i wasn’t really around for it, but it surfaces every now and then during petty drama and vapid catfights, about how namjoon used to be a poster child for ~problematic kpop behavior~. i’m not defending it. it was pretty bad. but as the anchor for bts, the fulcrum, the rock, whatever you want to call it-namjoon had to grow up the fastest, or at least give the impression that he was, and he did. whats striking is that he dropped his mixtape, RM, before i need u was released, back when everything was clouded with uncertainty and obscurity, and to my limited knowledge, i see it as his own personal transition from that old try-hard image and into a leader befitting of the group that defines the third hallyu wave. people don’t really give RM the credit it deserves. every song is packed with sophistication and depth, echoing with namjoon’s own inner turmoil and shifting growth, and ultimately it says “my music is here, and it is here to stay.” leader of bts isn’t a title to take lightly. namjoon sets the stage. his mixtape is the first.
agust d doesn’t drop in as turbulent as a time as RM does, and you’d figure that since bts found their footing it might’ve been more upbeat. it wasn’t: yoongi laid out his soul bare and raw, keeping it gritty and honest and defiantly anti idol. bts as a group was sailing into smoother waters, but yoongi wasn’t, not yet. throughout hyyh there was a spotlight on yoongi that showed what made him tick, but when you think about it, all his genuine and unfiltered intros would be the prelude to glossy and packaged tracks like i need u and run, keeping him in the shadow of his pop persona. i think that, back then, there was a more rampant stereotype of him: motionless min, grandpa, The One That Sleeps A Lot. not to say those aren’t facets of his personality, but as i entered the fandom around this time, i would watch episodes of rookie king and be taken aback by how open yoongi was. i thought to myself, wow, what happened? agust d told us what happened. and making a song like The Last is nothing but cathartic, if not a little emotionally taxing. over these last two years yoongi has become a more refined (loud) version of his younger, happier self, and as bts steps into the world’s eyes, they want the world to know that they’re thriving.
and they thrive, and then hoseok steps in. for the longest time, he was kind of on the back burner of the rapline-in early bts songs, he sounds achingly similar to yoongi, and he was practically a chorus in cypher 2, sandwiched in between yoongi and namjoon’s lengthy verses. he was years behind in rap experience, overshadowed by fast syllables and heady wordplay, underappreciated for a killer flow, and rarely got to display his singing talent- but hoseok is the type of person who was born to be what he is today, and as wings era swung by he sung the chorus for blood sweat and tears-the song that cemented bts as something great-, was forcefully brought into the spotlight by yoongi’s adoring screams, and during the wings tour i think that everyone had a big fat crush on him, in all of his shining glory. the months kept rolling by and hoseok kept getting brighter and brighter. our hope, our angel: hope world was dropped during the sweet golden years of bts, however long those might be, and is an unapologetic celebration bursting with all of his colors and moods. he celebrates his family, his boys, his journey and his unexpected status. look at the album covers for all three mixtapes. it’s kind of a visual of the bts timeline, but is indicative of rapline themselves, and all the different growth they’ve gone through.
