an essay about bts

The BTS story: how K-pop’s superstar boy band conquered the world

• It was clear from the group’s debut in 2013 that they had something different, helped by Suga and RM’s background in underground hip hop
• Fans often reference BTS’s first win on South Korean music programme The Show in 2015 as a huge turning point in their story

K-pop outfit BTS are without doubt the biggest boy band in the world, so it was no surprise that their four upcoming shows at Hong Kong’s AsiaWorld-Expo Arena next week immediately sold out.

Their popularity is not confined to one region – or even continent – as the seven-member act are global in every sense of the word. Their story is integral to understanding their remarkable popularity, so let’s take a look at the band’s origins, rise and major achievements over the past six years.

The seven musicians all shared one bedroom. Their label, Big Hit Entertainment, was a small company within an industry ruled by the “big three” K-pop oligopoly (SM, YG and JYP Entertainment). So despite the band’s meteoric rise, they made their debut as underdogs.

However, there were already hints of their future crossover success as their first single hit reached No 14 on Billboard’s World Digital Songs chart two weeks after it was released. At the same time, they received recognition in South Korea as the best new artist at the 2013 Melon Music Awards.

Rise to fame

Back in 2014, the boys handed out fliers promoting a concert during their reality show American Hustle Life . But now they’re selling out international stadiums within 90 minutes.

So how did BTS get here? Their breakthrough happened in two stages: first in South Korea and then in the US.

Fans often reference BTS’s first win on South Korean music programme The Show in 2015 as a huge turning point in their story. The winning single I Need U not only represented a significant stylistic departure for the boys, but also earned them widespread recognition.

In 2017, the band won the award for top social artist at the Billboard Music Awards. At the time, it was already a big enough deal that BTS were invited to the ceremony. But to beat out the likes of Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez and Ariana Grande? Suddenly, the mainstream US press could see that BTS were leading a phenomenon that deserved recognition.

Major achievements

Search for the word “first” on BTS’s Wikipedia page and you’ll find a whopping 86 matches. The band earned their first Billboard 200 entry at No 171 with The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Part 2 in 2015. Since then, their accomplishments have snowballed.

As mentioned, 2017 was the year BTS truly crossed over into the American mainstream. Their stateside TV appearances that year included being on The Late Late Show With James Corden , Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Ellen DeGeneres Show . The band made their US performance debut at the 2017 American Music Awards, further increasing their fame internationally.

But 2018 is the year that BTS seemed to break records almost every day. They became the first K-pop group to perform at the Billboard Music Awards when they performed Fake Love . They racked up numerous RIAA gold certifications. And two of their albums hit No 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart in the space of a few months.

The South Korean superstars also enlisted some of the West’s biggest artists for various collaborations, including Nicki Minaj, The Chainsmokers’ Andrew Taggart and Steve Aoki.

“I’m very lucky to be collaborating with BTS,” Aoki told the Post in an interview last month. “But it’s like, collaborating with me I don’t think was moving a needle for them, so to speak. We were just having fun, and it’s making it exciting and colourful and different.”

BTS have already proven they’re not a flash in the pan, so there’s a lot of anticipation for how 2019 will play out for them.

“I remember [South Korean singer] Psy stating that he had a difficult time breaking the spell after the Gangnam Style boom, and I’m impressed by how well BTS have managed the sudden hype in the past couple of years,” said Stephanie Choi, a doctoral candidate in ethno-musicology at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

“By now they should have well-established connections with American media and artists, so I expect to see them having balanced appearances in both Korean and American media.”

It is also worth noting that BTS haven’t had to drop their Korean lyricism to find an American audience.

“It’s so powerful that a non-dominant language is globally renowned,” Aoki said. “[The songs] are almost 90 per cent Korean-based. So it’s an absolute bone chiller – it makes your hair [stand up] when you realise you don’t need to speak the dominant language to really get into the hearts and minds of people.”

BTS’s crossover successes have also had a trickle-down effect, with more South Korean artists embarking on solo tours and media blitzes in the US.

“They just did their own thing, and the world went along with that,” Aoki said. “With that laying the groundwork, it also opens it up for all these other artists who might not have had a chance because they don’t speak English or sing in English.”

Love Yourself

“Love yourself” is a recurring theme in BTS’s discography and their message as artists. They aim to remind the younger generation that true love starts with yourself, as RM put it on the US television show Good Morning America .

Their “Love Yourself” album series oversees the journey to self-love amid the highs and lows of an ill-fated romance. If the series is a story arc, “Love Yourself: Her” is the rising action, “Love Yourself: Tear” the falling action and “Love Yourself: Answer” the resolution.

The “love yourself” motif appears in various ways throughout the album series. There’s the effervescent hook from Idol , where the members sing: “You can’t stop me loving myself.” Then the series wraps up with a bow on the aptly titled Answer: Love Myself . Spoiler alert: the answer is to love yourself.

Band leader RM repeated the mantra “love yourself” to the group’s fans (also known as the BTS Army) during their Billboard Music Awards speech in 2017: “Please, Army, remember what we say: love myself, love yourself.”

BTS also launched the Love Myself campaign with Unicef in October 2017. The two-year-long partnership sponsors the #EndViolence campaign, which seeks to make the world a safer place for children and teenagers.

The campaign has been funded through direct donations and a percentage of the profits from BTS’s “Love Yourself” albums. As of November 2018, they had raised US$1.4 million.

BTS also made history when RM gave a speech at the United Nations last year. He spoke about his hardships as a young person trying to find himself, and encouraged young people to find their inner voice. Then he introduced a new concept to the “love yourself” theme: “speak yourself”.

“The most impressive part of Army is that they practise the ‘Love Myself’ campaign not simply for their idols but really for themselves,” Choi said.

“BTS and Army are not in a hierarchical relationship, with BTS simply providing thoughts to Army. Rather, they are in a dialectical relationship in which Army also inform BTS about gender issues, racism and world history. They are growing up together.”

BTS, the band that changed K-pop, explained

The keys to BTS’s success: emotional resonance, sincerity, and an ARMY of fans.

by Aja Romano

In 2012, Rolling Stone published a list of the 10 K-pop bands most likely to make it big in the US. Achieving significant US fame was a newly attainable, if still distant, milestone for South Korean pop groups thanks to the 2000s’ tremendous exporting of South Korean culture overseas — a trend known as Hallyu, the Korean Wave. Rolling Stone’s list, which appeared two months before Psy’s “Gangnam Style,” included groups like Big Bang, Girls’ Generation, and 2NE1 — the greatest bands of what’s generally thought of as the “second generation” of pop groups to emerge during K-pop’s rise to international prominence.

It didn’t, however, include a group of teenage boys, then-recently assembled through a studio audition process, who were being meticulously polished and prepped for their debut. On December 22, 2012, the group released a number of Soundcloud clips featuring its seven members rapping in Korean and English — including a rap cover of Wham’s “Last Christmas.”

It was hardly the stuff of attention-getting Korean hip-hop. But the band in question — Bangtan Boys, later officially known as BTS — would go on to completely transform the image of all-male boy bands in South Korean music and shatter conceptions of what breakout success looked like for South Korean bands overseas.

