BTS before debut did vlogs and free covers on sound cloud. No one was doing that, and now everyone copies them. During this time, they are all at least a year or two younger than what they say because they were using Korean age, which you are a year old the day you are born. Today, Korea is now using international age. Yes, this documentary will get into all their struggles. The girl who made this documentary was going to school for editing she did an amazing job. I wish she did not stop at 21 chapters and kept going. I personally think it's better than all the other documentaries out there. You should let the video play to the end there are always extra clips. Also I recommend the deleted sceens and bonus content they have after the next chapters as well.
BTS had a initial (not really big, but existing) following because they had a blog about their pre debut time where they posted these vlogs, random posts (like J-hope made a big one explaining different types of street dancing), and song covers! So people were waiting to discover how their album was gonna be
For all the times that BTS helped a fan overcome a hardship, a challenge, or depression. There are people alive and thriving today because of this group. We aren't just here cheering on a group of cute guys. We are fighting for awareness. Because someone out there needs BTS in their lives.
19:18 RM said he started rapping in 2007, but didn't join BH until 2010. The ages are off, as others have said because of the ways Korean's count age, but RM was born in 1994, so he was signed when he was 15 turning 16. Suga (1993) and Jhope (1994) also signed in 2010, so Suga would have been 17 and Jhope 16. Jin (1992) signed with BH in 2011 same with JK (1997) and V (1995) so they were 18, 13 and 15. Jimin signed a year later in 2012 and is the same age as V.
other point of reason why bighit went along with direct involvement of bts members in their craft is that bighit really didn't have money. the training system itself requires a lot of money and infrastructure to work on the quality level of big dogs, on top of that idols usually need music being written for them. the label just didn't have the hiring capacity to cover it all, the workload in producing, writing anf composing tracks was shared with bts members, in the early years predominantly rm and suga. the members agreed to such system because it allowed them to speak their minds through music, which is not something kpop usually allows
29:20 exactly authenticity over marketing. And that’s why they’re all struggling (both western and Korean companies) because they want the next BTS but when they think they have the next BTS it’s because they’ve manufactured this group that they believe can compete, but they have none of the genuineness or frankly speaking the talent. What they are really after is creating a brand.
And BTS organically grew their trust and connection to each other and their company through years of hardship and ridicule from their industry and the outside world. They are truly bonded like family and they feel a similar connection to Army because Army supported and shielded them since their debut. You have probably seen many mention how the group is also very protective of Army too. It’s a symbiotic relationship that grew out of honesty, vulnerability and mutual respect.
I think something else, fundamentally, that sets BTS apart early on is RM and Suga. At least musically. All the members bring something to the table, but when it comes to music RM and Suga had already been writing their own raps/lyrics, composing and performing underground for at least a few years before even joining Bighit. They didn't learn how to do those things as trainees. They did get to spend that time honing their skills with guidance from Bang PD and PDogg (and any other producers/songwriters there at the time), but as PDogg describes it, they already came in with their own colour when it comes to music, to the point that songs they wrote as trainees, like Jump and Satori Rap actually made it to early BTS albums. RM himself is also credited with the way Hybe/Bighit still looks for and trains trainees to this day and BTS members, as trainees, would have what they called 'The School of Rap' session with RM Suga and Jhope. So early on it wasn't that BH "made" BTS - they recognized the talent that these 2 had and had the where with all to keep them engaged with the music and even let them guide the direction (with input from the other members)....otherwise I'm not sure they would have stayed on with the project ultimately. They brought a lot of the musical authenticity to the group that BTS is still known for today. 💜
BigHit was in Seoul, the capital, but before being casted boys lived in different provinces, so to become trainees they had to move to Seoul and live in a dorm together. their parents stayed home, but visited their sons on weekends, even if it was a long ride. for the members no weekends off. sometimes they had 2 day "vacations" for holidays, then they could go home, but rarely. their first proper rest was in 2019 jungkook, the youngest, also left home, other members took care of him like of a younger brother
I have to say Markabusi, I applaud your intelligence and empathetic attitude. Despite all the preconceived notions and prejudices you initially had (which we all probably did before we knew K-pop), your insights were so nice to listen to-honest without being offensive, smart yet unpretentious. Looking forward to the next chapters of the series! 💜
It us important to note that the ages they talk about in the documentary are using the Korean age system. When you hear an age subtract 1 to 2 years to get our age system. The rest of the series does show you what you want to see, so I look forward to seeing more reactions. I am always impressed with how much you do understand from your first watch of something and thank you so much for changing the layout so i could see the subtitles. I was on my phone so i really appreciated your consideration.
I’m so glad you’re reacting to the Rise of Bangtan series! I haven’t seen all of the episodes yet myself, so am looking forward to watching them with you. It really is done so professionally by the maker. You’ll have your questions answered while viewing these, and it’s also going to really give you a sense of why Army is so invested in the group and want to see them succeed - both together and with their solo music releases. I feel that they’ve really earned that devotion.
Thank you for reacting to this amazing series Mark and for making it available for us on YT. I liked your thoughtful comments very much. Looking forward to the next chapter 💜
BTS were the first ones to do those logs, mainly because their company was so small and didn't have influence to help promote them, so they used what they had- social media. Maybe other artists did social media to some extent, but for sure they were the first to go on that level, and create a "personal" connection wirh the viewers. Bang PD was a genius giving them more freedom, they were authentic, they were idols on stage but goofy fun guys outside the stage, relatable. That's what gave them a small audience even before debuting and that slowly grew after debut. Also because they were not the usual kpop artists in Korea, many people made fun of them and didn't believe it was true when they started selling well, because by using youtube they were the first ones to actually get a lot of international fans. So even tho they weren't the most popular in Korea, they still got better results. To this day BTS frequently does livestreaming with fans, separately and together (a bit harder for those that are in the military tho). Jungkook had some days off from the military and did a livestream before Christmas, he had 20 million people watching him live doing karaoke in his house. A lot of kpop bands use social media now, but BTS brought it to another level starting 2013. This series will answer many questions you have, and you will understand a lot better why the fans love them so much.
Thanks for the praise to the ARMYs who have done this work. Most of the work on this series was done by a woman named Aneesa, and I think it remains more the story of the guys and not so much the BTS-industry interaction. For what i think you're looking for, check out the channel Boracity Magazine--she does great stuff too, with an emphasis on BTS vs.Radio, BTS vs Spotify, etc.
