Is BTS That Special? … What Sets Them Apart?
For me, who has to deliver the most “hot” news every morning, the word ‘idol’ was a weak existence. Although there are those hundreds of aspiring people who make it through to be broadcasted live for an audition and become the object of envy, that was sufficient enough in terms of worldwide news that targets many demographics. Although it’s centered on pop culture, it’s difficult to think about idols that emerge with the title ‘Hallyu’ without attaching the criticisms on their ability to make plans and export.
My email has been filled with media content sent by big agencies with the titles such as 'American Debut’, 'Number 1 on Charts’, and 'World Tour’ for a long time. During my school days, I filled my piggy bank so that I could go to an idol group’s concert with my friends, and even joined their official fan club. But these days, I can only be cautious to some degree when it comes to 'Hallyu Idols’.
“I don’t know Korean, but I know BTS”
But one day out of the blue, I met BTS at an EBS Educational Broadcast. On the well-followed program 'World Theme Travel’, a girl from Tahiti happily greeted a Korean production crew member by saying “I’m a BTS fan”. For a small village that couldn’t possibly be able to broadcast things like a BTS Special Documentary, it went to show the strength of “Hallyu fever” that BTS was bringing.
They’re an idol group that has 'something that sets them apart’. There’s no news that say they came from a big agency or did a showcase with other artists, and it wasn’t like any of their members received attention for coming abroad and speaking fluently in a foreign language. They had a completely different start compared to those who belong to large agencies and had impressive marketing abilities to make their names known before debut.
But they were undeterred and went on to have 4 of their albums enter the Billboard 200 in a row. A New York Times article read, “How did a group that sings and raps in Korean sell out 2 shows in New York?”, garnering even more curiosity towards their story.
“Is 'BTS’ really that special?”
Before I met BTS, I’ve delivered news about them on the morning news 3 times. This past March, news about BTS began to emerge on their “footsteps overseas” rather than domestic entertainment. Particularly, interviews involving Billboard, which measures the flow of pop culture around the world, were outstanding.
Aside from the announcement that notified them of their interview, there were 7,000 SNS users that tuned in to watch their interview live. This is the highest record of viewers for a Billboard live broadcast. BTS’ musical abilities have already proven themselves by entering the Billboard Album chart, but the new interest they were garnering about themselves have already surpassed that of a “world star”.
Thankfully (!), surprisingly (!), BTS was the only Korean group to be nominated for a Billboard Award, and after their win, talk about BTS changed from “Are they that special?” to “It seems they are special”. Awareness of the group began to spread even beyond the news.
“Consistency and sincerity produces the best content”
The BTS members made a comment in regards to their BBMA win. It wasn’t about anything else, just steadiness and sincerity. Although they didn’t start communicating with fans through SNS as a 'strategy’, it seems like their consistency and sincerity shown on stage has helped them get to where they are.
“We just wanted to tell the story of what the young people living in this time are feeling. But there’s also certain emotions that young people all around the world of the same age feel. That’s why our story seems to invoke similar feelings, and has them realizing that these far-away friends from Korea are taking to a cool stage to tell other people’s stories. That’s why we’ve been gaining attention. I believe that sincerity produces the very best content. (Rap Monster)”
The 'adults’ who have listened to the 'School Trilogy’ and 'Youth Trilogy’ music and watched their music videos know. The songs speak even to the times of my youth and the dreams and thoughts I had back then. Different from the groups that put out hook songs that fill our ears, their music has spread across the world because it contains 'our story’. The narratives that they have put into their music and music videos only makes us garner more interest and empathy for the group BTS.
When KBS Main News wished to have the opportunity to introduce them as an idol group that was different from the others, BTS was able to show their sincerity by contacting them just before their arrival and lend a bit of their time.
They are the first winners to raise the bar since the Top Social Artist category was created and the award was handed out on stage. They are currently the top influential artist in terms of worldwide SNS. The members followed by modestly saying this was all due to it “being better times”.
“I believe it’s because the times have gotten better.
“The reason why I think the times have really improved is because whatever stories we share, whatever Tweet we post, whatever we say, they’re immediately translated. That’s why I think that if the contents are good, then there’s a better chance of winning. (Suga)”
It’s true that the world has changed. Using social networks, people around the world are able to break language barriers and time barriers and share their thoughts in real-time. The offense pushed forward by capital can no longer compare.
BTS seeks out their fans through their social networks by focusing on music and other content. The 'global fandom’ has become more powerful than any sort of capital. They have surpassed 6 million Twitter followers and have millions of followers on Youtube and Instagram. BTS’ music and behind-the-scene stories has given them the impression of “friends I want to meet” rather than mechanical idols. BTS has provided a vital place for people to talk to each other.
“Should we give a notice of the KBS News Appearance?”
“Our BTS! What time is the news?” After yesterday’s portal-site Q&A corner (!), reporters’ emails were flooded with an inquiry. The anecdote article titled “BTS KBS News Appearance Notice” was made this way.
The time for one news report is 1 minute and 20 seconds. Unmistakably, it’s an insufficient amount of time to deliver news on their music, content, and member anecdotes. I could only focus on how they broke the traditional entry path taken for K-Pop, and how they gained the most influence through SNS in order to earn the Billboard trophy.
“Something I’d like to brag about in regards to our fans is that even if we upload in Korean, there are many fans we’re thankful to around the world that translate it for us. We’re working hard in order to live up to their expectations. (Rap Monster)”
When BTS takes to SNS to announce a news appearance, how does it spread? I remembered the photo reporters, followers, and global fans who would wait for any news on BTS. At the end of the interview, Jung Kook happily agreed to this 'experiment’.
While hundreds and thousands of people press the “Like” and “Share” button, there are also different translations of the news that is spread across the world. BTS has shown that if you have good content and “even if you’re mainly active in Korea”, you can still become a global artist.
“We will sing in Korean. But we still study other languages.”
Often when discussing 'globalization’, you can’t disregard the language barrier, which is something a 'global artist’ must definitely take into account. Even with 'good music’ and a 'strong support group’, wouldn’t there be situations where language was lacking when meeting fans and giving overseas interviews during their world tour?
“We will continue to release albums in Korea, and continue to sing songs in Korean like we have been doing. Rather than trying a different method because we’re getting a good reaction, we should focus on making good music. (Suga)”
Member “Rap Monster”, who was in charge of the interview, gave a sincere reply.
“In order to live up to the thankfulness, I will work even harder to study other languages. When I first had an interview with Reuters in 2014, I memorized two words for two hours and did the interview. But as I kept learning, along with the fact that I want to improve, I also feel responsibility because if we do end up walking on that Billboard stage, I can’t be stuttering. (Rap Monster)”
Millions of followers, rebellion of those lower in society, Billboard… These various things make up BTS. I sincerely wait for the day for these boys, who have overcome the prejudice of being an 'idol’ and created a place for people to enjoy this universal story, to return to KBS News again.
[orig. article]
Trans cr: Christie @ allforbts
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