• How K-pop became a global phenomenon

BTS’s rise to prominence has been so immense over the last few years that the band’s latest single, “Butter” — their first since a trio of groundbreaking, historic No. 1 singles in fall 2020 — is a major event.

BTS made headlines in 2020 with the hit single “ Dynamite ,” which became the first K-pop song in history to debut at No. 1 on the US Billboard “Hot 100” chart.

Having already racked up more than 60 million YouTube views in its first 12 hours online, “Butter” already seems positioned to be an even bigger hit for the band.

• With “Dynamite,” BTS beat the US music industry at its own cheap game

These US chart-toppers are huge accomplishments for BTS. The band has spent years building to this point, slowly conquering the American music scene with one milestone after another. Since 2018, when they became the first South Korean band in history to debut an album at No. 1 on the US Billboard chart , they’ve collaborated with major artists like the Chainsmokers , Steve Aoki , Nicki Minaj , Ed Sheeran , and Halsey . They’ve performed everywhere from Good Morning America to Saturday Night Live , from Times Square’s New Year’s Eve concerts to Grand Central Terminal .

In 2020, BTS garnered a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Duo/Group performance. They’ve even snagged a couple of Guinness World Records for their incredibly engaged fanbase .

So why was BTS the band that finally broke through the culture barrier overseas to make significant waves in the US? The answer lies in a combination of factors, and most of them are about change: the changing nature of K-pop’s studio culture and the way “idols” are produced; changing depictions of masculinity in South Korea; changing ranges of acceptable expression in K-pop; and, above all, the approach BTS has taken to building its fan base and interacting with its fans.

But to understand all this change, we have to back up a few years to understand how K-pop became the regimented industry it is today — and how BTS subverts that regimen.

How did K-pop become a $5 billion global industry?

Vox explore K-pop’s elaborate music videos, adoring fans, and killer choreography for our Netflix series Explained .

Watch now on Netflix.

BTS is the product of an industry insider who wanted to create a new kind of idol

K-pop began on April 11, 1992, when a hip-hop trio called Seo Taiji and Boys performed in a talent show on a national South Korean network. Seo Taiji and Boys were innovators who challenged norms around musical styles, song topics, fashion, and censorship, which was unprecedented for a culture whose musical production had spent the past few decades subjected to strict government oversight. But it wouldn’t last.

In the ’90s, three powerhouse music studios began cultivating what would become known as idol groups. Assembled through auditions and years of grooming within an intense studio culture — the highly regimented system of idol group production in Korean and Japanese music studios — idol groups are polished to perfection, designed to present the very highest standards of beauty, dance, and musicality. Children who enter these studios spend most of their lives enduring rigorous training to become part of an idol group. If they’re chosen, the studio exerts a huge amount of control, not only over the songs they sing and the way their band is marketed but also over their daily lives .

Idol groups have come to dominate the Korean music industry, but there are well-known toxic and abusive elements to idol life. Over the last decade, the Korean government has taken steps to end the structural exploitation that has been a major part of Korean studio culture. But in the early 2010s when BTS was formed, most studios had a highly regimented, restrictive approach to idol group production. As part of the process, they systematically ironed out most of the personal expression and socially conscious music that Seo Taiji was originally known for — after all, it’s hard to express yourself when you’re contractually forbidden to have a personal life. Even today, idols typically only feel free to open up about their struggles after their studio careers have come to an end .

It was within this environment that a man named Bang Si-hyuk began to quietly build a different kind of studio, and to cultivate the band that would become BTS. A successful songwriter and music producer, Bang was nicknamed “Hitman” for writing a string of popular songs, from g.o.d.’s “One Candle” in 1999 to T-ara’s “Like the First Time” a decade later. He worked as an arranger and producer with the studio JYP until 2005, when he left to form his own Big Hit Entertainment.

But Bang also struggled with his position within the industry. As a studio owner, he confessed to insecurity about his work and said he admired singers who could express their personalities in their music. This combination of ideas — the honest musical expression of one’s creative anxieties — would become a crucial element of BTS.

In 2010, Bang began to assemble a group of teens for a group he called the Bulletproof Boy Scouts. This would go on to become Bangtan Boys, then BTS, but the ingredients of their success were inherent in the original name. Bang intended “bulletproof” to function as a celebration of the kids’ toughness and ability to withstand the pressures of the world. But he also wanted the band to be able to be sincere and genuine — not immaculate idols groomed amid studio culture, but real boys who shared their authentic personalities and talents with the world.

This approach was quite different from the normal studio approach to idoldom, wherein idols are trained to be pleasant but mild — to function as blank slates upon which viewers can project their fantasies. By contrast, Bang wanted BTS to be full of figures that audiences could relate to. In a 2018 interview with the South Korean newspaper JoongAng, he described how he originally thought of BTS as consisting of gentle, sympathetic idols who could mentor their fans:

I recently came across a company document from [2012,] the year before BTS debuted, in which we were debating what kind of idol group to create. It said, ‘What kind of hero is the youth of today looking for? Not someone who dogmatically preaches from above. Rather, it seems like they need a hero who can lend them a shoulder to lean on, even without speaking a single word.

To create that band, Bang had to shake up the established precedents for how idol groups are treated. BTS wouldn’t have strict contracts and curfews, and they’d be allowed to discuss the pressures of stardom. Their lyrics would be open about the cultural pressure placed on Korean teens to excel and do well and to repress their anxieties. In short, they would be frank, honest, and natural.

How they did it: a consciously authentic style combined with socially conscious messaging

“We came together with a common dream to write, dance and produce music that reflects our musical backgrounds as well as our life values of acceptance, vulnerability and being successful,” said BTS’s leader, RM, in a 2017 interview with Time . There are six main ways BTS breaks with established precedent for K-pop boy bands to carry out this mission:

• They frequently write their own songs and lyrics.
• Their lyrics are socially conscious and especially attuned to describing the pressures of modern teen life in South Korea.
• They create and manage most of their own social media presence.
• They aren’t signed to “slave contracts,” nor do their contracts have the grueling restrictions of other idol groups.
• They tend to focus on marketing entire albums rather than individual singles. (This is essentially still true despite their recent string of singles in the US.)
• They talk openly about the struggles and anxieties of their career instead of presenting an extremely polished image at all times.

It should be noted that most of these elements have been present in numerous other recent K-pop groups — most notably Big Bang, which probably influenced BTS more than any other K-pop group. What Big Hit Entertainment did, however, was systematize these elements in BTS, and market them hard.

In the earliest videos of the band, from the months before their 2013 debut, the members were styled as young and sweetly innocent , maintaining the common “schoolboy” concept of male K-pop idol groups. When the group officially launched in June 2013, however, it was with a hard style paying homage to old-school gangster rap. Their first single, “No More Dream,” was an ode to teen apathy, a rebellious rejection of Korean traditionalism.

And it wasn’t exactly popular: Early audience reactions included a lot of eye-rolling at what was viewed as a superimposed gangster image the band hadn’t earned. And while they were clearly leaning on the confessional lyrical apathy of Seo Taiji and his early successors, it all seemed contrived rather than real.

