break the pelvis),"[4] producing humor through temporal dissonance. The parody of "The One Who Remains in My Heart," the theme song from The One Who Remains in My Heart, uses slang terms like "pig" and "Apjeon (앞전)"[5] to deconstruct the authority of the original and heighten satirical impact.

"The Bitterness Will Be Avenged": Original and Parody Lyrics

Original
How could the kind-hearted folk pick up their swords?
We could no longer live under the same sky as the yangban (양반: aristocrats)
Who would take this path without deep resentment
Who could harden their heart without bitter sorrow

Parody
How could the kind-hearted folk break their pelvis?
We could no longer bear the torment from the yangban and the rich
With one good pelvis twist, the yangban bastard's rib snaps
With one more pelvis twist, the rich bastard's nose shatters

"The One Who Remains in My Heart": Original and Parody Lyrics

Original
In life there are many meetings and farewells
Even when parted, there is one who remains in the heart
Ah, how could I ever forget such a person?

Parody
In life, I've seen some crazy things, like a pig doing a somersault
Just had a glance, but I am still traumatized
Ah, how could I ever forget a pig like that?

5) Wordplay and Reversals

While most parodies reinterpret the original lyrics by adding new meaning, some flip the words of the original songs backward. This is seen in examples like "Whistle," the children's song "Mountain Rabbit," and the theme song "In Search of the Wild Ginseng Flower" from the animated film Wild Ginseng Flower. This seemingly nonsensical string of sounds instead registers as novel and unexpected, functioning as a form of linguistic play. It suggests that such expressions were consumed primarily in a playful manner, embodying a mode of entertainment through verbal incongruity.

"Whistle": Original and Parody Lyrics

Original
Even last night, I blew a whistle, whistle
It's already been months, I've been whistling, whistling

Parody
Whistle, whistle a blew I night, last even
Whistling, whistling been I've months, been already it's

"In Search of the Wild Ginseng Flower": Original and Parody Lyrics

Original
Even the strongest cannot tread this rugged path
In search of the wild ginseng flower, I go
Lalalalalalalala, let us go
There is nothing to fear, let us go
In search of the wild ginseng flower

Parody
Path rugged this tread cannot strongest the even
Go I flower ginseng wild the of search in
Lalalalalalalala go us let
Go us let fear to nothing is there
Flower ginseng wild the of search in

II. Parody or Play?

To North Korean citizens, the act of rewriting lyrics is regarded as 'humor,' 'wordplay,' 'comedy,' 'entertainment,' and 'fun.' These parodied songs function as vehicles for everyday humor and play, generating laughter at the moment when the solemn and serious normative framework imposed by the regime is disrupted by the language of lived reality. As state-ascribed meaning intersects with real-life experience, the authority of both form and message is subverted, and the original's gravitas is transformed into an object of irony and surprise. Particularly, when the lofty and idealized characters or situations depicted in the original songs are reconfigured through self-deprecating expressions, the dissonance between propaganda and reality is rendered all the more stark.

The culture of parody songs popular among North Korean youth outwardly manifests as a peer-centered activity grounded in humor and play. Yet beneath this surface lies a substratum of cynicism, critique, and despair directed toward the regime. In a society where freedom of expression is severely curtailed, these songs serve as a rare outlet—both a cultural conduit and a symbolic refuge—for articulating personal emotions, desires, and lived realities. The act of mimicking and altering state-sanctioned songs, in particular, becomes a subversive gesture that either distorts the original political message or imbues it with new meaning. By juxtaposing the parody against the original, the contradictions of North Korean society are brought into stark relief. The utopian vision portrayed in the original lyrics remains estranged from the public's lived experience, and through parody, this ideal is deconstructed with biting irony, giving rise to a language that confronts reality head-on.

This practice is often absorbed as a natural part of adolescent play culture, gradually fading as individuals enter adulthood and are subjected to implicit social expectations. Nevertheless, what may appear to be mere mischief contains the potential to evolve into a threat against the regime. The 2021 Youth Education Guarantee Law explicitly prohibits the rewriting of songs, signaling the state's recognition of this act as one that could undermine its grip on cultural control. This legal response serves as official confirmation of the destabilizing potential of lyric rewrites.

Parodied songs often convey more than mere amusement; they also reflect an undercurrent of longing and curiosity toward a world beyond the regime's boundaries. These adaptations can be interpreted as a form of passive deviance, subtle acts of departure within a tightly controlled cultural environment. A significant cultural shift occurred in 1989 with the World Festival of Youth and Students, which compelled North Korea to permit limited exposure to external information. This shift deepened in 1991 when the Pochonbo Electronic Ensemble toured Japan, leading to the unprecedented broadcast of Japanese-language songs through North Korean media. For many citizens, this marked their first encounter with music featuring Japanese lyrics and triggered substantial cultural reverberations. The spread of capitalist elements and foreign imagery through North Korea–Japan co-produced films further introduced aesthetic forms and stylistic innovations previously absent from the North Korean cultural landscape.