38:17 it is very common for K-pop groups to already have established names, social media accounts and even fan base accounts prior to debut. Right now this is even more present BECAUSE of BTS influence in the industry. Back then, K-pop groups also had a following even before debut bc the “big 3 labels” in K-pop ruled the entertainment industry and had (STILL HAVE) major control of the media in Korea, so whenever they were planning to debut a new group fans of that label’s previous groups would already start to transition into the new group and stuff, that how the big 3 K-pop companies were able to maintain their empire for so long, and why BTS was so sabotaged and rejected from the convention methods these labels used to promote their groups, bc they are not from the big 3, BigHit ent, was a TINY company barely surviving financially with a “makeshift” idol training system which is also why the boys were granted more freedom and SPECIALLY artistic autonomy. That’s why BTS has all this saved “UA-cam vlog” content (all still available on their channel BangtanTV), bc they were basically the pioneers in K-pop of being active on social media and directly interacting with fans online, before, the normal promotions for idols was only Korean tv shows, variety shows, commercials, concerts, K-pop festivals,….all the things that required industry connections and money, neither of which BTS and BigHit had. So their strategy was to create an online presence to hype their debut, they posted covers of songs on SoundCloud and even their own adaptations like the one they played in this video “school of tears”.
There are little clips at the end of the previews for next episode. As you said you enjoy watching their live clips, you would probably enjoy watching the deleted scenes and bonus content that goes with each chapter of this fan made series. Most of your questions will be answered during the chapters if you pay enough attention, so don't get too stuck in the small details 😉 The author of the series doesn't spoon feed you the answers, but shows them instead, so it could be easy to miss out on some things on first watch. Sometimes there will be someone stating something about k-pop, while the images are contradicting it by showing how BTS were doing the opposite. And yes, as far as I know, they were the first ones to do this kind of thing. Idols were not meant to be seen as down to earth every day kind of people, so something like this would not have been encouraged by any other k-pop company. Big Hit though, couldn't promote through normal channels, so they come up with this and other social media avenues. And hit gold! Regardless, ARMY will most certainly help you out in the comments with any queries or things you might be unsure about. 💜
This series follow them from pre debut to around 2019, so you'll get to see how they became famous worldwide, a lot of in-depth explanations about the k-pop industry and Korean society, as well as the struggles they faced. It basically has almost everything, it's really good for people that weren't there while those things were happening, almost like if there were a real tv show/series about them!
Thank you for giving a chance to this great docuseries, it was incredibly helpful to me when I started getting into BTS because it contextualizes a lot of what they're going through in the episode showing you how the rest of the industry was running things at the time and how BTS and BigHit were different, because they had to be (they didn't have the money nor the reputation of bigger labels). It also helped me a lot with learning korean culture a little bit, just enough to better understand them. Sooo many of your reactions and opinions were really similar to my owns when I first watched it, it's quite funny😅 Also: they were definitely the first in Kpop to use vlogs and social media to show the world who they were from the beginning (I don't think they were the First EVER in the world, but it was unheard of in Kpop, no agency would let their artists do something like that... Now they're all copying it) but it was mostly out of necessity because, again, they didn't have the money the big companies had for promotions and were not invited on variety shows so they found a new way, a better way, with youtube.
I think BTS have gained and retained their fanbase because of their talents, obviously, but also you can see their genuine personality and their relatability. Their first three mini albums we call the 'school trilogy', they spoke about school life and the thoughts and feelings of themselves and their peers. They were doing exactly what Bang PD told them to do, tell their own stories. As they grew up before our eyes so their music and lyrics matured. And this is exactly why they constantly gain new fans of all ages. You can play a track/album and it will speak to you about a time, past or present, in your life. Absolute genius.💜
There are quite a number of reactors to BTS, who started out either knowing nothing about them or had a preconceived notion about what and who they are. Many of those reactors have come to be Army and even went to concerts, their reactions go back far enough that they were able to. Rap/hip-hop and metal/rock fans are probably the two genres that seem to have found a love for BTS and even some other k-pop groups.
Welcome to all the reactors starting this series! Even if someone doesn't like BTS or their music isn't their taste, the stories of their authenticity and haaaard work can serve as great inspiration in life. This is such a timely reaction-perfect as the first reaction to kick off the new year. Thank you! 💜💜
RM Suga and J-Hope were all known in their fields before joining Big Hit. RM and Suga were known in the underground rap scene RM for his raps and Suga for his songwriting and production. And J-Hope was well known for his dancing. He was part of an underground dance team and even won a national competition in 2008
Glad to see you are reacting to this series, subscribed, you will understand the phenomenon that is BTS and why they are the band of this generation. Please watch to the end of the episode as it always adds a couple of clips of some humorous outtakes - which are just as important to watch - you could call them BTS meme clips - as you said, they are relatable, funny and good people - that is something you will see more of in this series and in the clips at the end. Thanks for the reaction.
It is just like many of their music videos, always watch till the end. Often there are little surpries for the fans, lol. You are doing a great job! Thank you.
Yes! All BTS members came from different parts of Korea, even RM (although he was around Seoul), so they lived together, but weren't with their families
Future episodes definitely go deep, most episodes focusing on specific issues swirling around the group and K Pop as whole while showing the evolution of BTS and its reception. The beauty of this documentary is that it doesn't sugarcoat the way many ot the other documentaries do, but rather leaves you super impressed with BTS by allowing historical footage both flattering and not flattering to immerse you in the journey.
the song you asked about is indeed by bts, it's an intro for 2 cool 4 scool album. btw, bts songs that play in these series are usually noted in the bottom left corner, just so you dont have to wait for comments to confirm! :)
16:22 To be far I doubt he had any eyes at all towards the western market at all. Even BTS themselves when they first started didn't have their eyes set on the west, what they have achieved as a group and individually in terms of billboard charts, etc was practically unheard of then even for groups signed to the Big 3. BH at the time was basically an indie label.
No one in BTS had any dreams of being in the western market - that was way too big of a dream to even enter their minds They just wanted to succeed in Korea. That was the dream. Suga said that when they began becoming popular outside of Korea/Japan, it was stressful and scary because they had no mentors to turn to who had done the same thing. Suga said their dream was to rise to the 20th floor of the building of success, but now they were riding up to the 50th floor and it was terrifying.
Before I forget, I might suggest watching a video made by boracity magazine called, a guide to bts (for haters, skeptics, and non-pop fans). (It's not a typo that I didn't capitalize the words of the channel or video title, that's how she does it.) I would also add into the parentheses, and those who don't know about k-pop. It's less than 20 minutes long and is very informative for such a video. It doesn't go into too many details which is why there are other documentaries that provide more information. But it sums it enough to make someone want to find out more.
Their agency was small and almost bankrupt. They had no way to compete with the big agencies (with the money those agencies can put towards a group). So they found a way to communicate with their fans. They were unique in almost every aspect, as most of the groups from small agencies 'don't make it'. They worked their butts off for each and single one of their opportunities.
They all come from different parts of the country, so all left home to go live and train in the big city. JK was recruited in 2011, making him 13 when he left home. Is why he is so attached to the members. They took on big sibling, parental roles to look after him. When he does well, you can see the pride in their faces.