A K-pop commentator who goes by the mononym Stephen ran a weekly podcast, This Week in K-Pop , from 2013 to 2017, which chronicled new releases in K-pop and inevitably documented the rise of BTS. But Stephen and his co-hosts were initially skeptical of the band. “Now K-pop has faux hip-hop undertones everywhere,” he said. “But in 2013 there wasn’t really that much, other than Big Bang. So when [BTS] came out with this very in-your-face, ‘We’re hip-hop’ image, it felt a little silly.”

Stephen pointed out that K-pop in general suffers from this problem. “K-pop really likes the look and attitude of hip-hop, but not too much . It’s very surface-level: hip-hop as a culture rather than as a musical genre.”

BTS’s climb to success, then, involved the band finding a way to communicate that this confessional image was real. They did this by mixing their openness on social media with blunt and honest lyrics — and owning their status as an underdog group battling to succeed against other bands who came from established studios with larger budgets. They spoke openly of the influence of Big Bang, which was also known for its socially conscious messaging. And they covered Seo Taiji’s ”Come Back Home”:

In essence, they found a way to imbue their musical style with substance. This led to well-reviewed, pointedly personal works like their three-album series The Most Beautiful Moment in Life , which deftly mixed “theater [and] autobiography.”

Their two most successful singles from this period managed to neatly encompass this new direction. “ I Need U ” (2015) was a refreshing, personalizing step away from hip-hop toward an R&B sound, while “ Dope ” (2015) openly celebrated the endless grind of their lives: “Over half of the day, we drown in work / Even if our youth rots in the studio / Thanks to that, we’re closer to success.”

“Dope” also drew attention to the band’s talent in a major way: It was the moment South Korea realized that these boys could dance.

“‘Dope’ is probably my favorite video of all time,” Stephen told Vox in 2018. “Focusing on dancing like that — they weren’t the only ones doing it, but they were definitely the best ones doing it.”

“And they alternate,” he added. “They do the big, boisterous, in-your-face dance video. But they also do those more emotional mini-art-flick type videos.” And no BTS art flick is better than “Blood Sweat & Tears,” the gothic, gorgeous 2016 single that launched them into a new level of international fame.

Colette Bennett is an entertainment reporter and a huge fan of BTS — but even though she liked their music, it took a while for her to take their message seriously.

“When The Most Beautiful Moment in Life series started, I saw something,” she says. “And that’s when I went back and watched their old vlogs. Up to and after debut, [these] skinny kids all crammed in a studio the size of a broom closet. Just … being honest about how much they poured into what they were doing, humble about being scared and unsure, etc.”

To Bennett, the band’s frank discussion of mental health and the expectations placed on Asian teens was revolutionary. In 2016, she wrote a profile of the band that argued that they were changing the nature of K-pop through their interpersonal approach to image-making. While watching them on their 2017 “Wings” tour, she said, “there was a moment that really stuck out.”

“There’s a song the three rappers do called Cypher 4 . The refrain is, ‘I love, I love, I love myself / I know, I know, I know myself.’

“I looked around me at hundreds of people in their 20s cheering every word, and I thought, ‘My god. They’re using their influence to teach young people — the ones most inclined to grapple with self-hatred — to start considering what self-love means.’”

The BTS ARMY is real, and it is mighty

BTS’s fans — who collectively gained the nickname ARMY for their well-organized and loyal following of the group — responded to that confessional strategy so well that by 2015, tickets for the band’s sold-out limited US tour were reportedly being scalped for more than $10,000 . Since then, the band has sold out all of its four subsequent world tours , including a record-breaking 2019 tour that included a landmark concert at the Rose Bowl, and a 2020 tour that ultimately had to be canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Stephen told me that it took a while for the hosts of This Week in K-Pop to realize how big BTS had gotten. “We always thought the next big group to cross over would be a girl group, somebody like Twice ,” he told me. “I don’t think it really hit me how big they were until I moved to Korea in 2014 and talked to the children. Every single person in my school system, from teachers to high school students to middle school students to elementary — everybody knew who BTS was.”

• The big business of BTS, the K-pop band that’s changed music

BTS’s international fandom was also hard at work making sure the band had a chance to break through. Throughout 2017, fans systematically bombarded North American retailers like Walmart , Target , and Amazon with pleas to stock BTS’s new albums — and then promptly pushed the albums up the sales charts . The ARMY was so mighty that by the time BTS made their US television debut at the American Music Awards in 2017, the audience was treated to a time-honored K-pop spectacle: an auditorium ringing with fan chants .

The international BTS fandom has worked to mainstream K-pop as few other factors have. On Tumblr, the internet’s unofficial home for fandom communities, BTS and its members reign supreme, recalling the vast reach of One Direction in its heyday. In April 2018, Tumblr decided to stop breaking out K-pop as a separate category in its popular weekly Fandom Metrics, an official Tumblr product that measures the popularity of fandoms and related subtopics across the site. By merging K-pop with English-language groups, the account could more accurately reflect the relative popularity of K-pop bands to their Western counterparts.

The first week the categories merged, BTS debuted at No. 1 on the platform, ahead of Beyoncé and Harry Styles.

So who are these guys, anyway?

Bang’s initial idea for BTS was to build not a boy band, but rather a supporting crew around one talented teen: Kim Nam-joon, a.k.a. RM. He quickly opted to go the idol group route instead, and it took nearly three years of trying out different combinations of members and styles for the boy band to finally emerge.

Most K-pop groups have band members who occupy fixed, noticeable positions within the band: the leader, the public “face” of the group; the “visual,” whose main role is to be pretty; and so forth. Not every group has set roles, and most roles change over time. And because BTS is trying to be less staged than other groups, its roles are a lot blurrier than other groups. Still, there are a few constants.

The leader and lead rapper: RM

Born Kim Nam-joon, RM is a 26-year-old rapper and the first member recruited to BTS. It’s not exaggerating to say that the entire band was built around him.

RM first made his name as an underground rapper; still in his teens, he was frequently spotted spitting verses alongside his friend Zico, who would go on to become the leader of the K-pop group Block B. After a friend told Bang about the rapping teen, Bang recruited him into his studio, where fans gave him the pre-debut nickname “Rap Monster.” From there, the idea to form an entire idol group rapidly took shape, and the Monster shortened his stage name to RM.

The dancer/rapper: J-Hope

Jung Hoseok, a.k.a. J-Hope, sometimes called Hobi, is most frequently described by fans as a ray of sunshine, thanks to his sweet personality. The 27-year-old is one of the group’s main songwriters as well as a frequent choreographer, its lead dancer, and one of its three main rappers. (He sings well, too!) Since joining the group, he’s had a notable solo debut that landed him in the top 40 on the Billboard 200. And have I mentioned his chin could cut glass ?

The vocalist/dancer: Jimin

No single member of BTS is its “face,” but the spotlight often belongs to 25-year-old singer and dancer Park Jimin. Jimin is frequently positioned as the group’s lead vocalist. He’s also a part of the group’s dance line, for good reason , along with J-Hope, Jungkook, and Taehyung.

