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glitteryvOkay, so let me begin by saying what this isn't: a BTS primer. (There's a really good one I'll link to below.) If anything, this is part me making sure to archive my journey into becoming ARMY [a BTS fan] and part random post.
I hadn't planned to get into a new fandom? Even more, K-pop was nowhere near my list of "things I gotta check out." Obviously, I'd been aware of K-pop--you can't really move around any fannish spaces for a length of time without osmosing bits and pieces of various fandoms. So, in a way, I "knew" of groups like SuperJunior, EXO, SHINee, and (later on) Blackpink and BTS. However, I'd never listened to their music, had any idea of the members' names or what they looked like, etc.
Several years later, it's early June 2019 and I get the notif for a Charli XCX tweet in which she talks abt a surprise collabo with BTS. I was SUPER PUMPED about it since, her two collabos with Rita Ora aside (which I ignore because they aren't good at all), Charli tends to work with really interesting ppl (with a lot of them being queer and/or POCs.) It is a good way for me to find/discover new artists, some which go on becoming faves.
Dream Glow ended up in really heavy rotation on my phone (which is how I listen to music). IIRC, I had it on repeat from the time I'd wake up until I went to sleep for something like 3 weeks? This was DESPITE THE FACT THAT I ONLY UNDERSTOOD HALF OF THE SONG (because the other half was sung in Korean). IDEK, Y'ALL.
Eventually, I moved on to something else. Tho, now that I'd actually listened to BTS (or, really, 3 out of the 7 members), I began to, you know, NOTICE THAT THEY WERE POPPING UP IN A LOT OF PLACES. US music award shows, random TV shows, SNL, etc. Still, it wasn't enough to make me curious about them. Yet.
Fast-forward to Tuesday, Feb. 24th. It's early in the a.m. (like barely 7) and I'm doing some stuff while a Grimes video playlist is on YT. When I go check out Discord, someone mentions BTS which, for whatever reason, reminded me of this video below:
So I stopped the Grimes playlist, searched for this video, linked to it on Discord, and went back to Grimes.
Looking back, I remember thinking John Cena's barely concealed annoyed reaction to January Jones' LOL, U MAD? one was quirky-to-lulzy. Nowadays, however, I totes understand his Muppet!face and deffo feel for him.
MOVING ON.
That night, I went back to YT to check out new uploads from channels I'm subscribed to. The home page had a "well, since you were listening to Grimes AND you searched for John Cena squeeing about BTS, mayyyybe you'd like to check out these BTS videos?" thing.
NGL, at first, I was like LOL, NO and then I kinda paused and thoughtwhy not? (It's likely that I thought I'd bounce from the videos halfway through? IDK). Two hours and several BTS videos later and I was <3______<3 so hard that I had to take a moment and go splash water on my face.
A+ JOB, YT ALGORITHM!
Here be the first 3 mvs Iam infinitely grateful 'blame' for my getting into BTS
ON
This is the first mv version for this song. If you ask me, it has what I'd affectionately call a quasi-pretentious title ("ON: Kinetic Manifesto Film: Come Prima). It's the lead single from their newest album (2020's Map of the Soul: 7) and SHEER VISUAL JOY:
I'm an absolute SUCKER for great dancers, so imagine HOW HARD I squeed when I found this dance practice (where you can get an ever better sense of the high energy/intensity level BTS brings to the table):
Boy With Luv (featuring Halsey)
The clincher in my journey to ARMY was the first version (out of 2) mv for this song. More specifically, V | Kim Taehyung looking at the camera while he licks his lips 29 seconds into the song. (Later on, I realized that he has a habit of licking his lips in mvs. He deffo did a dirrrrrrrty one in the ON Kinetic Manifesto mv I linked to above. When I saw it, I felt my libido shoot into the stratosphere)...but I digress.