Before I start watching, I just wanted to compliment you on your willingness to continue checking out BTS. You will still run across things that you may not particularly enjoy, I have. Even if you wouldn't call yourself a fan at the end of the process, just being able to understand who they are, how they got to where they are now, and the impact on not only Korea but also internationally, is really what counts.
16:42 in the beginning, BTS wasn't going to be a standard idol group. It was going to be a hip hop group where they'd rap and sing, need to have rhythm but no dancing. Sugar & RM were underground rappers and only wanted to rap/produce. Some people left and the project changed to idol group, and the rest of the boys joined 18:09 they did leave their families. Jin stayed living with his parents for a bit but soon they were all in a little dorm sharing a bedroom
There are 21 chapters of this series and there so amazing and informative. I love how reactors watch these they are amazing. Oh there are deleted scenes and bonus content as well to these they are all one piece to the puzzle also.
Mark, I don't want to ramble on and everything has probably been said in the comments but yes, yes, yes and yes. You are very perceptive and hit the nail on the head with your assumptions. Rise of Bangtan is a fantastic series that covers EVERYTHING, I'm so glad you're reacting to it. I LOVE your reactions, they are so open minded and genuine (just like BTS). You remind me a lot of Suga (Yoongi), all tough talk and prickly but underneath your just a genuine, funny guy with real heart. You deserve a purple heart, Happy New Year 💜
I really liked your reaction - I can see that you are thinking and asking yourself questions. And what's better than a person who asks himself questions. BTS are extremely different from the concept of the K-pop industry as a whole. Yes, you are indeed right - the K-pop industry produces idols. As a result of exceptional training, very few youngsters manage to make their debut. Even if they debut, many of them fail to continue. The BIG-3 are the three companies that held the money and the power. Until BTS, no group outside of the big three companies had won desang... Advertising, participation in music shows, that is, the things on which the popularity of a group depends - all this was in the hands of the BIG3. Poverty plays a big role in BTS' success - not only did they come together and become a family, but their innovative ways of promoting them brought them to the global stage. I personally don't consider BTS to be K-pop - neither their way of creating nor their music is similar to others...For me they are real artists who have a global impact. If you pay attention in economic terms - BTS bring 50% of the revenue from the entire K-pop industry. I still find it weird when they compare other bands to them. They are on a whole other level. And no - I do not belittle the success, hard work and talent of others. I just don't like that they downplay the successes and achievements and that they promoted Korea globally
BTS was indeed originally intended to be a rap/hip hop group. Initially all of the trainees thought that was the plan. Suga was a rapper and JHope excelled at street dancing but he learned to rap while as a trainee with the other rappers in the dorm. Through elimination and some trainees choosing to leave once the mission changed to kpop instead of rap the group eventually got reduced to the 7 we have now
J-Hope was an underground street dancer. He and his crew Neuron won many competitions. Jimin, however, studied contemporary dance in school. He also learned hip-hop dancing. They are both Main Dancers in BTS. J-Hope is the Dance Leader. He is strict with the guys in pursuit of technical skill, precision, and placement. They’re both excellent dancers with very different dance styles. Big Hit was always very different from other K-Pop companies in that these 7 boys already had honed skills that they brought to the group and they composed and produced. The CEO was much more lenient, allowing them to develop more organically. (Big Hit was on the verge of bankruptcy too so didn’t have the money to “create idols.”)
Children who want to be gymnist and ice skaters start in grade school. Some that become world class did leave home and lived with their trainers. I think these 2 sports have many parallels to KPop trainees' experiences including strict diets
And now you see why we asked you to look deeper! There’s so much more depth to BTS, and knowing that the lyrics have always been personal and they’ve all taken roles in all aspects of the group, makes their story and their music even that much better. I think the rest of this series is a good watch because it really shows things in less biased ways than other series. It’s easy for us ARMY to gush, but honestly, we don’t need to because BTS are just THAT phenomenal. 💜
Sorry for so many comments but answering as I go or telling you videos to watch to address your questions. Not using the internet like YT & twitter wasn’t normal, until BTS. (Also internet was fairly new when they debuted). Other groups didn’t start making their own channels and accts until bts got went to BB stuff in 2016, I believe. This is a large reason they got big is bc they used the internet but actually communicated with the fans & created a unique relationships with the fans. (Which is ARMY are so strong and supportive) Also, these blogs/videos you can still find on their channel BangtanTV (some of the older stuff might not hv cc so you can go to BangtanSub’s channel). BTS still post behind the scenes stuff on their UA-cam channel.
Bts pretty much said we will literally just go straight to blogs ...basically to say if we get fans then they see us for how we are if they like us its a bonus ...this is why bts and army grew together organically. .they don't hide behind marketing or pr...its literally what you see is what you get ..that's what makes them above anyone ...they are still the same guys now as they were in 2013..regardless of the fame they have acquired 💜
Thanks so much for taking the time! It was so fun watching you learn all this stuff! The idol industry is so different from the western model so I think docs like these really help us understand not only BTS but all the kpop groups. Like you said, regardless of whether you like their music, every idol has worked extremely hard to get where they are.
I think we all end up watchinf ROB at some point. Its really good and takes its time with the information. After ur done w/ the episodes i think it would b a good idea to hit Boracity Magazine. I think once u have some context Bora really lazer focuses on our current state as ARMY
Your thoughts and questions are going to be answered in future episodes. This series was made by Aneesa with other ARMYs helping with things like translations, feedback, and so on. She made it because she as frustrated by the Western media reducing BTS to a fluffy manufactured boyband with screaming teenage girls as fans. She wanted to show them as they are and inform people of their journey. It's a labour of love. The series is also great to see their evolving music through different eras. People paid her out of appreciation but she only took what it cost to make the series and gave the rest of it to charity. Ok Go - I get so much nostalgia from the bands you bring up. So many good indie rock bands in the early 2000s. Used to listen to bands like Frightened Rabbit (RIP Scott Hutchison), the Maccabees, Here We Go Magic, Alt-J, Noah and The Whale, Midlake, Tigers That Talked and so on. Good times. But when you bring them up, it kind of connects the dots to how I fell in love with BTS when most of my musical tastes run towards indie and folk rock. So I enjoy your perspective.
@@markabusireactions I did think we had an overlap of music tastes. Most BTS reactors speak from the perspective of pop or rap, so it's fun listening to someone who makes references that are more familiar to me.