The mentor vocalist: Jin

The 28-year-old Kim Seokjin, a.k.a. Jin, is the group’s oldest member, and as such he frequently occupies a mentorship role within the group (complete with dad jokes). He’s one of the group’s main vocalists, and though he’s not officially the group’s “visual,” he seems to have a habit of accidentally going viral for being beautiful.

The prodigy: Jungkook

Depending on when and whom you ask, Jeon Jungkook is either the designated “face” of the group, the designated beauty, the designated main singer, the group’s centerpiece member, or all of the above. But there’s one role that never changes: At 23, he’s the youngest. The group often calls him the “golden maknae,” a.k.a. the golden child, because he’s a bit of a wunderkind in terms of talent. In fact, he was in high demand before he settled on joining Big Hit because he looked up to RM. But he’s unquestionably the baby of the group — and arguably its most popular member.

The rapper: Suga

Min Yoongi, stage name Suga, is one of the group’s three rappers — though it should be noted he, like fellow rappers J-Hope and RM, is also a decent singer. At 28, he’s also one of the oldest members, which makes him something of a group dad. His name comes from his preferred basketball position of shooting guard, but legend has it that Bang chose the name for him because it reflects his “sugary” personality — subtle, yet sweet and generous .

The vocalist/dancer: V

The 25-year-old Kim Taehyung chose the stage name “V” for victory — but it could just as easily stand for “versatile”: He’s one of the vocalists, he worked his way onto the dance line, and he’s even tried his hand at rapping. His playful, quirky personality (let’s call it “singular” ) and penchant for stealing the spotlight have made him one of the group’s most popular members. It also probably doesn’t hurt that he has chemistry with everything that moves.

Each of the members of BTS has been hands-on regarding their own careers from the start. As the group has gained more and more power in the entertainment industry, they’ve also each developed their creative and professional sides. By this point in their long careers, every band member has produced, written, or co-written multiple tracks on the group’s albums, and most of them have also worked on independent productions and songs outside of BTS.

For example, rapper Suga has also released two bestselling mixtapes under his alter ego rap handle, Agust D . And vocalist Taehyung co-produced and co-wrote the hit 2020 single “ Sweet Night, ” released as part of the soundtrack to the popular Korean drama Itaewon Class .

On top of all this, the band members all play a variety of musical instruments, in addition to routinely splitting the duties of dancing, singing, and rapping. They’re an immensely talented group of artists.

But perhaps their biggest asset is their shared ability to directly communicate their love and affection to fans. When the band appeared in the annual Time 100 in 2019, entertainer Halsey wrote their profile, making a point of highlighting BTS’s authenticity:

Outwardly, they are polished and professional, but hours of laughter, secret handshakes and gifts exchanged show those around them that underneath this showstopping, neatly groomed movement are just some guys who love music, one another and their fans.

Stephen told me there’s a real core appeal in what BTS is doing. “A lot of their ballads really do sound like they’re talking to you and confessing to you, more so than a lot of pop standards,” he said.

BTS has pulled off this confessional, one-on-one intimacy all while building an international fanbase, despite considerable language and cultural barriers. And in that respect, BTS has truly become an international revelation.

BTS has made major inroads for other K-pop bands and changed the way we think about international fandom

Understanding BTS’s rise to the top also means acknowledging that they’re not alone in their class: They’ve succeeded and grown alongside other bands that have also been innovating and reaching new levels of international success — like Blackpink, which in 2019 became the first K-pop girl group to perform at Coachella . Collectively, this K-pop generation is rapidly changing the conversation and pushing the limits of what K-pop is allowed to be.

But BTS has also done more than arguably any other band to expand K-pop’s international reach — as well as the way international media and the music industry are forced to contend with K-pop. After all, as the lyrics to “Butter” note , the band’s “got Army right behind us when we say so” — a major brag, but one that’s clearly accurate. And BTS fans aren’t just making themselves visible to the music industry. They were also at the forefront of the 2020 push to drown out racist hashtags on social media, and both fans and the band itself have condemned anti-Asian racism .

As BTS and their fandom gain more attention, they’re diversifying mainstream music in America at a moment when artists like The Weeknd have called out the recording industry for its gatekeeping . Between the band’s undeniable talent and diligent work ethic and the fandom’s immense influence over charts, sales, and media coverage, the BTS phenomenon is essentially unstoppable.

Moreover, whatever groundbreaking changes come next for K-pop will likely be a direct result of BTS’s influence. Already, American production companies are moving to bring even more aspects of K-pop to the US. For instance, MGM recently partnered with K-pop studio SM Entertainment to bring the K-pop reality competition format to Hollywood.

Even more intriguing: On the back of BTS’s tremendous success, its parent studio BigHit recently renamed to HYBE Entertainment and, in a billion-dollar deal , acquired heavy-hitting manager Scooter Braun ’s entire portfolio of clients. That means BTS’s studio now oversees artists like Justin Bieber, Demi Lovato, and Ariana Grande. With that potential industry power, and that much fan support at its back, HYBE and BTS could well be poised to shape the music industry in ways hitherto unseen.

And whatever they do next? Will likely be Dynamite.

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PhD candidate, Media and Communication, University of Leeds

Disclosure statement

Jenessa Williams does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

University of Leeds provides funding as a founding partner of The Conversation UK.

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In a climate of ever-increasing competition, it’s a real feat when any band makes it to their tenth anniversary bigger than ever. Such is the case with K-pop group BTS (short for bangtan sonyeondan , “bulletproof boy scouts” in Korean). The band have released their first official biography – Beyond The Story – to look back on their decade-long path to international, record-breaking success .

Initially rumoured to be a Taylor Swift autobiography , pre-orders had made the book a bestseller before its subject was announced. It was released to tie in with both BTS’s anniversary and their hiatus, undertaken so that the members could enrol in mandatory Korean military service .

For fans who have been there from the beginning, the book is a souvenir to covet. For western audiences who have discovered K-pop more recently, it’s a pleasant reintroduction to the group’s early incubation years. Having sold well over 40 million albums worldwide – and become the youngest ever recipients of the South Korean Order of Cultural Merit – BTS are among Korea’s most influential ambassadors.

Behind The Story was co-written by South Korean journalist Kang Myeong-seok and the band’s seven members. Following the oral history format that has benefited popular music journalism books such as Lizzy Goodman’s Meet Me In The Bathroom (2011), it tracks the band’s history across 544 pages, culminating in the release of their most recent anthology album, Proof (2022).

One by one, and in their own words, we meet J-Hope , RM , Suga , Jungkook , Jin , Jimin and V . They recall their nervousness at becoming K-pop trainees, their different motivations and the parts of performance they felt most vulnerable about. Each knew that they would have to work impossibly hard if they were to compete at the level K-pop culture demands.

Through anecdotes both humorous and moving, we learn how they bonded as a group. The seven teenagers, who were from completely different walks of life, were set up in a bunkhouse to learn how to sing and dance as a slick professional outfit.

In telling the story of BTS, Beyond The Story also tells the story of K-pop and how its dynamics have changed over the years. Fans who cottoned onto BTS in their international breakthrough era of songs such as Boy With Luv (2019) or Dynamite (2020) may assume that they always traded in upbeat pop. But their early years were actually deeply rooted in American Hip-hop , a genre K-pop has borrowed from since the early 1990s.

