I Can't Stop Me

Twice released their ninth Korean-language EP More & More in June 2020.[1] The EP was a commercial success in South Korea, selling over 550,000 copies and becoming the group's best-selling album.[2][3] Following the success of More & More, JYP Entertainment announced that Twice would be releasing their second Korean studio album, Eyes Wide Open in October 2020, to commemorate the group's fifth anniversary.[4][5] On October 11, the group shared the track-listing of Eyes Wide Open, where "I Can't Stop Me" was revealed to be the album opener.[6] The song was written by A Wright, Park Jin-young, Melanie Joy Fontana, Shim Eun-ji, and its producer Michel "Lindgren" Schulz.[7][8][9] It was engineered by Sehee Eom, Eunjung Park, and Hyejin Choi, while the latter was additionally responsible for mixing alongside Tony Maserati which took place at Mirrorball Studios, North Hollywood, California. David K Younghyun was credited with assisting throughout the mixing process. PERRIE provided backing vocals for the song, and mastering was handled by Chris Gehringer at Sterling Sound, Edgewater, New Jersey.[7][8] "I Can't Stop Me" was released for digital download and streaming as the lead single from Eyes Wide Open on October 26, 2020, by JYP Entertainment and Republic Records.[10][11]

"I Can't Stop Me" has been described as an '80s synthwave and pop song, with elements of disco.[9][12][13] It is the group's first attempt at the retro-synth genre that has inspired the musical direction of their entire album.[13][14] The song draws from European electronic and American synth-pop sound, supported by an arrangement of drum machines, "intoxicating" Latin beats, and "strong" instrumental sound.[12][15][16] Lyrically, "I Can't Stop Me" talks about the conflict and duality of the good and bad of uncontrollable desires.[12][16] Elaborating on the lyrics, member Dahyun stated, "It portrays the danger and anxiety that come from standing on the boundary between the good and bad. It also captures a provocative ambience that boldly crosses the line, which I feel that a lot of people will be surprised by seeing a new Twice that they've never seen before."[16] She added that the track illustrates the group's "musical growth" the most amongst all tracks on the album.[14] Justin Moran of Paper noted that the track is about "seduction and the ways we're constantly attracted to things we know we shouldn't want — things that are bad for us," through lines like, "I see the end, I know it's not right, I can't stop me, can't stop me."[13] The song is composed in the key of A♯ minor, with a fast tempo of 150 beats per minute and runs for 3:25.[17]

In the lead-up to the release of "I Can't Stop Me", the group released photo and video teasers for the track, which served as a promotional tool for their return.[16] An accompanying music video was uploaded to JYP Entertainment's YouTube channel on October 26, 2020.[18] The video was directed by Lee Gi-baek of the production company Tiger-Cave Studio, who had previously worked with several Korean artists, including Got7, Beenzino and Zico, among others.[19] Portrayed in retro, the visual features Twice performing "non-stop" choreography in a white subway station, a rainbow-colored canyon, and a large lotus flower, as they don color-coordinated looks. In one scene, the members are seated at a long table, facing their mirror images. Towards its conclusion, they are seen boarding a train wearing "high-fashion black-and-yellow" outfits similar to the plaid separates worn by Alicia Silverstone in the teen comedy film, Clueless (1995).[10] Discussing the fashion styles used in the music video, Chaeyoung said, "We also wanted to showcase our new sides visually, such as our widely beloved suit outfits from our teasers. We have many other kinds of outfits in store, some of them are featured in the song's music video."[12] Moran wrote that the video showcases "Twice's star power, as the girls dance — perfectly in-sync, of course — throughout different environments, both on earth and somewhere in space."[13] A choreography version was released on November 1, 2020.[20]

Hours after the song and the album's release, on October 26, 2020, Twice held a live meeting called "Twice 'I Can't Stop Me' Special Live" on Naver's V app and YouTube, introducing songs from the album and communicating with their fans.[12] To promote the song and Eyes Wide Open, the group appeared and performed on several South Korean music programs, starting with Mnet's M! Countdown on October 29, where they performed "I Can't Stop Me" and "Up No More".[21] They also appeared on KBS2's Music Bank, MBC's Show! Music Core, MBC M's Show Champion, and SBS' Inkigayo, to perform the song.[22][23][24][25] In the second week of promotion, "I Can't Stop Me" won the top spot on Show Champion on November 4.[26] A clip featuring group members Nayeon, Sana, Momo, and Chaeyoung, performing relay dance to the song, was posted to TikTok the same day.[27]

• Digital download / streaming[11]

1. "I Can't Stop Me" – 3:25

Credits adapted from Melon and Tidal.[7][8]

• List of M Countdown Chart winners (2020)