At the end of the first year Jungkook was there he actually does a vlog mentioning that he misses his mom. J-Hope also has a 25 birthday there with the members and watches a video of his family wishing him a happy birthday and he cries thru it all as he hadn't seen them in a very long time. It was hard for them to be separated from their family but they felt that being connected to Big Hit was better as they all wanted to be in this group called BTS. Also just remember that when Jungkook talks of his age he is a year younger than he says. The Korean age is one at birth. It reminds me of going to college where you go to another state and can't just visit your parents whenever you want. Big Hit ran for BTS what the members call a music camp, they encouraged the members to bring them lyrics, musical pieces, thoughts for songs to them and they could help them develop those into songs. So that later they were able to produce their own songs regularly. In 2013 I watched first their trailer then their promo thru a now past show called DDANG TV show. It was a small show that spoke English but showed kpop groups and their interviewed BTS then showed that trailer and promo. The next week I went on to see their first video, it was hard as I had to find it on TV because I didn't know what music program they were going to be on and as it happened the music show didn't put it on their streaming program so I had to look for their video. Also Big Hit did not have a channel at the time so I had to find BangtanTV stream and I don't speak Korean but watched everyone of their videos. Just watching them was funny I later saw them once they were translated it was funnier. Back then they had more views from the US than they did in Korea. They Korea base was small but strong, but internationally (though they didn't know), was much bigger.
24:37 I agree the isolation is a big part of what makes a difference from like a ballet Academy and things like that. Also, I think the big difference is in Korean culture there’s such a focus on success and filial loyalty. Making your family proud is everything for a lot of these young people so a failure is not just oh I won’t be able to make my dreams. It literally feels like you’re letting everyone down. I think that’s part of why Korea has such a high life ending rate. in South Korea, the number one cause of death for young men is Self ending. There are some pretty high profile cases of idols choosing to go that route.
Quick warning, this is fan made so not 100% accurate and it does glorify their journey and covers only a few of their hardships and struggles, focusing mostly on the positives. The editor chooses 1-2 "hardships" per episode to strengthen the narrative, which is good from an editing and storytelling standpoint but it leaves out a huge chunk of their story. Also, since this was made for fans it assumes you know bts and how they work pretty well already, which means misunderstandings can happen easily. For example she often talks about kpop in general while showing videos of bts, even when it doesn't apply to bts at all, which makes you think she's referring to bts when she isn't etc. That's it, this is generally a very well made series and a good starting point for new people :)
Another example: during the time period this episodes is about they were almost done for already. The company didn't have enough money to debut them, BigHit had told bts to pack their bags and leave but the members refused. Yoongi/Suga worked 3 jobs in an effort to help sustain them and they were all struggling with not having money. Their studio/practice room was also run down, had mould growing everywhere that the boys would scrape off just for it to grow back, the studio would flood when it rained and they always had to run in to get the equipment out so it wouldn't break etc. What you see in this episode makes it seem like they were much more well off than they were. (if you're wondering how they still managed to debut, they bagged an investment which allowed the company to afford debuting bts, they put all the new funds into their debut) And that's not the editor's fault, it would be a very long and depressing documentary series if she focused on all the hardships, but this is an example of how the series is a bit different from reality.
I know they used the word "manufactured" but doesn't that really just mean "trained"? Would we use the same word "manufactured" for highly trained athletes, or even ballet and opera singers? What does that even mean to say these labels "made" that artist. Isn't it really that the label offered the training, but still the individual themselves has to choose to put the time, effort and dedication in to applying what they are learning to become a skilled singer/rapper/performer. As for the rigorous training hours, when you consider the Korean cultural context, where "hard work" is prized and many students their age also go on to cram school after class and often don't get home until 10 or 11 pm on most school nights, they really aren't doing anything above and beyond what their peers are doing. It's just when we compare that to the west....
When I try to explain the training programme and living away from home to my friends who think it is child abuse, I put it in the context of being in a top football academy programme or training to excel in a particular sport. Teenagers are often training abroad away from family. The training hours are extensive and demanding. That is what is required if you are going to excel at that level.
You have to know that Korean age was different than international age :you already have 1 year when you're born, and every body add one more year every 1st january. So when BTS made their debut, in June 2013, the oldest Jin said he has 22 years old, but he only have 20 years old, and the youngest JK 15 years old (he joined as trainee as 13 )
BTS weren't the first group to have their formation and preparation filmed throughout. They were just the first great band with great songs that did that that people will be watching for generations to come. So yeah, we should thank Bang Si Hyuk and Kim Namjoon for their vision.
I see the comments already said, everything there is to say. Most of these 'logs' should still be available on their Bangtantv youtube channel; some people posted on Twitter that they are finally putting sub on their older videos, so I am not sure if they already have subs or not. But back in the day we had a youtube channel called 'Bangtansubs' which was a team of ARMYs translating all of their content; so it maybe still is on their channel with subs too. BTS when they debuted started posting some others things that are now 'normal' things in kpop that EVERY group does, but back they were the only (and having an ARMY youtube channel that translated videos back then was also a NEW uncommon thing): Shooting scetch - behind the scenes of a music video Bangtan bomb - behind the scenes random clip Episode - a longer behind the scenes video, usually of an awards show, the UN visit also has an "Episode" on their youtube channel of them preparing and attending UN Log - they actually still sometimes post logs (livestreams are more popular now). But I am pretty sure in 2020 they posted 'logs' of them preparing their BE album
bts were releasing covers and vlogs even before they debuted, they had some online presence just to reach out to anyone who is interested enough to watch and listen. so there were some fans even before bts debuted, but we a talking about like below a thousand people, based on bts twt following back then. that little crowd of supporters are the ones bts address in vlogs that were included in this episode. in first 3 years their gain of fans was kind of slow, but it was accelerating nonetheless, until it reached crazy rate of fan conversion starting from like 2017. and they don't stop, next huge influx of fans was 2020, and for example the 2022-2024 solo era literally doubled the amount of bts followers
Also I wanted to point out that the editor tried to show that Bighit was different compared to other companies. For example: they said “no going out” but saw members going out, etc. Bighit was still had rules but not as strict & toxic as other companies.
This series was edited by one person called Aneesa, who put over 4 years of work into this for free! She’s very very impressive and I’m so grateful to her for telling BTS’ story with so much love and care and professionalism. Hope you watch this whole thing along with your music reactions, it gives great context as you’ve seen. Your thoughts were very interesting, I agree a lot with what you’ve said about BTS and/vs the industry. For clarity, since the members used the korean age counting here, in 2013 with their first album, their ages were: Jin and Suga: 20 J-Hope: 19 RM: 18 Jimin and V: 17 Jungkook: 15 Jin was the only member of age when he became a trainee (he was in university), everyone else was a minor (in high school, and Jungkook in middle school) when they started training.