While K-pop groups often pride themselves on a style of perfectly-synchronous choreography known as kalgunmu (razor-sharp dancing), BTS’s hip-hop influence allowed them a certain looseness. Their musical hybridity helped to bring their individual personalities to life.

While it is true that Korean management companies closely guide their stars’ public image, and work them hard from a very young age , Beyond The Story challenges the stereotype of K-pop artists as mere performance puppets. There are several moments where members recall direct involvement in styling, choreography or songwriting. They also discuss using their platform to speak up on a range of social and political issues .

The group’s founding label Big Hit was considered small when they launched. This meant the group were frequently underestimated – even mocked – by their peers. But this underdog status encouraged them to experiment with DIY forms of self-promotion. The members blogged directly to a growing fanbase , for example, instead of relying on management-led channels.

It’s a model that has paid off. Though K-pop still evokes images of impressive polish and unison performance, newer groups such as Seventeen , Le Serrafim and Tomorrow X Together have been able to develop a model which matches feats of dance athleticism with more vulnerable, personal lyricism. This allows them to be both relatable and aspirational for worldwide audiences.

Read more: Hallyu! The Korean Wave at the V&A is an unflinching look at the country's creative rise

A new wave of music biography

Some prior understanding of the K-pop industry may be required to get the most out of the book (knowing how groups are typically assembled, for example, or how competitive Korean TV shows work). But as a contribution to modern music journalism, Beyond The Story is valuable. As they learn of the band’s insatiable work ethic, discipline and brotherly commitment, readers will feel as if they know each of the seven members much better, with a deeper understanding of how their music has developed since their debut.

It’s also highly visual. Lush photography neatly punctuates the chapters, guiding the reader smoothly through each BTS era. With pages that mark the track listings and specific details of each release, it’s easy to turn to your favourite album or treat the book as a reference text – a thoughtful, encyclopaedic blueprint for future artist biographies to come.

The use of QR codes throughout (330, to be exact) is also a smart innovation, recognising that fans might want to reminisce about (or discover) the group’s music videos, dance practices and video logs for themselves as they read. In this way, the book becomes a living museum, truly immersive and interactive.

Of course, the BTS story is far from over. Amid their hiatus, the members are experiencing international success with solo singles. Jimin recently became the first Korean soloist to top the US Billboard charts. At a time when K-pop feels bigger than ever, their success story can only inspire others who are ready to ride the unstoppable Korean wave to reach for their dreams, or indeed, for their local bookstore.

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As BTS Celebrates 10th Anniversary, Their Impact and Legacy Is Undeniable

In this essay, writer Jae-Ha Kim celebrates BTS’s 10th anniversary as a group by looking at the dreams they achieved on behalf of the Korean diaspora.

As BTS celebrates their 10th anniversary, I’m not going to list all their accomplishments. To do so would take up most of this space. Suffice it to say that while critics and fandoms can argue about the artistic merits of other groups, it’s undeniable that what this Korean septet has accomplished is unparalleled. In less than a decade, BTS went from being an unknown group to one of the most famous bands in the world.

While South Korea is rightfully proud of BTS — illuminating landmarks, skyscrapers, and bridges along the Han River in beautiful shades of the group’s favored color purple — millions of fans worldwide are celebrating BTS’s 10-year career, too. 

But for the Korean and Asian diaspora, particularly adoptees who were removed from their birth cultures and raised in non-Asian households, BTS’s success has provided a gateway to their heritage — something many transracial adoptees have told me wasn’t ingrained in their formative years.

After BTS catapulted into the stratosphere of superstars in mid 2017, I started receiving hundreds of emails and messages from predominantly new BTS fans who shared their personal epiphanies. The majority were written by Korean adoptees who had been raised “white.” They had never eaten kimchi, could no longer speak Korean, and grew up in towns where they were the only (or one of the few) minorities in their schools. No one instilled Korean culture in their daily lives. Then these adoptees found BTS.

Most had little to no knowledge about Korea or Korean entertainment prior to BTS. They had seen the group on the  American Music Awards or  Saturday Night Live  or  The Late Late Show with James Corden , did some YouTube searches, and were charmed by their wit, humor, and talent . This Korean group has always been adamant about the importance of self love and care. 

In 2018  Suga told BTS’s fandom, ARMY, “Don’t lose any weight. You are perfect just the way you are.” Meanwhile, RM spoke to the symbiotic relationship  BTS has with ARMY in his iconic 2018 U.N. speech: “We started to hear remarkable stories from our fans all over the world how our message helped them overcome their hardships in life and start loving themselves. Those stories constantly remind us of our responsibility.”  And  in 2020, Jimin reminded fans that they are never alone, because “there is a person here in Korea, in the city of Seoul, who understands you.” One could argue these are merely glib platitudes that don’t mean anything. But these messages of acceptance align with the group’s songs about embracing individuality and, just as importantly, bucking the expectations that society has set for young people. BTS views themselves as flawed human beings who are continuously learning more about themselves and the world they live in. They’re not going to judge their fans for doing the same.

One Korean adoptee sent me a lengthy email to share how BTS helped her realize what had been missing from her life — that part of her identity that she knew nothing about. She wrote, “I really had no idea what being Korean even meant. But when I saw BTS perform on the  American Music Awards , it finally hit me and I teared up. I realized that I had been ignoring this part of me for too long. I felt guilty, sad, moved and happy. How ironic was it to finally see my roots so widely embraced by American culture, before I had embraced it myself?” 

Later, she excitedly wrote me an update; she was planning her first trip back to South Korea and said that BTS played a big role in this decision — not because she wanted to meet the group, but because they had given her the courage and desire to seek out her birth culture. 

When BTS released their debut album  2 Cool 4 Skool  on June 12, 2013, I never imagined that  this boy band would become international sensations. To be honest, I didn’t know that they would be able to survive this cut-throat music world. In retrospect, it’s clear that they had a plan from the beginning. Their music isn’t a haphazard collection of songs meant to be heard and forgotten. Rather, they set the framework for what was yet to come.

On a personal level, I never thought there would be someone of BTS’ magnitude in my lifetime that would make this kind of worldwide impact. Even college-age me never imagined that a Korean group would headline sold-out stadium concerts around the world. Of course talented Korean and Asian artists existed back then, but no one in our new homelands cared about them. Did we think countries outside of Asia would embrace any of them? No. Why would we, when we witnessed the dismissive attitudes Westerners had for Asians in general. 

For many of us, BTS is literally a dream come true. Their 10th anniversary celebration is ours to celebrate, too, because their success is a testament of truth and survival. And it gives us hope.

It was never BTS’s job to fill a void for those of us who grew up without seeing ourselves represented in pop culture. But by being so good at what they do that they couldn’t be ignored, they rose to the top and took us with them.

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Telling the Story of BTS

This piece originally appeared in our Daily newsletter. Sign up to receive the best of The New Yorker every day in your in-box .