This song is an ETERNAL BOP no matter how you cut it. The lyrics are sweet, the melody's bouncy, and the dudes are at their Softest Ever. As soon as I finished watching it the first time, I went online to find out WHO WAS THAT DUDE WITH THE BLUE HAIR. Much to my annoyance, it turns out that a lot of the members have had blue hair at one point or another. Eventually, I did figured out it was V. *wipes brow*
There's a dance practice mv too, ofc! This is the choreo they use the most often whenever they perform this song. Warning for: a lot of squeaking sounds.
OK, so what was it that drew you IN, Luce?
It was a case of really good timing (the group was in the middle of their latest comeback, i.e a new cycle when K-pop groups drop a new album/song/EP) + their singing and dancing hitting my competency kink INCREDIBLY HARD + the dudes being ridic hot while also having generally charming public personas + their bond.
Also the content. There's an extraordinary amount of it even before you get to fanworks.
An off the top of my head list:
1. What I like to call the "Main Stuff": albums, live performances, interviews, music videos. 7 years worth of it and counting;
2. Run BTS!: a 100+-episode weekly show that has the dudes do skits and/or competing against each other. Ongoing. This show is tremendously effective in winning you over because the dudes are highly-competitive and, even though they're surrounded by cameras, their personalities truly come to light in often LOLARIOUS ways;
3. Bon Voyage: a 32-episode travel vlog. Sometimes they go to Malta and hang at the beach, sometimes they drive to the New Zealand countryside inside an RV. IIRC, the lastest season just finished airing;
4. 2 docuseries (with a third one dropping soon) and a concert movie;
5. BTS Gayo: 15-episode variety show around K-pop. Last episode aired in 2017;
6. Bangtan Bombs: Many behind-the-scenes videos of performances + photoshoots + moments from the members' lives. Also enough making of music videos to keep you busy. The BBs goes back to the beginning of the group, so there are hundreds (if not at least over 1k) videos;
7. Vlives posts: BTS has a channel on this streaming service for K-pop groups and idols. There are C-O-U-N-T-L-E-S-S videos of one or more members chatting with fans for a bit;
8. Weverse posts: Big Hit (the record company's) newest streaming service. Members tend to do posts over here a la Twitter (BTS has one public twitter account under the group name. Members do occasionally post over there; per what I've seen, a lot of the latest tweets are announcements, tho. The members have way more ~interaction on Weverse);
And there's other stuff I know I'm forgetting because I'm baby ARMY and have barely managed to make a dent on the content. X________X
Fanworks range from fic, art, video edits, ship videos, YT reactions to mvs and performances, cosplay, etc.
ANYHOODLE, somewhere up there I spoke of the BTS bond being one of the things that pinged me. If I sit down and think about it, that was the perfect cherry on top as far as I'm concerned. See, the thing is that BTS has an underdog vibe to this day, despite the fact that all the dudes are actual!millionaires.
Ridic short story on how BTS came to be:
So, back in 2010, Bang Si-hyuk (or Hit Man as he's more generally known), founder and owner of Big Hit Entertainment, began scouting for a new rap group. BTS went thru abt 30+ trainees until finally settling into the current lineup (which has gone unchanged over the past 7 years). Up to and even a few months (?) after their debut in 2013, all 7 dudes lived in tiny (and I do mean tiny!) one-bedroom apartment (they slept in bunk beds). When they weren't at singing/dancing/school lessons, they were at the tiny!apartment.
As an independent company, Big Hit Entertainment focused only on BTS, figuring out ways to market them (esp. on social media), tapping international fans, etc. It wasn't until AFTER their first anniversary as a group that BTS moved into 'bigger' dorms where they divvied up into duos and trios roommies. They've moved to actual bigger dorms at least twice since then. Tho, SINCE INTENSE BOND IS INTENSE, there are 3 members who have bought penthouses within walking distance of the latest dorm. Because OF COURSE.
Some of the bond is, imo, an intentional side result of K-pop idol training. The huge amount of hours spending together + their age (Jungkook was the youngest at 16 when BTS debuted in 2013; Jin was the oldest at 21) deffo created that connection. OTOH, a lot of it is due to chemistry among all 7. Also the constant hugging, cuddling, etc between the 7 has only strengthened. Which isn't to say that they don't fight and/or have tense moments. They do, but even when things go sideways, the members always reconnect/smooth things over.