In this context, the act of lyric rewriting evolved beyond simple wordplay into an alternative form of cultural consumption and production, grounded in imitation and creative transformation of foreign culture. The influx of external media prompted North Koreans to develop new aesthetic sensibilities and cultural preferences. This gave rise to a creative impulse to express personal emotions and lived experiences through modes of expression outside the realm of state-sanctioned content. Parody thus became not a passive form of reception, but an active means of emotional expression and cultural engagement, enabling a measure of subjective agency within an otherwise repressive environment.

The repetitive process of altering lyrics revealed the limitless possibilities of creation, leading to a broader diffusion of creative reinterpretation and alternative culture in everyday life. By twisting or inverting the normative meanings of original songs, citizens formed and shared their own unique cultural expressions. These subtle, everyday forms of resistance hint at the fractures appearing even within tightly regulated cultural regimes.

In this light, the phenomenon of song rewriting by North Korean citizens hints at several significant shifts within the society. First, it suggests the growing impotence of the regime's symbolic language. North Korean propaganda songs have long relied on the repeated use of symbolic terms such as "jogguk (조국: nation)," "suryeong (수령: supreme leader)," "inmin (인민: people)," and "dang (당: party)" to elicit emotional unity. However, when citizens parody and satirize these very symbols, it becomes clear that they are no longer sacrosanct. Instead, they are being consumed, ridiculed, and dismantled within everyday discourse. When the language of ideology becomes a subject of laughter, its persuasive power naturally diminishes.

Second, there is an ongoing expansion of unofficial cultural spaces. As the regime intensifies its control over public culture, citizens covertly expand and diversify subcultural domains within it. These informal cultural forms are not merely entertainment but become vehicles for the accumulation of alternative sentiments and collective memory, functioning as substitutes for official discourse.

Third, the crisis of public discourse and the weakening of state mobilization capabilities become evident. In North Korea, songs are not simply artistic expressions; they are instruments of state mobilization. However, to the emerging generations, the now obsolete formats and themes no longer resonate, posing a structural risk to the collective legitimacy and identity constructed through them. The more the regime imposes emotional resonance through these songs, the more citizens respond with laughter, thus codifying the emotional distance between state and individual.

Amid this evolving cultural landscape, the songs unveiled during the 2025 New Year Celebration performance (e.g., "I Will Love You Forever (길이 사랑하리)," "We Are Koreans (우리는 조선사람)," "My Powerful Motherland (강대한 어머니 내 조국)," and "The Motherland and My Destiny (조국과 나의 운명)") merit particular scrutiny. Sung by Kim Ok Ju of the State Affairs Commission Orchestra, these songs depart from the traditional leader-venerating narrative and instead attempt to reframe the notion of the "motherland" as a community of shared destiny, seeking emotional internalization. Musically, they shift away from collective choral arrangements toward structures oriented around individual appreciation, incorporating sentiments that acknowledge, to some extent, the hardships of everyday life. However, despite these nominal transformations, the underlying imperative to “sing of the motherland” remains a state-imposed directive, persistently interfering with the production and performance of such works.

In this context, the widespread practice of lyric rewriting among North Korean citizens indicates a gradual cultural fissuring and the erosion of symbolic authority within the society. Although parody songs may appear, on the surface, to be mere entertainment or casual mischief, they in fact contain an implicit reinterpretation and disengagement from the regime’s symbolic order. While the propagandistic content of state-imposed songs continues to be disseminated, it is crucial to recognize that their meaning is increasingly subverted and transformed through the public’s reinterpretation and parodies. This phenomenon constitutes one of the most subdued yet potent forms of resistance embedded within North Korean society.  ■

* This article is a reconstructed version of the following paper: "Satire of Reality and Subversion of Norms through Retellings of North Korean Residents' Songs: Focusing on Socialist Morality," Review of North Korean Studies, 27, no.3 (2024).

References

Social Science Publishing Company. 1992. Joseonmal Unabridged Dictionary (in Korean). Pyongyang: Social Science Publishing Company.

Literature and Arts Publishing Company. 2002. The DPRK Literature and Arts Yearbook (in Korean). Pyongyang: Literature and Arts Publishing Company.

National Intelligence Service. 2024. DPRK Statute Book (in Korean). Seoul: National Intelligence Service.

[1]North Korean variant of “deokda” (덖다): “dakta” (닦다)

[2]North Korean slang for “old wretch” (used derogatorily)

[3]North Korean variant of “tank” (탱크): “ttangkkeu” (땅크)

[4]The expression “to break the pelvis” is a figurative phrase used to describe the act of forcibly stretching one's legs to loosen the body. It metaphorically signifies readiness for a fight or a situation where violence becomes unavoidable.)

[5]North Korean variant of “apjang” (앞장): “apjeon” (앞전). According to the Korean Language Dictionary (Vol. 2) (Pyongyang: Social Science Publishing House, 1992, p. 1389), it is defined as (1) the very front position when a group is moving forward or facing a certain direction, (2) a position one can take or seize first, and (3) the very end of the front side. However, in the context of the referenced lyrics, “apjeon” is used to mean “forward roll” or “tumbling” (somersault), referring to a bizarre or absurd situation that is rarely seen in everyday life.

■ Seunghee HA is Research Professor at the Institute for North Korean Studies of Dongguk University.

■ Translated and edited by Chaerin KIM, Research Assistant
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