I think you will fall in love with these seven crackheads through Rise of Bangtan episodes, and even more so through Run BTS episodes if you choose to watch those later down the line! 😁 Borahae 💜
The ages are wrong as they are 1 to 2 years younger in western age depending on which month they are born in. If you are born in December you will be 2 years younger in western age. JK left home just before his 14th birthday. Thats why JK says BTS raised him. J Hope was the street dancer. RM had only graduated high school couple weeks before becaming leader of BTS and Bang respected his opinion right from the begining. Trainees were chosen for were they a good fit with RM. Jimin contemporary ballet, traditional Korean dance, hip hop, black belt karate( tumbling skills)
I am so pleased you are watching this series and I think it will inform your thinking and assumptions as it explores k -pop and contextualises BTS within that. Kudos to you for saying that you are willing to take on board the commentary from ARMY (recognising too that not everything that is posted is accurate) in adjusting some your views - many don't. Some have already touched on things such as SK age, RM's American accent, the very limited resources their company had and therefore the impact on how they evolved as performers and artists but also how much they were actively involved in the decision making, artistry and development with their company and therefore the mutual trust between them and their company. This may not be where you were going but I do want to add to your commentary about being uncomfortable about telling young girls they weighed too much, that unfortunately young girls trying to make it in the entertainment industry worldwide are told they are too fat, too skinny, too short, too tall, not beautiful enough or not cute enough. While I think SK's focus and expectations of beauty standards and perfection of all idols and actors is insane, it is somewhat shared by western cultures too and not entirely only evident in k-pop. The main thing I wanted to say is that I hope you do continue to watch this series and I hope that you do watch the bonus content and deleted scenes. Each episode has a theme and the material in the bonus scenes and deleted scenes form part of the theme but not included in main part as some of the hard decisions at the point of editing for flow or priority. All three components- deleted, bonus and the main will give you sense of the boys, who by and large, have not changed, just matured. Most of their die-hard fans came for their sound, music, choreography, lyrics and then by watching their behind the scenes and vlogs, fell in love with boys themselves. We stay, become very protective of them, because we stay in love with their music and lyrics but mostly we love that fame and fortune has not changed these talented, hardworking, humble, chaotic, charismatic, genuine individuals at all. I hope that you will also explore some of the content that delves into them as a team and individuals ( eg Run BTS series) as that may also answer some of the answers you are looking for and not yet finding. I like your reactions although have been frustrated at times but ever so pleased that you continue to give them a go and understand the hype. Long post and I hope my edit gets rid of the strike through some my comments after my original posting.
Jungkook was in his 14 year, but his birthday was September 1st so he was still 13 when he joined. He was 15 at debut and turned 16 later that year also Suga said he was 21 but he was 20 he was telling his age in Korean years which Korea stopped using for official stuff last year I think
The problem around image in Korea is really big to be fair, it isn't only in the k-pop industry, it's the Korean society in general, they care too much about how you look, how much you weight, how you present yourself to others etc.
I think of the idol training system as akin to what the old Bolshoi Ballet used to do, only they started even younger. Take a kid age 8-10, train correct form into them to get it locked into muscle memory, and hope they're not burned out when they're old enough to perform.
I really enjoyed all the comments and questions you were bringing up throughout your reaction to this video, thanks for sharing with us! I love this series 💜
I initially liked the dancing (I love dance) and then fell in love with their fun and introspective personalities, and their wonderful team relationship. And only after I grew to like most of their music.
it was fun watch and good comentary.... ;) There is a lot of people that really get in to BTS, bc of guys and they personalities, so it isn't that weird what you said, about liking them... ;) the series is from 2013 to 2018/19 there will be answers to your questions but not all bc simple time and how much you can put into episodes, so with hardships they talk about personal hardships in series and few big one for group but no all things that they faced. I would say that series stays \with facts and offiicial things, plus all the things boys talked about and they comented, it is more focused on history and grow (then haters). Yes, video vlogs were form of marketing bc they didn't have money for big promotion to put their name there... and yes they did all themself, normaly kpop companies didn't let idols to be free in a way speach and contact all was contorled so reputation would stay put. all song used are credited in this small boxes so there you can see if it is original song, from what album, or cover maybe or something. hmm also you can watch videos to end ;)
They were the first to use UA-cam as a way to promote mainly because they didn't have money for a PR team or the glout to be able to use Kmedia to promote them. They were also very, very lucky that UA-cam was just starting to take off.
Hi🇨🇦🙋🏻♀️ First time here. Loved the reaction. Your Nick Fury/Avengers analogy made me cackle 😂 This series (although unfinished) is the best docu-series on Bangtan. The level of detail in their the back story and social context the editor and creator provided is awesome. (FYI she didn’t complete it partially due to returning to being a full time professional editor after the pandemic). Most of your questions will be answered as you continue. 😊 For more editorial style content about BTS’s presence in the industry and their effect, I would recommend 'boracity magazine'. Her content is also next level, and might be something that interests you later down the road. Looking forward to checking out more of your channel ~ 💜
@ lol 😆 I’ll keep my thoughts kind when I watch them. But you seem to have opened up to them despite your initial ideas… I actually think that shows you’re not a prick actually! 👍🏻
@ my view is… and this might be the wrong way to go about things tbh, but I always see it as: huge artist, I haven’t heard them. They need to prove to me why they’re so good, and if I don’t hear astonishing, then I’m calling bullshit. Then I take a moment and go back in and deep dive 😂
@ I understand that. I've had k-pop on my radar since 2012. Watched a lot of vids, by MANY different K-pop groups.. really enjoyed some of them. Been listening to rock, metal, hip-hop, pop… everything really, my whole life. I’d be lying if I said finding out how involved BTS is in creating their music.. didn’t come as a surprise (given what I knew of K-pop ) .. I listened/watched 'Not Today' in 2017… a few days later I started listening to their discography and was blown away. I understand your misgivings, I shared them at one point. I’ve personally found BTS to be the exception to that rule… and others, over the years~ 😁✌🏼
If not the first then definitely one of the first to do these UA-cam vlogs and later on popularize them in the industry. A lot of other new groups at bigger labels either had network tv survival shows to build up hype or had company seniors (who are already doing well/known) kinda introduce them, bts had to be creative to build themselves some hype via UA-cam, SoundCloud covers and blogs (which are all still around, you can go check out Jin’s recipes etc). I don’t think RM imagined being western rapper competition at that point, but they were supposed to be a hip hop group initially and Korea had hip hop groups who didn’t do choreography (for example epik high, whom rm&suga were fans of). And unfortunately the rappers, particularly RM & Suga did get a lot of flack from underground hip hop for being idols in the beginning. They ranged from 13 (jungkook) to 18 (Jin) when they were first signed This series was a passion project of a professional Hollywood editor ARMY, she said she wanted to have something to explain to her friends &family about her love for bts. So it’s an excellent from a fan’s pov series. She didn’t focus much on the hardships and tried a balanced storytelling focused approach and the editing gets even better as the series go on. It complements the autobiographical books and series from bts themselves.