All right, so what's the fandom like?
Ginormous would be a good way to put it? TBH, I can't even pinpoint a place as THE main hub. Basically, whatever social media platform you like, you are sure to find BTS somewhere on it.
In my admittedly short experience, I can say that ppl have been welcoming/friendly--which made me reassess my v. sad earlier prejudice against K-pop fans. See, for years, I'd only heard the actual!terrible things XYZ K-pop fan had done (including stalking, etc).
HOWEVUH, if one looks closer at ALL FANDOMS, there will always be at least 2 ppl who do actual!terrible things. From the big ones (MCU, SW, etc) to even 'mellow' ones (due South, Jane Austen fandom, etc). Every fandom has wonky ppl in it alongside wonderful folks.
If you're a multishipper, then you're in luck. There are at least 50 different ships to get into before starting on OT3+. I have 0 idea what monoshippers do in this fandom (tho I'm sure they are doing okay? I was OT7 from the get go (though I deffo have my bias and bias wreckersssss), so there we are.)
One thing I have to mention is that I was also terribly lucky in that there were a handful (I can count them with one hand) of folks I knew in other fandoms who are also ARMY, so I've felt less nervous abt the fandom (overwhelming size and all) than I did when, say, I got into MCU (and didn't know ANYONE.) My advice, if you happen to like BTS or any other K-pop group, is to ask around. You NEVER know who might be into XYZ kpop artist(s).
Also, before I forget, no, the fact that most of the songs* are in Korean (with a sprinkling of English) AND that the guys speak Korean doesn't bother me one bit. There are AMAZE ppl in the fandom who do superb fanwork translating from Korean and adding subtitles for songs and other media into anything from English to Spanish to German and Tagalog. This is one of the truly global fandoms in a way I have never, ever seen. Which makes me feel terribly humble and soft in the darkest corners of my heart. IDEK.
* There are a handful of singles (especially V's) that are sung completely in English. BUT, for the most part, BTS sings 98% of the time in Korean.
FTR, my starting point is the current (2020) comeback and I go as far back as the HYYH era. The dudes (though most of them were in their late teens) look a bit too babby for me in the School Trilogy era, but that's more on me than anything else. *Hands*
So I'm closing with some recs andtwo 3 more videos.
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adoremouse wrote this AMAZING primer that ranges from pre-debut to 2019. It has a gajizillion links and pics and deffo will give you a clearer idea of what I meant abt the METRIC TONS of content I mentioned upthread.
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stichomancey wrote THE definite song-by-song review of Map of the Soul: 7. I have read that post a few times while listening to the album (which it's on perma-repeat because OF COURSE IT IS. I'm slowly making my way thru BTS' discography but, for a variety of reasons, MotS: 7 is my BTS album (the same way that Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys is my MCR album, you know?)
Next up is this moment of BTS dancing to their song "DNA" at twice the speed. It makes me grin every time I watch it:
Next, there's this is a superb video that shows a bit of the guys' individual personalities as well as live singing talents. It's adorbs and lulzy too.
Interestingly enough, I've realized that James Corben is the ONLY US talk show person who has fun interviews with the group. Probably because he's a fan + he avoids asking them the same questions as other US interviewers (like the dreaded "So WHY aren't your songs in English?" Me: IT'S STABBITY TIME!!!!). Also, he tends to give them things to do so they don't have to focus on their English pronunciation. (To date, Kim Namjoon | RM is the most fluent one in the group.)
[There are SO MANY US interviews I've had to bounce from because they are HELLA MOTTSY TO WATCH. I'm unsure if it's me being extremely sensitive to this or what, but I can't help but pick up an undercurrent of weird racism (not blatant, just so much Othering of BTS) in the US interviews I've watched (aside from the Corben ones. Go figure.)]