The writer E. Tammy Kim recently published a piece about how BTS became arguably the most popular band in history . The newsletter editor Jessie Li spoke to Kim about what it was like to report on the Korean boy band and the thrill of seeing them live at their final concert before they announced, on June 14th, that they were taking a break.

What was your first introduction to BTS? What made you realize that this was a story you wanted to pursue?

I started noticing a few years ago that K-pop fandom was being eclipsed by a more specific BTS ARMY —which stands for “Adorable Representative M.C. for Youth”—fandom. But I sort of ignored it—thinking of myself as someone who reported on more “respectable” Korean topics—until I realized how silly that was. This is the biggest band in the world!

Devoted fans describe BTS as a form of self-care and therapy; they talk about how the band “saved” them, and how they “do so much for us.” How would you describe the special allure of BTS that distinguishes them from other bands, including other Korean boy bands?

There’s an intensely felt reciprocity between BTS and its fans. The members produce daily content, and shout-out and interact with fans on a very emotional level, which leads fans, in turn, to want to give back.

In April, you attended the final performance of the band’s “Permission to Dance” tour, in Las Vegas. What was the most surprising or unexpected moment you experienced when you attended the concert?

I’d never been in a concert attended by sixty-five thousand people—and then to have all those people, of every stripe, singing in Korean, my household tongue. I was overwhelmed!

If you had to devise a mixtape of just three BTS songs or music videos for a novice listener, what would you pick and why?

The music videos for “ Black Swan ,” “ IDOL ,” and “ ON ” are aesthetically thrilling and convey the band’s musical and choreographic range.

Having finally delved into the world of BTS (as you write, “nine years of music, dancing, articles, and tweets”), do you now identify as a member of BTS’s ARMY , as fans call themselves? And do you have a bias—a favorite member of the band?

ARMY ’s devotion is such that I wouldn’t dare call myself ARMY ! In terms of a bias, I can’t say for sure, but I really dig SUGA’s candor and appreciate the fact that, very early on, he wrote a song commemorating the Gwangju uprising of 1980, a key moment in South Korea’s democratization.

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The Astonishing Duality of BTS

In 2020, the world’s biggest band proved that it excels equally at massive spectacle and small-scale intimacy.

BTS has spent enough time in the pop-music stratosphere that it can be easy to forget, or surprising to learn, about the years they spent at the basement level. Back in 2014, for the first anniversary of their debut, the group’s seven members celebrated by cleaning the tiny dorm they shared and cooking a nice meal. They recorded a video of themselves for fans , soaking seaweed for a traditional Korean birthday soup, blowing up balloons, vacuuming the living room, and decorating a cake. Their then-19-year-old leader, RM, attempts to peel an onion. “Man, I wonder how my mother did this every day,” he says, sounding embarrassed. “The members always tell me not to drive or cook for the sake of world peace.”

Unbothered by the cramped quarters, they seem giddy about reaching a career milestone together. Watching this video now—six years, seven studio albums, and a mountain of broken industry records later—isn’t just an exercise in nostalgia for the early days of RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook. It’s a reminder of how the world’s biggest band became so popular in the first place, an object lesson in making the most of what little you have.

Read: I wasn’t a fan of BTS. And then I was.

Humility was useful in 2020, a year that brought the entertainment industry, as well as the world, to its knees. The coronavirus pandemic led to canceled tours and closed venues; when musicians performed, they did so from home or to empty seats. This new reality could’ve hurt BTS, an act known for putting on spectacular, high-energy live concerts. (Last year, they sold out a show at London’s Wembley Stadium in 90 minutes.) Used to thriving on elaborately designed stages before tens of thousands of people, they suddenly found themselves recording TV appearances from their practice space and executing grandiose comeback routines with only staffers cheering them on. But although BTS is no longer a ragtag rookie group from a tiny label, their modest beginnings prepared them to succeed during a year that would have had them shrink their ambitions.

Originally, 2020 promised a world tour for Map of the Soul: 7, the group’s most sophisticated album to date and one that fans hoped would land the pop stars their first Grammy nomination. “We’ve struggled this year,” Jin told me in a recent email interview with the group. “Most of the plans that we arranged two years ago have vanished, but in the midst of this, we worked hard and … did something meaningful.”

For BTS, something meaningful is getting nominated for a Grammy months after performing at the Grammys—and being the first Korean group to do either. They released their fifth Billboard Hot 200–topping album in a row with BE. They landed three No. 1 songs on the Hot 100, including their first English-language single, “Dynamite,” and their dark-horse hit, “Life Goes On.” Although “Dynamite” is BTS’s biggest song thus far, RM said the latter achievement made him feel “double the joy because, as you said, it was a Korean song. It’s a title given to us by our fans.” Unlike “Dynamite,” “Life Goes On” received virtually no radio play, so purchases and streams by fans pushed it to the top of the chart, making it the first Korean song to get there.

Read: BTS’s ‘Life Goes On’ did the impossible

The hyperbolic language that surrounds BTS today ( global phenomenon! K-pop sensation! First Korean act to …! ) can obscure the fact that the group doesn’t need big stadiums or epic set lists to reach audiences. They’re comfortable talking to fans via impromptu live-streams in their PJs and posting stripped-down song covers on Twitter. And unlike many idol groups, the members of BTS have always addressed the subject of mental health in their lyrics and in their lives. That candor resonated this year in particular, as they’ve spoken about feeling angry, helpless, and depressed.

For his birthday earlier this month, Jin released a solo track called “ Abyss ,” along with a note explaining that he wrote it after experiencing severe burnout and seeking counseling for anxious thoughts. When I asked whether he found this honesty difficult, he demurred. “I don’t know if it was hard to share this,” Jin said. “I think music is just another form of expression. If I hadn’t written the text on the blog, I think people might have only guessed I was in such a state.” Moved by his words and the song’s delicate beauty, fans shared their own struggles on social media. “If you know how to deal with your mental health, it’s fine to keep it to yourself,” Jin said. “But if you don’t, I think it’s good you open up because you might have someone around you who knows how to handle it.”

This week brought a duo of surprise SoundCloud releases also intended to comfort: Jimin’s “ Christmas Love ” and V’s “ Snow Flower .” Jimin, to accompany his bright, nostalgic track, wrote a message about feeling joy despite the social scripts of adulthood: “Instead of dismissing your feelings as ‘cringey’ or ‘childish,’ as we often do, I hope the day will come that we can all happily enjoy these emotions together.” In his note for the sweetly jazzy “Snow Flower,” V wrote, “This year felt like time stopped, and I think there will be many people who feel more anxiety and depression as the end of the year approaches. For at least today, I hope the white flowers come down to your hearts and you feel even just a little bit of warm comfort and happiness.”

Against this backdrop of vulnerability, BTS also offered audiences solace through eye-catching stages. With their tour postponed indefinitely, they reconfigured their songs for online consumption. A cozy summer performance , and a two-day fall concert attended by nearly 1 million, tested the boundaries of virtual live shows. “I don’t think our music or performance has been limited, but it’s just the way we deliver the best performance that has changed,” V said of the group’s pandemic-era work. In 2019, one of BTS’s best performances was a 37-minute set for South Korea’s Melon Music Awards, featuring live horses, seven solo stages, a lung-busting dance break, and a sea of extras. In 2020, many of their best performances were much smaller but no less memorable. For The Late Late Show With James Corden , they sang “Life Goes On” while walking (thanks to editing trickery) through the same room over and over again, conveying the claustrophobia of quarantine life.