I really don´t think BTS had succees in the west as their main goal in the beginning..... But they turned out to be very popular abroad.....they became bigger abroad before getting big in Korea.....
RMs mum bought him the box set of FRIENDS as a teenager. That's how he learned English. He learned Japanese at school. Unlike BTS in kpop rappers rap and sing someone elses lyrics. Big Hit did not have the money to do things the traditional kpop way. This contributed to some of the the hostility BTS met on their rise. Plus they rejected typical kpop stereotypes. Jin went straight on camera told ARMY the company told him as he was handsome he should be cool and mysterious but he wasn't going to do that. It was not long before the company gave up after realising the fans liked BTS brand of chaos. Jin, RM and Suga were at the bottom of the dancing ranking every month. Even Jimin was under constant threat because his dancing style was too flowing and stylised for Kpop. Plus he only had 6 months training. Alot of that time wasted trying to teach him to rap until Suga intervened saying he was a singer. Another difference with Bang Si Hyuk he listened to the members and staff who championed them. RM told Bang he had to get J Hope back after he left. Suga and training and developement championed Jimin.
Hello, I'm a 48 year old Brazilian ARMY. Thanks for the reaction. You should definitely react to the other chapters and also BTS's speeches at the UN. I will be waiting for your next reaction from this journey with BTS. 💜🇧🇷💜🇧🇷💜🇧🇷💜🇧🇷💜🇧🇷💜🇧🇷💜
First, Thank you for watching and investing your time in starting this series. 👍👏💜 . Second, you have every right to speak YOUR opinion(s) on YOUR channel. Unfortunately, there are A LOT of people in the fandom/pretend to be in the fandom that criticize people that have opinions/comments different than theirs or complain to complain/correct to correct. If you don't agree with what this gentleman is saying, don't watch him. Simple. BTS DOES NOT encourage negativity in music and ARMY! Per RM: "Love yourself. Love myself." 😎🎶🌟💜💜💜💜💜
Aw thanks! I don’t mind a little negativity tbh, I know people aren’t always gonna agree with me, cause I do like to point out the negatives and positives in stuff, and people mostly come to these videos expecting just positives. But that’s okay.
Jungkook was 15 when they debuted but when he was a trainie he was i believe 13 or 14 if im correct Army please correct me if I'm wrong. Jungkook now is 27 and Jin is 32.
I'm sure others have pointed this out too but it's very important to understand that the traditional Korean way of counting age is different. They are all basically 1.5-2 years younger in international age than what they say themselves. (You are 1 when you are born and turn a year older on January 1, no matter when your actual birth date is.)
Until recently, Korean age was 1-2 years older than the rest of the world. Koreans consider themselves 1 at birth and then everyone advances a year on Jan 1. For example, V was born on Dec. 30, 1995. On Dec 30 he was 1. 2 days later, on Jan 1, he was 2. He was only 2 days old but was considered 2 years old. So, subtract 1-2 years from whatever they claim is their age at the time. At debut (2013), they were 15-20 years old.
You should have noticed V did not appear in any segments of online or promotional activities. He was already a member (before Jimin), but he was kept hidden. Some say it's to avoid other agencies snatching him, which they could do before the debut. V was involved in everything, including preparing for the debut, making the vlogs that nobody saw, and attending Jungkook's high school graduation. In general, he had to stay away from the cameras or sit in the corner, watching the other members reach out to their fans. He must have a high EQ to get through that long period of public isolation as a teenager. I admire him for that.
*PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU PLAY THE VIDEOS UNTIL THE END. YOU ARE MISSING CONTENT AND INFORMATION* The goal for RM was never to get accepted in the Western Market. His goal was to debut as a Hip Hop Group, in South Korea, and to be able to write his own messages in his lyrics. Bang Si-hyuk promised them that. He actually required BTS to write their own lyrics, and to tell their own stories. But the Western Market was not a goal of Big Hit. The Goal was to create a Hip Hop group that would be able to resonate with the younger generation, through Hip Hop. South Korea has their own Hip Hop scene. Jimin is the contemporary dancer, and J-Hope is the street dancer, that is also the dance leader. Gymnastics, especially at the Elite and Olympic level is like that, and ballet and other sports. All music being played in this are BTS songs. And remember that BTS debuted in 2013 as a Hip Hop Idol group. They were Hip Hop. Also, yes they were the first ones to do vlogs on youtube and open a twitter account to promote themselves,. Because they had to be creative in how they promoted. The Korean music industry were not kind to them. and they had a hard time getting on music and variety shows.
Just wanted to let to you know SK has/had a different ages lol. Up until last year they count the day you were born as 1 years old & sometimes they add another year (I forgot how this rule works). So when JK said he was 16 in international age he was like 14-15yrs old. However laws changed like last year to change their age system to be same as international. 😅 I am sure others can explain better but yeah.
You gotta understand at the time when BTS came up they were a small label Korea Korean entertainment was controlled by 3 major Agencies agencies Control shows And all that BTS is from a small label . So it was hard for BTS in the beginning.,didn't help that the other fandoms were attacking him all the time. This is the reason why armies are so very protective of BTS We've been through a lot of crap with other artists And labels point after our boys
You need to watch the end credits there in fun stuff at the end of each episode. Please always watch to the end in BTS videos, you always miss stuff if you don't. 💜
BTS before debut did vlogs and free covers on sound cloud. No one was doing that, and now everyone copies them. During this time, they are all at least a year or two younger than what they say because they were using Korean age, which you are a year old the day you are born. Today, Korea is now using international age. Yes, this documentary will get into all their struggles. The girl who made this documentary was going to school for editing she did an amazing job. I wish she did not stop at 21 chapters and kept going. I personally think it's better than all the other documentaries out there. You should let the video play to the end there are always extra clips. Also I recommend the deleted sceens and bonus content they have after the next chapters as well.
BTS had a initial (not really big, but existing) following because they had a blog about their pre debut time where they posted these vlogs, random posts (like J-hope made a big one explaining different types of street dancing), and song covers! So people were waiting to discover how their album was gonna be
For all the times that BTS helped a fan overcome a hardship, a challenge, or depression.
There are people alive and thriving today because of this group.
We aren't just here cheering on a group of cute guys. We are fighting for awareness. Because someone out there needs BTS in their lives.