Anyhoo, this is a tremendously charming video and one that, even after 2k words of me going on abt this AWESOMECAKES group, is deffo worth checking out:
Finally, this is a short Bangtan Bomb that's recent-ish (March 4th). It shows a bit of what the dudes are like offstage. I love Eternally Patient!Jin, the maknae (younger members) being gentle trolls, and other hyung (elder member) Hoseok going along with teasing Jin.
I do have, you know, some ~thoughts abt BTS from a performative angle, their bond (from both shippy and non-shippy perspectives), etc. But: a. I legit just got here and b. I deffo gotta do a bit of research before I post anything from a deconstruction standpoint. IJS.
I hadn't planned to get into a new fandom? Even more, K-pop was nowhere near my list of "things I gotta check out." Obviously, I'd been aware of K-pop--you can't really move around any fannish spaces for a length of time without osmosing bits and pieces of various fandoms. So, in a way, I "knew" of groups like SuperJunior, EXO, SHINee, and (later on) Blackpink and BTS. However, I'd never listened to their music, had any idea of the members' names or what they looked like, etc.
Several years later, it's early June 2019 and I get the notif for a Charli XCX tweet in which she talks abt a surprise collabo with BTS. I was SUPER PUMPED about it since, her two collabos with Rita Ora aside (which I ignore because they aren't good at all), Charli tends to work with really interesting ppl (with a lot of them being queer and/or POCs.) It is a good way for me to find/discover new artists, some which go on becoming faves.
Dream Glow ended up in really heavy rotation on my phone (which is how I listen to music). IIRC, I had it on repeat from the time I'd wake up until I went to sleep for something like 3 weeks? This was DESPITE THE FACT THAT I ONLY UNDERSTOOD HALF OF THE SONG (because the other half was sung in Korean). IDEK, Y'ALL.
Eventually, I moved on to something else. Tho, now that I'd actually listened to BTS (or, really, 3 out of the 7 members), I began to, you know, NOTICE THAT THEY WERE POPPING UP IN A LOT OF PLACES. US music award shows, random TV shows, SNL, etc. Still, it wasn't enough to make me curious about them. Yet.
Fast-forward to Tuesday, Feb. 24th. It's early in the a.m. (like barely 7) and I'm doing some stuff while a Grimes video playlist is on YT. When I go check out Discord, someone mentions BTS which, for whatever reason, reminded me of this video below:
So I stopped the Grimes playlist, searched for this video, linked to it on Discord, and went back to Grimes.
Looking back, I remember thinking John Cena's barely concealed annoyed reaction to January Jones' LOL, U MAD? one was quirky-to-lulzy. Nowadays, however, I totes understand his Muppet!face and deffo feel for him.
MOVING ON.
That night, I went back to YT to check out new uploads from channels I'm subscribed to. The home page had a "well, since you were listening to Grimes AND you searched for John Cena squeeing about BTS, mayyyybe you'd like to check out these BTS videos?" thing.
NGL, at first, I was like LOL, NO and then I kinda paused and thought
A+ JOB, YT ALGORITHM!
Here be the first 3 mvs I
ON
This is the first mv version for this song. If you ask me, it has what I'd affectionately call a quasi-pretentious title ("ON: Kinetic Manifesto Film: Come Prima). It's the lead single from their newest album (2020's Map of the Soul: 7) and SHEER VISUAL JOY:
I'm an absolute SUCKER for great dancers, so imagine HOW HARD I squeed when I found this dance practice (where you can get an ever better sense of the high energy/intensity level BTS brings to the table):
Boy With Luv (featuring Halsey)
The clincher in my journey to ARMY was the first version (out of 2) mv for this song. More specifically, V | Kim Taehyung looking at the camera while he licks his lips 29 seconds into the song. (Later on, I realized that he has a habit of licking his lips in mvs. He deffo did a dirrrrrrrty one in the ON Kinetic Manifesto mv I linked to above. When I saw it, I felt my libido shoot into the stratosphere)...but I digress.