When BTS returned to the Melon Music Awards this year, they wowed not with scale, but with precise choreography. Jimin and Jungkook performed an exquisite and technically difficult pas de deux during the song “Black Swan.” And the group unveiled an endlessly rewatchable Michael Jackson–esque dance break for “Dynamite.” “To be honest, I think that performance was close to perfection,” J-Hope told me. That means a lot coming from the group’s famously meticulous dance leader. “It wasn’t something that could be done by myself, but everything was in sync—the costumes, lights, choreography, camerawork, and the [other] members.”

Read: BTS’s ‘Dynamite’ could upend the music industry

Sometimes, putting on the “best performance” meant no dancing at all. For their NPR Tiny Desk Concert in September, BTS did the whole set (mostly) sitting down. And “Life Goes On” is their first title track to not have official choreography. “We think the song’s emotion goes better without any choreo,” Suga said of the understated single, which feels as though it was written not from idols to fans, but from one human to another. The rest of BE comes across that way too—raw and personal, like a mixtape designed for your closest friends. In his “Life Goes On” verse, Suga references a gorgeously introspective song from his latest solo mixtape called “ People ,” whose lyrics are similarly about taking an optimistic view of life’s vagaries. “The message of ‘People’ was something like ‘so what, life still goes on,’ so I wanted to extend that message,” Suga said.

At the end of 2020, as vaccine distribution begins, the notion that life goes on might sound more plausible than it once did. For BTS, as for everyone else, next year looks blurry, but it at least has a clear starting point. “2021 begins with the Grammys,” J-Hope said. “They say that the first step [of the year] is important, so I hope we have good results there.” BTS is nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for “Dynamite” and are expected to perform, although many fans were disappointed that Map of the Soul: 7 wasn’t recognized. “It would be such an honor to earn a nod for our album some day,” the group said.

BTS hopes that the rest of 2021 will bring with it the possibility of live concerts. “I want to show our fans our ‘On’ performance,” Jungkook said of their most extravagantly choreographed song. “If fans want to see ‘ Louder Than Bombs ,’ of course we can perform” it too, he added. The year ahead is also expected to yield more solo work, including highly anticipated projects from V and Jungkook. “This year has been packed so I couldn’t find that much time to work on it. I will try to perfect it next year,” V said of his mixtape. “When I revisit the songs I made, I am not fully satisfied. So I honestly don’t know just yet!” Jungkook said of his record’s release, though he has written or produced multiple songs this year, including the dreamy ballad “Still With You.”

Whatever happens at the Grammys, the nomination of “Dynamite” is a huge deal. As Jimin put it in a recent Vanity Fair interview , “Worldwide, when people look at us, they might not know what country we’re from. They might not know what little rural town us bumpkins came from. And yet, there we are on the highest stage, in the running to win an award.” That symbolism of the Grammys stage, the legitimacy it confers, is real. But BTS’s humble past is ever present. They seem, at all times, to remember where they came from, even as they seek to not be confined by the label of K-pop . “Producer Bang [Si-hyuk] once told me that I was ‘local,’ and I think that’s something that describes me accurately,” RM told me, referring to the founder of BTS’s label, Big Hit Entertainment. “I am also aware that, as millennials, limiting ourselves to a certain region is not desirable.” With BTS, the only constant is their duality—they’re “local” yet global, industry outsiders on the inside, equally skilled at intimacy and pageantry.

Read: The 16 best albums of 2020

This year might have looked very different for BTS if their bond hadn’t been forged in the crucible of those early years. “When life gets tough or it’s hard to find motivation in life, what keeps me going are the relationships and the energy I get from them—our members, the people around me and our fans are all so valuable,” Jimin told me. His sentiment is illustrated in the BE track, “ Skit ,” which documents the group’s reaction to learning of their first Hot 100 No. 1. The members yell and joke about skipping dance practice to grab a drink. The track ends with RM asking J-Hope, “Hope-ah, don’t you think this is what happiness is like?”

Six years ago, BTS gathered for a quieter sort of celebration. At the end of their first-anniversary video, they sit on their dorm-room floor around a table piled with delicious food, laughing. They sing “Happy Birthday” to themselves. Then, together, they begin to eat. It looks like happiness too.

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The Impact of BTS on Globalization

This essay will explore the impact of the South Korean pop group BTS on globalization. It will discuss how BTS has influenced cultural exchange, music industry trends, and global youth culture. The piece will analyze the role of social media, digital platforms, and BTS’s unique brand in spreading Korean culture worldwide, and how this phenomenon reflects broader trends in globalization and cultural diversity. Also at PapersOwl you can find more free essay examples related to Globalization.

How it works

Music has for centuries been a source of enjoyment and entertainment to the public. Throughout time, music has played an enormous role in a variety of important events throughout history. For instance, Woodstock brought together a huge gathering of youth who, as a whole, used music as a means of expressing their dissatisfaction with the politics of the age, and the Vietnam War. One of the most impactful uses for music has been to bring people together to enjoy the music.

One specific group doing this right now are none other than “the biggest boy band in the world” BTS. BTS is a Korean pop, or K-pop group, who have recently taken over music charts and social media with their music and messages. BTS is currently having a huge impact, not only on the entertainment industry but also on South Korean politics with their global success, messages of unity and empowerment, and their willingness to push the boundaries in a way that no other idol before them has.

BTS can credit a portion of their global success to their commitment and their ability to communicate across languages and cultures. They have an appeal that is difficult to explain when one looks at their popularity among youth of many cultures as well as other age groups. This success can be attributed to their ability to speak, sing and read in a variety of languages. They have performed, written and recorded albums in both English, Japanese as well as their native tongue. ( Bruner) This has been an enormous factor in the way so many cultures have embraced their talent and their message. Fans of all ages have taken the music and started to learn new languages, have attempted to understand and relate to other cultures that otherwise they may never have been exposed to, and have become more interested in cultures other than their own and in traveling outside of their comfort zones. Kim Namjoon, the bands’ leader, was the first member to have an understanding of other cultures, particularly of the English language. He was successful in sharing with his bandmates and motivating and inspiring what has now become more of a movement than a genre. RM, as Namjoon is fondly referred to by fans, claims to have gained his knowledge of the language from the TV sitcom, “Friends”. (Bruner) He says he watched the show often with subtitles and then without and basically trained himself to understand the language in this manner. Exhibiting another way the creative pursuits are lending themselves to the advancement of globalization, the Internet makes it so much easier to see and share outlets that before were completely foreign to anyone who could not travel outside of their country. This global popularity is due to their fanbase, known as ARMY, and also due to how accessible their content is thanks to today’s technology and the internet. Some could argue that the passion that BTS’ ARMY has is unhealthy, and can cause a lapse in the engagement of these students in school. In a study done by The Department of Educational Sciences at the Bulent Ecevit University in Turkey on 365 students at a high school in the Gaziantep province, they found that lower engagement in school is due to students having an internet addiction.(Ta?)