19:18 RM said he started rapping in 2007, but didn't join BH until 2010. The ages are off, as others have said because of the ways Korean's count age, but RM was born in 1994, so he was signed when he was 15 turning 16. Suga (1993) and Jhope (1994) also signed in 2010, so Suga would have been 17 and Jhope 16. Jin (1992) signed with BH in 2011 same with JK (1997) and V (1995) so they were 18, 13 and 15. Jimin signed a year later in 2012 and is the same age as V.
other point of reason why bighit went along with direct involvement of bts members in their craft is that bighit really didn't have money. the training system itself requires a lot of money and infrastructure to work on the quality level of big dogs, on top of that idols usually need music being written for them. the label just didn't have the hiring capacity to cover it all, the workload in producing, writing anf composing tracks was shared with bts members, in the early years predominantly rm and suga. the members agreed to such system because it allowed them to speak their minds through music, which is not something kpop usually allows
29:20 exactly authenticity over marketing. And that’s why they’re all struggling (both western and Korean companies) because they want the next BTS but when they think they have the next BTS it’s because they’ve manufactured this group that they believe can compete, but they have none of the genuineness or frankly speaking the talent. What they are really after is creating a brand.
And BTS organically grew their trust and connection to each other and their company through years of hardship and ridicule from their industry and the outside world. They are truly bonded like family and they feel a similar connection to Army because Army supported and shielded them since their debut. You have probably seen many mention how the group is also very protective of Army too. It’s a symbiotic relationship that grew out of honesty, vulnerability and mutual respect.
Very well put, both of you! I totally agree! 💜
I think something else, fundamentally, that sets BTS apart early on is RM and Suga. At least musically. All the members bring something to the table, but when it comes to music RM and Suga had already been writing their own raps/lyrics, composing and performing underground for at least a few years before even joining Bighit. They didn't learn how to do those things as trainees. They did get to spend that time honing their skills with guidance from Bang PD and PDogg (and any other producers/songwriters there at the time), but as PDogg describes it, they already came in with their own colour when it comes to music, to the point that songs they wrote as trainees, like Jump and Satori Rap actually made it to early BTS albums. RM himself is also credited with the way Hybe/Bighit still looks for and trains trainees to this day and BTS members, as trainees, would have what they called 'The School of Rap' session with RM Suga and Jhope. So early on it wasn't that BH "made" BTS - they recognized the talent that these 2 had and had the where with all to keep them engaged with the music and even let them guide the direction (with input from the other members)....otherwise I'm not sure they would have stayed on with the project ultimately. They brought a lot of the musical authenticity to the group that BTS is still known for today. 💜
BigHit was in Seoul, the capital, but before being casted boys lived in different provinces, so to become trainees they had to move to Seoul and live in a dorm together. their parents stayed home, but visited their sons on weekends, even if it was a long ride. for the members no weekends off. sometimes they had 2 day "vacations" for holidays, then they could go home, but rarely. their first proper rest was in 2019
jungkook, the youngest, also left home, other members took care of him like of a younger brother
I have to say Markabusi, I applaud your intelligence and empathetic attitude. Despite all the preconceived notions and prejudices you initially had (which we all probably did before we knew K-pop), your insights were so nice to listen to-honest without being offensive, smart yet unpretentious. Looking forward to the next chapters of the series! 💜
Oh damn, thank you!
It us important to note that the ages they talk about in the documentary are using the Korean age system. When you hear an age subtract 1 to 2 years to get our age system.
The rest of the series does show you what you want to see, so I look forward to seeing more reactions. I am always impressed with how much you do understand from your first watch of something and thank you so much for changing the layout so i could see the subtitles. I was on my phone so i really appreciated your consideration.
I’m so glad you’re reacting to the Rise of Bangtan series! I haven’t seen all of the episodes yet myself, so am looking forward to watching them with you. It really is done so professionally by the maker. You’ll have your questions answered while viewing these, and it’s also going to really give you a sense of why Army is so invested in the group and want to see them succeed - both together and with their solo music releases. I feel that they’ve really earned that devotion.
Thank you for reacting to this amazing series Mark and for making it available for us on YT. I liked your thoughtful comments very much. Looking forward to the next chapter 💜
BTS were the first ones to do those logs, mainly because their company was so small and didn't have influence to help promote them, so they used what they had- social media.
Maybe other artists did social media to some extent, but for sure they were the first to go on that level, and create a "personal" connection wirh the viewers. Bang PD was a genius giving them more freedom, they were authentic, they were idols on stage but goofy fun guys outside the stage, relatable. That's what gave them a small audience even before debuting and that slowly grew after debut. Also because they were not the usual kpop artists in Korea, many people made fun of them and didn't believe it was true when they started selling well, because by using youtube they were the first ones to actually get a lot of international fans. So even tho they weren't the most popular in Korea, they still got better results.
To this day BTS frequently does livestreaming with fans, separately and together (a bit harder for those that are in the military tho). Jungkook had some days off from the military and did a livestream before Christmas, he had 20 million people watching him live doing karaoke in his house.
A lot of kpop bands use social media now, but BTS brought it to another level starting 2013.
This series will answer many questions you have, and you will understand a lot better why the fans love them so much.
Thanks for the praise to the ARMYs who have done this work. Most of the work on this series was done by a woman named Aneesa, and I think it remains more the story of the guys and not so much the BTS-industry interaction.
For what i think you're looking for, check out the channel Boracity Magazine--she does great stuff too, with an emphasis on BTS vs.Radio, BTS vs Spotify, etc.
Yes they were the first in kpop to do it. They got the idea from America reality shows, and now everybody even copies BTS activities🎉
j-hope was a street dancer, and jimin was student of modern dance :)
38:17 it is very common for K-pop groups to already have established names, social media accounts and even fan base accounts prior to debut. Right now this is even more present BECAUSE of BTS influence in the industry. Back then, K-pop groups also had a following even before debut bc the “big 3 labels” in K-pop ruled the entertainment industry and had (STILL HAVE) major control of the media in Korea, so whenever they were planning to debut a new group fans of that label’s previous groups would already start to transition into the new group and stuff, that how the big 3 K-pop companies were able to maintain their empire for so long, and why BTS was so sabotaged and rejected from the convention methods these labels used to promote their groups, bc they are not from the big 3, BigHit ent, was a TINY company barely surviving financially with a “makeshift” idol training system which is also why the boys were granted more freedom and SPECIALLY artistic autonomy. That’s why BTS has all this saved “UA-cam vlog” content (all still available on their channel BangtanTV), bc they were basically the pioneers in K-pop of being active on social media and directly interacting with fans online, before, the normal promotions for idols was only Korean tv shows, variety shows, commercials, concerts, K-pop festivals,….all the things that required industry connections and money, neither of which BTS and BigHit had. So their strategy was to create an online presence to hype their debut, they posted covers of songs on SoundCloud and even their own adaptations like the one they played in this video “school of tears”.
There are little clips at the end of the previews for next episode. As you said you enjoy watching their live clips, you would probably enjoy watching the deleted scenes and bonus content that goes with each chapter of this fan made series.