This song is an ETERNAL BOP no matter how you cut it. The lyrics are sweet, the melody's bouncy, and the dudes are at their Softest Ever. As soon as I finished watching it the first time, I went online to find out WHO WAS THAT DUDE WITH THE BLUE HAIR. Much to my annoyance, it turns out that a lot of the members have had blue hair at one point or another. Eventually, I did figured out it was V. *wipes brow*
There's a dance practice mv too, ofc! This is the choreo they use the most often whenever they perform this song. Warning for: a lot of squeaking sounds.
OK, so what was it that drew you IN, Luce?
It was a case of really good timing (the group was in the middle of their latest comeback, i.e a new cycle when K-pop groups drop a new album/song/EP) + their singing and dancing hitting my competency kink INCREDIBLY HARD + the dudes being ridic hot while also having generally charming public personas + their bond.
Also the content. There's an extraordinary amount of it even before you get to fanworks.
An off the top of my head list:
1. What I like to call the "Main Stuff": albums, live performances, interviews, music videos. 7 years worth of it and counting;
2. Run BTS!: a 100+-episode weekly show that has the dudes do skits and/or competing against each other. Ongoing. This show is tremendously effective in winning you over because the dudes are highly-competitive and, even though they're surrounded by cameras, their personalities truly come to light in often LOLARIOUS ways;
3. Bon Voyage: a 32-episode travel vlog. Sometimes they go to Malta and hang at the beach, sometimes they drive to the New Zealand countryside inside an RV. IIRC, the lastest season just finished airing;
4. 2 docuseries (with a third one dropping soon) and a concert movie;
5. BTS Gayo: 15-episode variety show around K-pop. Last episode aired in 2017;
6. Bangtan Bombs: Many behind-the-scenes videos of performances + photoshoots + moments from the members' lives. Also enough making of music videos to keep you busy. The BBs goes back to the beginning of the group, so there are hundreds (if not at least over 1k) videos;
7. Vlives posts: BTS has a channel on this streaming service for K-pop groups and idols. There are C-O-U-N-T-L-E-S-S videos of one or more members chatting with fans for a bit;
8. Weverse posts: Big Hit (the record company's) newest streaming service. Members tend to do posts over here a la Twitter (BTS has one public twitter account under the group name. Members do occasionally post over there; per what I've seen, a lot of the latest tweets are announcements, tho. The members have way more ~interaction on Weverse);
And there's other stuff I know I'm forgetting because I'm baby ARMY and have barely managed to make a dent on the content. X________X
Fanworks range from fic, art, video edits, ship videos, YT reactions to mvs and performances, cosplay, etc.
ANYHOODLE, somewhere up there I spoke of the BTS bond being one of the things that pinged me. If I sit down and think about it, that was the perfect cherry on top as far as I'm concerned. See, the thing is that BTS has an underdog vibe to this day, despite the fact that all the dudes are actual!millionaires.
Ridic short story on how BTS came to be:
So, back in 2010, Bang Si-hyuk (or Hit Man as he's more generally known), founder and owner of Big Hit Entertainment, began scouting for a new rap group. BTS went thru abt 30+ trainees until finally settling into the current lineup (which has gone unchanged over the past 7 years). Up to and even a few months (?) after their debut in 2013, all 7 dudes lived in tiny (and I do mean tiny!) one-bedroom apartment (they slept in bunk beds). When they weren't at singing/dancing/school lessons, they were at the tiny!apartment.
As an independent company, Big Hit Entertainment focused only on BTS, figuring out ways to market them (esp. on social media), tapping international fans, etc. It wasn't until AFTER their first anniversary as a group that BTS moved into 'bigger' dorms where they divvied up into duos and trios roommies. They've moved to actual bigger dorms at least twice since then. Tho, SINCE INTENSE BOND IS INTENSE, there are 3 members who have bought penthouses within walking distance of the latest dorm. Because OF COURSE.
Some of the bond is, imo, an intentional side result of K-pop idol training. The huge amount of hours spending together + their age (Jungkook was the youngest at 16 when BTS debuted in 2013; Jin was the oldest at 21) deffo created that connection. OTOH, a lot of it is due to chemistry among all 7. Also the constant hugging, cuddling, etc between the 7 has only strengthened. Which isn't to say that they don't fight and/or have tense moments. They do, but even when things go sideways, the members always reconnect/smooth things over.
