Taehyun’s Bird of Night is a subtle, introspective R&B track that wrestles with anxiety. I’m talking about the kind of uncertainty that hits hardest when the rest of the world is fast asleep. The song captures that heaviness and then lifts some of that weight off your shoulders.
Bird of Night is part of TOMORROW X TOGETHER (TXT)’s fourth studio album, The Star Chapter: TOGETHER, which features solo songs from all five members. Each track offers a unique glimpse into the members’ individual emotions and artistic perspectives.
A Song About Sleeplessness and Self-Doubt
At its core, Bird of Night is about the nights when everything feels too loud inside your head. Written and composed by Taehyun himself, the song explores his worries about adulthood, expectations, and the strange emotions that come with both. It doesn’t shy away from that discomfort either. There’s no dramatic breakdown or sudden emotional breakthrough. Just quiet spirals of thought, captured in lyrics that ache with honesty.
“During the deep night when everyone is asleep
A sleepless night when voices come to me
The ticking of the clock
The noise of the city is only getting louder
Between the piled-up choices
My shoulders become heavy with anxiety
What does it mean to become an adult?
Yeah, everything is getting blurry”
I fly like a bird of night
Under the light of countless worries
Our night flight in this brilliant night
I can’t fall asleep, but
The deeper the darkness, the brighter this night shines
That starlight that won’t waver
The reason for this moment, I know, oh, oh-oh, oh
We should let it go-oh, oh-oh”
The magic of Bird of Night is that it never feels heavy-handed. Even in its darkest moments, there’s a softness to the song. A sense that these emotions, while painful, are also shared and survivable. What makes this song stand out is how it frames vulnerability as a source of connection. Taehyun isn’t just talking to himself. He’s reaching out, offering reassurance to anyone who’s ever laid awake feeling lost. It’s that moment when you realize your intrusive thoughts aren’t just yours.
For a song that deals so much in solitude, Bird of Night doesn’t push away the listener. It invites you in, like a quiet voice saying, “Me too.”
The Bird as a Metaphor for Isolation and Hope
Taehyun uses the image of a bird soaring through the night to express his loneliness, freedom, and inner conflict. It’s a simple metaphor, but it lands beautifully. The bird is alone, yes but it’s still moving and eventually, it’ll find light.
The lyrics lean into that duality, hinting at the idea that fear and anxiety don’t erase hope. In fact, they make the moments of comfort and clarity feel even brighter when they finally arrive. This isn’t a song about fixing yourself. It’s a song about continuing to fly, even when you don’t know where you’re going yet.
A Music Video That Mirrors the Mood
The music video for Bird of Night echoes the song’s vibe through subtle, symbolic visuals. We see Taehyun alone in dimly lit spaces like a room filled with old VHS tapes, driving through the city at night. Each setting feels suspended in time, like the mental space you enter when you’re stuck in your own thoughts.
Fans have speculated that the VHS tapes represent memories or emotional baggage. Whether that’s the intended meaning or not, the feeling is unmistakable. This is a person navigating his own mind, sorting through the past and trying to understand the present.
Yet, the video never feels suffocating. There are flickers of light, literally in the starlit skies and the city lights. These scenes suggest guidance, hope, and the possibility of peace.
Taehyun’s Bird of Night doesn’t try to solve anything. It acknowledges that growing up is terrifying, that the expectations placed on us can feel impossible. It also reminds us that we’re not the only ones awake at 3 a.m., staring at the ceiling and wondering what comes next. Sometimes, that’s enough to help us make it to morning.
