There are times when, no matter how hard you squeeze, no lyrics come out. The deadline is approaching, the melody is already finished, yet the words just keep circling in an empty mind.
Lyricist Lee Chi-hoon faced such a moment, too. It was on the day he wrote the song “Adult” for the drama 〈My Mister〉 OST.
But the solution he chose wasn’t to dig deeper. It was to let go.
Once he let everything go, the sentences poured out—almost as if they had been waiting for a long time—like entries from a diary.
That experience became a single book.
Discovering Meditation Through Songwriting
In April 2026, lyricist Lee Chi-hoon’s first collection of prose, 『A Mind That Meditates』, was published by Woongjin Knowledge House. In this book, he finally unfolds his own inner story for the first time in the form of prose—after writing lyrics for more than 20 years.
Lee Chi-hoon majored in composition at Seoul National University’s College of Music. After debuting as a lyricist in high school with the singer Park Hwayobi’s 〈I’m Sorry, But Let’s Do It This Way〉, he has spent years shaping the language of Korean popular music in collaboration with renowned musicians such as Lee Moon-sae, Yim Jae-beum, Yangpa, Forestella, and Woong San. Lyrics born from his fingertips—like 〈My Mister〉 “Adult,” 〈Itaewon Class〉 “Stone” and “Our Night”—quietly soothed many people’s everyday lives.
“Making music itself was meditation”
『A Mind That Meditates』 is not a simple self-improvement book or an introductory guide to meditation. It’s a collection of prose that contains the inner journey Lee Chi-hoon discovered between language and silence, between sound and stillness.
He says he encountered meditation naturally while making music for a long time. It wasn’t something he forced himself to look for. In the process of looking at himself and the world with the eyes of the inner self, he met a quietness before language. That point of contact was meditation.
Since then, he has explored and trained whether music and meditation can become each other’s paths, widening the boundaries. He currently serves as a lead certified teacher and joint chairperson of HeartSmile Meditation (HST), which he is researching at the KAIST Meditation Science Research Institute, and he also teaches a “Mindfulness Meditation” course for university students.
From the Music Meditation Group “Querencia” to Corporate Executive Meditation Programs
He doesn’t stop at writing and lecturing. Lee Chi-hoon has been active with the music meditation group “Querencia,” planning programs for executives and employees at major corporations such as SK, LG, and Hanwha. At Choi In-a Bookstore, he held “Wednesday Meditation Classes” to share the value of meditation in everyday life, and he has presented music meditation programs in a variety of spaces such as the Museum San Meditation Hall, Jeju Haevichi Resort, and the Jang Uk-jin Museum.
His meditation isn’t a static practice sitting on a cushion. There is sound, there is storytelling, and there are people. It’s a practice of finding stillness right in the tangle of the most ordinary life.
What Fills the Space When You Let Go
The special reason 『A Mind That Meditates』 stands out is right here. It’s not a success story of a lyricist who wrote a famous drama OST. Instead, it’s the story of those moments when he struggled to write better—and yet nothing came out—plus the tales of the words that poured forth only when he let go.
This book doesn’t tell you “how to write well.” It asks “how to empty.” And it whispers that the practice of clearing the mind—whether it’s music creation or the hardship of everyday life—can ultimately be spoken in the same kind of language.
If you’re someone who feels that nothing comes out no matter how hard you try to force something, this book won’t feel unfamiliar.
▲ 『A Mind That Meditates』 ▲ Lee Chi-hoon ▲ Woongjin Knowledge House ▲ 17,800 won