All right, so what's the fandom like?
Ginormous would be a good way to put it? TBH, I can't even pinpoint a place as THE main hub. Basically, whatever social media platform you like, you are sure to find BTS somewhere on it.
In my admittedly short experience, I can say that ppl have been welcoming/friendly--which made me reassess my v. sad earlier prejudice against K-pop fans. See, for years, I'd only heard the actual!terrible things XYZ K-pop fan had done (including stalking, etc).
HOWEVUH, if one looks closer at ALL FANDOMS, there will always be at least 2 ppl who do actual!terrible things. From the big ones (MCU, SW, etc) to even 'mellow' ones (due South, Jane Austen fandom, etc). Every fandom has wonky ppl in it alongside wonderful folks.
If you're a multishipper, then you're in luck. There are at least 50 different ships to get into before starting on OT3+. I have 0 idea what monoshippers do in this fandom (tho I'm sure they are doing okay? I was OT7 from the get go (though I deffo have my bias and bias wreckersssss), so there we are.)
One thing I have to mention is that I was also terribly lucky in that there were a handful (I can count them with one hand) of folks I knew in other fandoms who are also ARMY, so I've felt less nervous abt the fandom (overwhelming size and all) than I did when, say, I got into MCU (and didn't know ANYONE.) My advice, if you happen to like BTS or any other K-pop group, is to ask around. You NEVER know who might be into XYZ kpop artist(s).
Also, before I forget, no, the fact that most of the songs* are in Korean (with a sprinkling of English) AND that the guys speak Korean doesn't bother me one bit. There are AMAZE ppl in the fandom who do superb fanwork translating from Korean and adding subtitles for songs and other media into anything from English to Spanish to German and Tagalog. This is one of the truly global fandoms in a way I have never, ever seen. Which makes me feel terribly humble and soft in the darkest corners of my heart. IDEK.
* There are a handful of singles (especially V's) that are sung completely in English. BUT, for the most part, BTS sings 98% of the time in Korean.
FTR, my starting point is the current (2020) comeback and I go as far back as the HYYH era. The dudes (though most of them were in their late teens) look a bit too babby for me in the School Trilogy era, but that's more on me than anything else. *Hands*
So I'm closing with some recs and
Next up is this moment of BTS dancing to their song "DNA" at twice the speed. It makes me grin every time I watch it:
Next, there's this is a superb video that shows a bit of the guys' individual personalities as well as live singing talents. It's adorbs and lulzy too.
Interestingly enough, I've realized that James Corben is the ONLY US talk show person who has fun interviews with the group. Probably because he's a fan + he avoids asking them the same questions as other US interviewers (like the dreaded "So WHY aren't your songs in English?" Me: IT'S STABBITY TIME!!!!). Also, he tends to give them things to do so they don't have to focus on their English pronunciation. (To date, Kim Namjoon | RM is the most fluent one in the group.)
[There are SO MANY US interviews I've had to bounce from because they are HELLA MOTTSY TO WATCH. I'm unsure if it's me being extremely sensitive to this or what, but I can't help but pick up an undercurrent of weird racism (not blatant, just so much Othering of BTS) in the US interviews I've watched (aside from the Corben ones. Go figure.)]
Anyhoo, this is a tremendously charming video and one that, even after 2k words of me going on abt this AWESOMECAKES group, is deffo worth checking out:
Finally, this is a short Bangtan Bomb that's recent-ish (March 4th). It shows a bit of what the dudes are like offstage. I love Eternally Patient!Jin, the maknae (younger members) being gentle trolls, and other hyung (elder member) Hoseok going along with teasing Jin.
I do have, you know, some ~thoughts abt BTS from a performative angle, their bond (from both shippy and non-shippy perspectives), etc. But: a. I legit just got here and b. I deffo gotta do a bit of research before I post anything from a deconstruction standpoint. IJS.
no subject
Date: 2022-11-02 12:12 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2022-11-02 03:47 pm (UTC)