Understanding that they have a special privilege of creative freedom rarely granted to entertainers from South Korea, BTS takes their gift very seriously. They use their platform to bring messages of empowerment, unity, and self-love to their fans the world over. They also address more political issues such as poverty and the difference that millennials face from baby boomers in such things as purchasing a home or paying for a college education. The band, for this reason, has been recognized for their social justice efforts and are esteemed highly in their country for their work.

BTS also address social justice issues financially. They have been impactful in a number of ways financially one of which is the campaigns that they themselves engineer and carry out to raise funds for charities and issues that they themselves feel strongly about. One such campaign was the End Violence campaign that served to help youth remain free of violent interactions in their lives. This undertaking resulted in BTS being asked to speak to and address the United Nations Summit. Kim Namjoon was the speaker on the bands’ behalf and he addressed youth in his speech pleading that they “Speak Themselves” as in standing up for themselves and their rights and safety.

South Korea has a mandatory military requirement that all males 28 years of age much enlist and serve in the military for a number of years. The bands impact on globalization, possibly even bringing us closer than ever to world peace, has led the country to take a look at and possibly reexamine the requirement when an individual or group is making an even greater positive impact on the country and the world in other ways. This is yet another way the band is influencing the culture of both their own country and others as well. Although this has been discussed as a possibility and even exempting the group as the oldest member will soon be 28, fans and other speculate that given the opportunity to be exempted, the bands since of duty and loyalty would lead to them taking the military route anyway. Also, because there is negative stigma within their culture and others that view not taking their military service time as productive, contributing citizens of the conservative South Korea.

While some would argue that the band is simply kids pop music with no substance and no intended impactful meaning, a simple evaluation of the facts I’ve presented here lead to a far different conclusion. Thinking outside the box leads one to realize that without a doubt the band and possibly even the genre is bring the cultures closer together and making it interesting for folks to learn more not just about their neighbors but about other countries, Helping us to realize that we are all just flesh and bone and that we are far more alike that we are different. Giving us an idea of how other cultures function, of how we relate to and empathize with one another. Seeing the other guy, as a fellow human, rather than a “foreigner” would potentially bring us one step closer to globalization and one step closer to world peace.

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BTS's Jungkook Talks About His Admiration For ARMY, How He's Changed Over The Past 10 Years, And More

In a recent interview and pictorial for Vogue Korea, Jungkook talked about his journey and growth as a member of BTS .

As the cover stars of the magazine’s January 2022 issue, each of the seven BTS members sat down for a separate interview.

Jungkook started off by discussing how he protects his worldview. Public figures usually undergo many different influences, making it hard for them to solidify their own worldviews. That also goes for those who have to mold themselves from a young age in order to achieve a certain goal. However, Jungkook is different. His activities outside BTS suggests that he has very clear ideas about what he wants to do.

The idol explained, “I’ve never decided, ‘I’m going to live this way,’ but it’s clear that I want to live according to my will. Even if there’s a life after this one, I won’t be able to remember it, and this is the only life I’ve been given right now. On top of that, it’s a short one. Of course, I should never do something that everyone agrees is wrong, but in the realm of diversity, I want to live my own way. I established these thoughts early on.”

The interviewer said, “They say that life is short, but art is eternal. What is eternal to you?” Jungkook answered, “Even if what I do is art, is it the most important thing? Isn’t life itself more important? The time I lived remains intact to me. That’s why life is both finite and eternal.”

Jungkook is known for being gifted in many areas besides music such as art, photography, and video editing. Some fans wish he would showcase his talents in them more, and he humbly replied, “Those are just some of my interests. I don’t need to put them all into practice.”

Then he shared, “I have realistic thoughts and idealistic thoughts, and they always co-exist. Before I used to be greedy and did what I wanted to do without giving it much thought. However, just like life and human relationships, your thoughts change. These days, I’m more realistic. What I need to do is more important than what I want to do.”

In addition, Jungkook doesn’t want to reveal his creations until he is fully satisfied with them. He explained, “They’ll never be perfect. But I at least don’t want to show people what I’m not satisfied with. There will be a day when I will work hard and show them to the public. Right now, I don’t have the leisure to focus on completing them.”

With BTS, Jungkook’s life changed drastically. In 2014, BTS invited random people to watch their free concert in LA. It was part of an TV show, but they sincerely ran around the streets and handed out flyers. Now in 2021, the tickets to their LA concert at SoFi Stadium sold out in minutes.

Jungkook expressed his disbelief about the huge changes, saying, “I’m always curious about why people love us and get excited about us. I’ve been thinking about how I got to this point. Firstly, I met great members! Secondly, we have a CEO who really loves music. Apart from those reasons, perhaps it’s because the synergy of BTS’s songs, lyrics, messages, performances, and public appearances attracted more and more fans. However, I couldn’t wrap my mind around this situation recently. I guess it’s because we’re unable to meet the audience members in person. As much as I can’t believe it, I’ll have to work harder.”

Jungkook also shared his admiration for ARMY (fandom name), who has been putting BTS’s positive messages into action. Some of ARMY’s good works are environmental projects to revive rainforests and whales and fundraising for vulnerable groups including refugees and the LGBTQ community.

Jungkook commented that he’s both amazed and intrigued by ARMY. He remarked, “I’m just a person who really loves to sing and dance, but ARMY is achieving great things for us. I’m just grateful for their support, but they’re also doing such wonderful things. They started doing these activities to support BTS, but it’s deeply touching to see them enjoying doing good things and being happy about them. I’m personally inspired by them.”

He thought about how to repay ARMY but couldn’t find an answer for a while. He said, “I didn’t think there was anything special I could do. I’ve come to the conclusion that being good at my job, as I’ve been doing, is what I can do for ARMY.”

Jungkook debuted at the tender age of 15, and he’s gone through various experiences that helped him grow and mature into who he is today. His members once told him, “It’s great that you haven’t changed at all.”

When asked what has changed the most and what has remained the same over the past decade, the youngest BTS member replied that he thinks everything has changed except for one thing. He explained, “Just like when I was little, I am still warmhearted and trust people well. I give my all to those I love until they break my heart. My members acknowledged this. Sometimes, I worry that something will happen, but fortunately, I have my members to lean on. But if I rely on them too much, it’s like I’m hiding behind them, so I need to find a balance.”

Finally, Jungkook talked about the upcoming decade. In BTS’s hit song “Permission to Dance,” there is a part that goes, “We don’t need to worry. ‘Cause when we fall, we know how to land.” When asked if he thought about how to land, he commented, “There are definitely many people who are greater than me, and as I get older and time goes by, I will have no choice but to go down. But I don’t think about landing. I have a lot of things I want to do. I want to expand my territory and climb up higher.”

Jungkook’s full interview is available in the January 2022 issue of Vogue Korea magazine. Check out RM’s interview  here , Jin’s interview  here , Suga’s interview  here , J-Hope’s interview  here , and Jimin’s interview  here , and V’s interview here !

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