My experience with falling in love with BTS was very different than most people nowadays.
If somehow you don't know who BTS is, they are a seven member Korean pop (AKA K-pop) group. They debuted as a group in 2013 and have been on the rise ever since, becoming the most popular K-pop group in America and around the world.
I discovered BTS in 2015 when I was a rising freshman. This was when K-pop was more obscure, when it was something to be teased about for being something unordinary and weird. It was around this time that they were starting to pick up speed in Korea with their song "I Need U", which translated to their popularity overseas. As an ARMY (the name of BTS fans) from earlier on, I've witnessed the growth of BTS and think the reasons people love BTS can be seen through the meaningful messages in their music videos.
1. Young Forever — Celebrating Our Youth
The theme of youth has been present in BTS's music and music videos from the very beginning of their careers. They focus on the shared struggles, dreams and views of the youth of the world and give a voice to those without one and a friend for those who need to relate to someone.
BTS dives deeper into their music than just coming up with catchy beats. They address issues like the pressures of school and expectations of parents and society, something almost all kids and teenagers struggle with. They show in Young Forever that even if you're struggling in your youth, try your best and keep going.
"Raise your voice higher. Even if the attention isn't forever, I'll keep singing, As today's me, I want eternity. Forever, I want to be young."
They encompass the experience of youth, both its difficulties and the feeling of wanting to make it last, through their lyrics, music and music videos. This is why I think that young people appreciate BTS so much and are so attracted to them. We can relate to their music and find a voice through them.
2. Spring Day — Offering Friendship
One thing that BTS gives its fans is friendship. Now, hear me out; I know it sounds weird, but after all this time, it does sort of seem like BTS is a friend to me. I discovered them at the beginning of high school and still love them as a senior, so they've been through my entire high school experience with me. More importantly, they've gone through important life changes with me, like moving to a new school twice in two years.
During these hard times, I felt like BTS and their music was my comfort. They were there for me when I was new and had no friends, and their lyrics gave me strength whenever I needed it most.
"You know it all. You're my best friend. The sun will rise again. No darkness, no season, can last forever."
I know that most ARMY have also found BTS when they needed them the most, and everyone seems to find some sort of refuge in their music and words. And if nothing else, they give people from around the world something to relate over; in fact, I've made so many friends just through BTS; it's amazing.
3. Fire — Fired Up With Passion
One thing that I feel really translated well through the music video is the passion of each member. The main reason that the entire world is so blown up by the boys right now is because they're able to express so much excitement in a completely different language. I think that a major contributing force is the effort and passion BTS puts into this.
You see it on the quality of their music and performances, and the hard work they put into their work draws more attention as well. An example of this would be in their music video for "Fire" — the effort and energy they put into their videos and dancing can be seen throughout the video, and seeing them perform elaborate choreographies and participate in such a crazy video somehow inspires the watchers to also put their passions into something for a result they can be proud of, too.
4. N.O. — Say No To Societal Expectations
The one thing that BTS are known for is their connection to their fans. More than any other group, BTS constantly interacts with their fans, making sure to include them as a large part of their lives. One large way they do that is by telling their stories and the stories of their fans that they can relate to, giving them a voice so they can fight for what they believe them knowing that people support them.
In the song N.O., BTS discuss the expectations of parents and adults to become "study machines" and to sacrifice their youth to follow their parents' dreams. To this, they teach us to say no.
"Adults tell me that hardships are only momentary, to endure a little more, to do it later. Everybody say NO! It's not going to work anymore. Don't be captured in others' dreams."
They teach us that we don't have to study night and day, and that it's okay to have your own passions and live your dreams. Again, it goes back to that relationship with them, with them caring deeply for their fans and displaying their genuine love for us.
5. The Last — Depression And Mental Health
As mentioned earlier, BTS includes a lot of issues that the youth deal with in their songs. They aim to not only write songs that people will like and will sound good but want to tell their stories so that people around the world won't feel alone. One topic often addressed by certain members is depression, and while the songs they create revolving around this topic helps them cope with their struggles, it also gives their fans who face that same struggle a sense of comfort of knowing they're not abnormal or crazy for feeling the way they do.
Again, BTS shares the stories of fans by speaking their own truth in hopes of helping us. They also use their influence to promote their Unicef "Love Myself" campaign. They just tie people around the world together and give them a group of people that they can relate to so that they know they're not struggling alone.
6. Idol — Giving Their All
Just the quality of their productions! Their lyrics are always so well written, so artistic and beautiful, and the music is well produced. Every individual song is so beautiful and unique, the vocals and rapping powerful and emotion-evoking. Not to mention the music videos!
Every single one of their choreographies are so cool to watch and crafted to perfection; watching them is like a magical experience. The visuals of the music videos are always so stunning as well, the colors vibrant and the members' acting flawless. They give their all in every performance, every music video and song, and with this, inspire us to give our all for something we love as well.
Overall, these are a few reasons I have observed over the last few years, but there may be other reasons that other fans get attracted to BTS. They just are so hardworking, passionate and genuine that people can't help but love them. They're truly the ideal example of the starting at the bottom and reaching the top. After all they've been through and everything they've done to help people through their music and their outreach, I believe they absolutely deserve all the love they're getting.