We Will Go to Mount Paektu

1.

봄날에도 가리라 겨울에도 가리라

백두산 백두산 내 마음의 고향에

폭풍에도 굽힘없는 의지를 주고

신념을 벼려주는 혁명의 전구

가리라 가리라 백두산으로 가리라

우리를 부르는 백두산으로 가리라

2.

꿈결에도 가리라 그 언제나 가리라

백두산 백두산 내 마음의 고향에

이 땅우에 기적들과 행운을 불러

영웅조선 승리의 길 향도하는 곳

가리라 가리라 백두산으로 가리라

우리를 부르는 백두산으로 가리라

3.

한생토록 가리라 대를 이어 가리라

백두산 백두산 내 마음의 고향에

당을 따라 끝까지 갈 영광의 길에

필승의 넋을 주는 태양의 성산

가리라 가리라 백두산으로 가리라

우리를 부르는 백두산으로 가리라

1.

We will go on spring days, we will go on winter

Mount Paektu, Paektu, home of my heart

Which gives us courage even through storms

And lightens the lightbulb of the revolution with faith

We will go, we will go

To Mount Paektu, we will go

To Mount Paektu which is calling us, we will go

2.

Even in dreams, we will go, whenever we will go

Mount Paektu, Paektu, home of my heart

Calling the hopes and miracles on this soil

Leading to the victorious way of heroic Korea

We will go, we will go

To Mount Paektu, we will go

To Mount Paektu which is calling us, we will go

3.

Through our lifetimes, we will go, by generations we will go

Mount Paektu, Paektu, home of my heart

To the victorious way, til the end, following the party

The holy mountain of the sun that gives us spirit of the definite victory

We will go, we will go

To Mount Paektu, we will go

To Mount Paektu which is calling us, we will go

Songs had played an important part in the cult of personality of Kim Jong-un, whose succession of Kim Jong-il was accompanied by the song "Footsteps". Likewise, the purge of Jang Song-thaek, a major political event in Kim Jong-un's early career, was accompanied by "We Will Follow You Only". The release of "We Will Go to Mount Paektu" in turn coincided with soon-to-be-purged Minister of People's Armed Forces Hyon Yong-chol's visit abroad in Moscow.[2]

The lyrics of "We Will Go to Mount Paektu", by Ri Ji-song, were released in Rodong Sinmun on 20 April 2015. The lyrics recount Kim Jong-un's trek to Mount Paektu, important in North Korean propaganda and described as the "sacred mountain of the Sun that gives [the people] the spirit of victory" by the lyrics of the song.[2] The chorus of the song says:

The song took the center stage in Moranbong Band's concert on 28 April 2015.[2] The song became one of the biggest hits of 2015 in North Korea.[4] Other North Korean groups that have performed the song are the State Merited Chorus[5] and the Kim Il-sung Youth League Art Propaganda Squad.[6]

Slovenian avant-garde music group Laibach released an English-language cover version of the song.[7] The band intended to play their version for a live audience in North Korea as part of their Liberation Day tour there,[4][7] but North Korean officials censored them for having altered the song.[8] Ivo Saliger of the group told Rolling Stone:

We wanted to present three important and well-known Korean songs: "Honorable Live and Death," "Arirang" and "We'll Go to Mt. Paektu." In the end, their censors asked us to take out "Honorable" and "Mt. Paektu," because we had changed them too much from the originals, and they are extremely sensitive about their own culture.[9]

The row was apparently over the tempo of the song.[8] Norwegian director Morten Traavik, who arranged the tour, said:

Both 'Honorable' and 'Mount Paektu' are songs that have a special significance politically and ideologically in North Korea [...] When Laibach did their versions... the songs were no longer recognizable to [the censors]... They were worried that the audience would react negatively and think that Laibach was making fun of and disrespecting the Korean culture.[10]

• Music of North Korea
• Mt. Paektu (poem)

• Score and lyrics at Rodong Sinmun (in Korean)
• YouTube videos:
  • Video with Korean subtitles
  • Performance by Moranbong Band with English and Portuguese subtitles