So I found it super weird why I was compelled to come back and listen to Real Love despite having similar thoughts to many people about it not being as catchy or bombastic as their other releases. However, I think it is because of the vocal performance having such emotion behind it. After struggling through midterms, Real Love came at the right time for me to pick me up. I don't want a song to jam to, but a hopeful and comforting one.
The brass, strings, and vocal performance combined have a multilayered emotion for me. It feels like a celebratory song after many years of struggles. Additionally, it does give me the sense that the album is a gift to avid fans. Those are the fans most willing to listen to the rest of the album and hear all the various styles they are trying. A worrying aspect is it seems to be a last impact album before the members go off into solo work.
It's weird that people think that choosing Real Love as a title track would be considered "safe". I saw it as a decent risk because it goes against the explosive onomatopoeia dance/chorus trend that K-Pop has rn. Maybe management thought they could slow down listeners to the song's pace and take time to soak in the emotion? The lyrics are literally asking to borrow the atmosphere and to experience "real love". It's kind of funny because if it was a B-side it would have been considered a hidden gem and something that could have caught on like Darari or Polaroid Love.
Either way, it's a marketing failure and a misjudging of the market that might have scary implications for the future of the group and WM. 
