Recently some really good BTS pre-debut posts went up on Reddit, really worth the time to read if you're interested in their history.
BTS Pre-debut History 2010-2013
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
RM
Suga
For an even more granular (down to actual dates) timeline with more resources linked, definitely definitely definitely check out @blindmouse's excellent pre-debut timeline:
Pre-debut timeline
A selection of videos
Just adding onto those, here's a short (ish) list of some of my fave videos from that era, both as a playlist and broken down into sections. There are no solo Jin or Taehyung videos in this list, sorry - there's just not much pre-debut footage of them available!
All videos as a Youtube playlist
Hit the jump for more info.
Group videos
Jo Kwon dating advice for trainees - Jo Kwon (of 2AM) was their senior at Bighit and features a lot in these videos. He's a great person and is outspoken on LGBTQ rights; and he’s still friends with Namjoon and Hoseok. That's all just context anyway but this is like a very funny? sad? video??? BTS have said they don't have a dating ban but it's obviously a trade off they have made to either not date at all, or date so privately that no one knows, bc that's just... how it is in this industry sadly.
Original Paldogangsan (Satoori Rap) - RAPLINE, this is why Taehyung auditioned for the group!
j-hope, Jimin, JK - Graduation Song - cute bbs!!
Making of graduation song
Jo Kwon - I'm Da One MV is super colourful and entertaining and features MANY trainee Bangtans as back-up dancers and extras.
BTS cuts version just focuses on the Bangtans, if you can't spot them in the original MV (some of the cameos are blink or you'll miss 'em).
GLAM - Party (XXO) MV - Bighit's girl group could've been a contender but scandal took them early on, and Bighit ended up sending all their girl trainees to their partner company Source Entertainment (at least one of whom would later debut in GFriend).
Backup dancers for Glam and Jo Kwon - BTS pre-debut cuts - a compilation of all their back up dancer moments.
Namjoon
Keeping it simple, here's a couple of tracks from pre-debut:
Dreamin'
Seventeen
Yoongi
Yoongi's entry for the Bighit "Hit It" auditions
Yoongi's "Hit It" rap battle in 2010 vs Choi Ikje (i11evn) - he came 2nd, but both were accepted as trainees.
Gloss's 518-062 - a pre-trainee track referencing the Gwangju uprising of 1980.
Hoseok
This section is by far the longest and I know I’m biased - but also, there’s a lot of Hoseok footage out there thanks to JYP auditions.
2009 Hoseok - there's many videos purporting to be pre-debut Hoseok, from his street dance days with the Neuron crew or from his time at the Joy Dance Academy in Gwangju. Anyway. This is one of those.
JYP Auditions
“I auditioned, won a popularity award at a JYP Entertainment competition, and even received a 300,000 won prize! (laughs)” - Japan Fanclub Vol. 1 - My Biography with BTS: J-HOPE edition
These old videos are so fascinating, to see the rawness and talent of the trainees, and also to see how much kpop styling has changed in 10 years...
090220 j-hope JYP audition video
J-Hope JYP audition
j-hope and 3 other trainees at JYP
JYP 6th audition 2010 ending
This last video is a fascinating look at the JYP audition process in the end stages. As described on one blog post:
“what happens in JYP general/open/public auditions is that they go thru like a general audition (submit paperwork + audition video). If they like you they ask you to come in and see you live, interview you to make sure you don't seem like you have a major personality problem, then the ones selected from that, get put into teams, and are told to practice together for a week or so. Then they do this show case type of thing, and from this, the first-second-third place kids are auto acceptances into the official trainee program (ie. they sign a trainee contract), and maybe a select couple are also invited to become trainees if they are thought to have a lot of potential.”
This particular showcase included many future idols including B.A.P. Youngjae, BTOB Sungjae, Halo Dino, Hotshot/Wanna One Ha Sungwoon, and Twice Jeongyeon.
Anyway as we know Hoseok wasn't accepted into JYP, and ended up with Bighit instead.
j-hope pre-debut Hit It promo
Jo Kwon - Animal ft J-Hope, Music Bank and Music Core
Jo Kwon - Animal ft J-Hope dance practice
Watch the Animal stages for glam!Hoseok. It's super interesting to me that Hobi, who was recruited as a dancer and not a rapper, was the first (and only) of the Bangtan trainees to get a pre-debut feature, and with it the experience of doing music show stages and at least one music festival - probably because he was the most stage-ready trainee at this point.
Jungkook
Audition for Superstar K when he was just a bb! He didn't make it through, but this was the famous audition that saw him receive offers from a variety of agencies including JYP, Starship and Woollim. He chose Bighit because of Namjoon...
Jungkook pre-debut dance practice in LA - his dancing was criticised for not showing enough emotion so he got sent to train in LA. He even thought about becoming a dancer rather than an idol after that... His diary entries from that time are super cute.
Jungkook pre-debut dance to Save Your Goodbye
Jimin
Jimin pre-debut contemporary dance - idk if u knew this but Jimin has always been a great fucking dancer.
111113 predebut Jimin - another video of dubious provenance claiming to be bb Jimin.
Jimin pre-debut dance practice Hard Krump instrumental
♫♪ I wish you an awesome day and I hope you have lots of fun along with your loved ones. Stay blessed, happy and healthy, boy, you deserve the world!! Thank you for being an amazing, cute, funny and talented member. ARMY loves you unconditionally !! xo
predebut bangtan is really a mystery.. maybe they (bangtan) don't get to reveal anything yet due to their contract? there's a few selcas of hoseok ikjae predebut floating around, in which hoseok still had his braces on so yeah! ikjae was still in bighit when hoseok came around.
Yeah, I would imagine they probably wouldn’t be encouraged to talk about it given that multiple people choose to leave the company for whatever reason. Ahhh, that sounds cute, predebut Hoseok is adorable!
it's the suga anon from before! i don't recall yoongi ever mentioned him after debut, but ikjae himself mentioned on his personal twitter (in answering someone's question) that when he used to be a trainee he's close to yoongi, namjoon and hoseok. but due to their busy schedules he rarely get to meet them anymore.
Ahhh, got it, thank you for the information! I didn’t know that Ikje and Hoseok were in Bighit at the same time? It’s too bad that they’re all so busy now, it seems like Namjoon and Yoongi never really see the DNH folks anyore
