Volume 01 Issue 09 part 2 (BTS)
On intimacy and connection
There was an overwhelming and highly unusual period last week when Jimin, Jungkook, and Yoongi went on live back to back to back in a span of about 18 hours. As a new fan, looking at BTS’ vast catalog, their past live vlogs had ranked pretty low on the list of content to prioritize. But these three were the first lives -- not just pre-recorded drops -- of this comeback season, and I was lucky enough to catch all of them.
I thought there was something beautifully unpolished and intimate about the experience, even though I was only one out of 9 million other fans watching. Yes, 9 *million* - compared to about 6.4 million who had tuned into the VMAs a few months ago. 9 million people dropped everything to watch Jimin speak to the camera in Korean -- which most of us probably don’t understand anyway -- for thirty minutes on a random Tuesday evening! And then Jungkook did a live the following afternoon and Yoongi came on five minutes after JK ended. (What were they trying to do to us?? Productivity killers!)
Two days later, I attended a webinar by Dr. Candace Epps-Robertson called “BTS and ARMY: A Synergistic Experience in Transcultural Fandom.” She’s a scholar specializing in rhetoric and her talk was very baby ARMY friendly (I’ll share the recording once it’s available). She tried to answer this central question: “How are these 7 people able to connect millions around the world?” One of the things she said that stuck with me is something that’s come up in her research, speaking to other ARMY: “BTS has never stopped trying to build a connection between themselves and their fandom.”
This idea that BTS is eager to connect with us, just as much as we are with them - I find it endlessly fascinating. Shortly after her talk, I saw this tweet translating an interview in July where Taeyhung said: “One time, I saw an ARMY write, maybe as a joke: ‘Bangtannies have become so high, (wrt to their fame) I feel far and apart from them now, they feel so far away’ and I got a lump in my throat. That’s why I want to be close friends with ARMY. Even if we keep moving higher or stay the same, I don’t want to grow apart from ARMY.”
That’s why they do these lives, even though their schedules are jam-packed. Of course, there’s a business strategy to the timing of all of their content releases, including live chats. Jungkook hasn’t done a live for over a year, but this week he came on to clarify his role as project manager/director of the soon-to-be-released music video, and he clearly had talk points he needed to cover. But then he laughed and said, “Oh, that didn’t take up much time, I can talk about other stuff too, right?” and went on to share about how the concert and seeing ARMY had given him back a sense of meaning in his life after he had been feeling lost.
Biggest band in the world, and yet each of them sat there and thanked *us* for how *we* calmed *their* anxieties, boosted *their* moods, gave *them* a sense of hope. Excuse me Tannies, that’s exactly what you’ve been doing for us this whole time! They sincerely asked how we’re doing, saying “It’s so good to see you again.” They responded to questions like “What are you wearing today?” (Jimin was wearing a sweater he’d purchased to show ARMY at the airport, but since they’re not traveling, he wore it to the live so we could still see it! Huhu) Suga played fans’ song requests during his guitar practice, and every time he scooted closer to the camera to read the comments, I drew back from my screen a little bit. That’s how intimate it felt. They comforted and encouraged us -- Jimin said in response to someone who said they’d had a tough day: “Great job hanging in there! Let’s all clap for ourselves for doing a good job today.” They shared their frustrations and worries, not to seek pity or praise, but as simple statements of fact: This is what I’m thinking about. This is what I’m feeling. Each live this week ended with a promise: “Next time I come back, I will…”
Rica and I often have long conversations on topics like what Hogwarts houses we’d sort the members into, what we think their love languages might be. We’ve plotted fun date ideas with each of them. (We’d take J-hope with us to the club, because he’d be the best hype man.) How are we able to make these assumptions, considering we’re both baby ARMY barely two months into this journey? I think it’s because BTS lets themselves be deeply known to us through their reality shows, their responses to fans on Weverse, and their live vlogs. They show us who they are, what they value, how they care for each other. In allowing us to be so intimate with them, I also see an implicit invitation to follow their example and be like them: kind and generous human beings who show up and seek connection through vulnerability, authenticity, and tenderness. Is it working? Well, I started this newsletter with the intention of not letting it get too personal, and look what happened. (They made me have too many feelings; I needed an outlet. LOL.)
Brene Brown, in her book The Gifts of Imperfection*, defines connection as “the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive strength and sustenance from the relationship.” This 1000% describes the BTS-ARMY relationship. It’s this connection that fuels the fans’ passion and drives us to stream, buy, chart, vote, organize for charity, and act as an extension of the band and an equal partner in their ambition and success. With every new experience I have on this baby ARMY journey, I’m shocked by the intimacy the band not only allows to happen, but actively pursues.
*By the way, this book changed my life. Highly recommend!
Resources and content I enjoyed last week:
The Bangtan TV episode of the Grammys this year finally dropped, the same day as JK and Yoongi’s lives. Bawal magpahinga. I’ve been waiting for this since the first week I got into BTS, not only because this is my #1 Taehyung look, but because they’ve been vocal about how much they want to perform and win at the Grammys. RM says “We didn’t get to sing our song, but we’ll do our best with the 46 seconds that we’ve got. I think that’s our job.” Huhu <3 They worked so hard for those 46 seconds! Kakaproud.
I watched a couple of RUN BTS episodes that were going around Twitter: episodes 47-48 (Protect BTS village) and episodes 87-88 (Hangul Day scavenger hunt/assassin game). Both strategy games that involve deception and secrecy. So elaborate! So fun! I’m enjoying watching Run BTS now because my TV can play the show using the Vlive app.
I’ve grown to really love fancam threads like this one of Yoongi’s dancing skills - not because I agree that a member is the main vocalist/dancer/whatever, but because these individual member-focused clips help me gain a deeper appreciation for their talent and hard work.
A user named Baepsayed posted the pre-debut history of BTS on Reddit and it was so informative. I’m a chronology and context-lover! I devoured this!
BTS put out something like 15 performances of Dynamite over the past 3 months, each of them unique and fresh. The level of thought and care they put into planning is detailed in this article on Weverse (Big Hit’s app for fan community and connection). Galing talaga!
This video of Mikrokosmos from the stage made me so sad that they can’t experience this right now.
I often think of this clip: "Taehyung, CEO of pulling /that/ face from Yoongi"
Thread about Taehyung’s photography; this one is my favorite.
Read part 1 of this issue here (regular non-BTS content) and everything I’ve published about BTS here. The next issues will land in your inbox if you subscribe using this button. Thanks for reading!
I purple you,
Pinky
I love crying during my BTS lunch breaks! 🤧💜