Most of your questions will be answered during the chapters if you pay enough attention, so don't get too stuck in the small details 😉 The author of the series doesn't spoon feed you the answers, but shows them instead, so it could be easy to miss out on some things on first watch. Sometimes there will be someone stating something about k-pop, while the images are contradicting it by showing how BTS were doing the opposite.
And yes, as far as I know, they were the first ones to do this kind of thing. Idols were not meant to be seen as down to earth every day kind of people, so something like this would not have been encouraged by any other k-pop company. Big Hit though, couldn't promote through normal channels, so they come up with this and other social media avenues. And hit gold!
Regardless, ARMY will most certainly help you out in the comments with any queries or things you might be unsure about. 💜
This series follow them from pre debut to around 2019, so you'll get to see how they became famous worldwide, a lot of in-depth explanations about the k-pop industry and Korean society, as well as the struggles they faced. It basically has almost everything, it's really good for people that weren't there while those things were happening, almost like if there were a real tv show/series about them!
Thank you for giving a chance to this great docuseries, it was incredibly helpful to me when I started getting into BTS because it contextualizes a lot of what they're going through in the episode showing you how the rest of the industry was running things at the time and how BTS and BigHit were different, because they had to be (they didn't have the money nor the reputation of bigger labels). It also helped me a lot with learning korean culture a little bit, just enough to better understand them.
Sooo many of your reactions and opinions were really similar to my owns when I first watched it, it's quite funny😅
Also: they were definitely the first in Kpop to use vlogs and social media to show the world who they were from the beginning (I don't think they were the First EVER in the world, but it was unheard of in Kpop, no agency would let their artists do something like that... Now they're all copying it) but it was mostly out of necessity because, again, they didn't have the money the big companies had for promotions and were not invited on variety shows so they found a new way, a better way, with youtube.
Sorry for the way too long comment, I kept trying to wrap it up but things kept coming to mind
I think BTS have gained and retained their fanbase because of their talents, obviously, but also you can see their genuine personality and their relatability.
Their first three mini albums we call the 'school trilogy', they spoke about school life and the thoughts and feelings of themselves and their peers. They were doing exactly what Bang PD told them to do, tell their own stories. As they grew up before our eyes so their music and lyrics matured. And this is exactly why they constantly gain new fans of all ages. You can play a track/album and it will speak to you about a time, past or present, in your life. Absolute genius.💜
There are quite a number of reactors to BTS, who started out either knowing nothing about them or had a preconceived notion about what and who they are. Many of those reactors have come to be Army and even went to concerts, their reactions go back far enough that they were able to. Rap/hip-hop and metal/rock fans are probably the two genres that seem to have found a love for BTS and even some other k-pop groups.
Welcome to all the reactors starting this series! Even if someone doesn't like BTS or their music isn't their taste, the stories of their authenticity and haaaard work can serve as great inspiration in life. This is such a timely reaction-perfect as the first reaction to kick off the new year. Thank you! 💜💜
RM Suga and J-Hope were all known in their fields before joining Big Hit. RM and Suga were known in the underground rap scene RM for his raps and Suga for his songwriting and production. And J-Hope was well known for his dancing. He was part of an underground dance team and even won a national competition in 2008
Glad to see you are reacting to this series, subscribed, you will understand the phenomenon that is BTS and why they are the band of this generation. Please watch to the end of the episode as it always adds a couple of clips of some humorous outtakes - which are just as important to watch - you could call them BTS meme clips - as you said, they are relatable, funny and good people - that is something you will see more of in this series and in the clips at the end. Thanks for the reaction.
A lot of people have said, I genuinely thought the video was finished haha 😂 thank you for subscribing though, I appreciate that!
It is just like many of their music videos, always watch till the end. Often there are little surpries for the fans, lol. You are doing a great job! Thank you.
I'm really enjoying watching you explore BTS. Looking forward to the next chapter.
Yes! All BTS members came from different parts of Korea, even RM (although he was around Seoul), so they lived together, but weren't with their families
Future episodes definitely go deep, most episodes focusing on specific issues swirling around the group and K Pop as whole while showing the evolution of BTS and its reception. The beauty of this documentary is that it doesn't sugarcoat the way many ot the other documentaries do, but rather leaves you super impressed with BTS by allowing historical footage both flattering and not flattering to immerse you in the journey.
the song you asked about is indeed by bts, it's an intro for 2 cool 4 scool album. btw, bts songs that play in these series are usually noted in the bottom left corner, just so you dont have to wait for comments to confirm! :)
16:22 To be far I doubt he had any eyes at all towards the western market at all. Even BTS themselves when they first started didn't have their eyes set on the west, what they have achieved as a group and individually in terms of billboard charts, etc was practically unheard of then even for groups signed to the Big 3. BH at the time was basically an indie label.
No one in BTS had any dreams of being in the western market - that was way too big of a dream to even enter their minds
They just wanted to succeed in Korea. That was the dream. Suga said that when they began becoming popular outside of Korea/Japan, it was stressful and scary because they had no mentors to turn to who had done the same thing. Suga said their dream was to rise to the 20th floor of the building of success, but now they were riding up to the 50th floor and it was terrifying.
Before I forget, I might suggest watching a video made by boracity magazine called, a guide to bts (for haters, skeptics, and non-pop fans). (It's not a typo that I didn't capitalize the words of the channel or video title, that's how she does it.) I would also add into the parentheses, and those who don't know about k-pop. It's less than 20 minutes long and is very informative for such a video. It doesn't go into too many details which is why there are other documentaries that provide more information. But it sums it enough to make someone want to find out more.
Their agency was small and almost bankrupt. They had no way to compete with the big agencies (with the money those agencies can put towards a group). So they found a way to communicate with their fans. They were unique in almost every aspect, as most of the groups from small agencies 'don't make it'. They worked their butts off for each and single one of their opportunities.
They all come from different parts of the country, so all left home to go live and train in the big city.
JK was recruited in 2011, making him 13 when he left home. Is why he is so attached to the members. They took on big sibling, parental roles to look after him.
When he does well, you can see the pride in their faces.
Before I start watching, I just wanted to compliment you on your willingness to continue checking out BTS. You will still run across things that you may not particularly enjoy, I have. Even if you wouldn't call yourself a fan at the end of the process, just being able to understand who they are, how they got to where they are now, and the impact on not only Korea but also internationally, is really what counts.
16:42 in the beginning, BTS wasn't going to be a standard idol group. It was going to be a hip hop group where they'd rap and sing, need to have rhythm but no dancing. Sugar & RM were underground rappers and only wanted to rap/produce. Some people left and the project changed to idol group, and the rest of the boys joined
18:09 they did leave their families. Jin stayed living with his parents for a bit but soon they were all in a little dorm sharing a bedroom
There are 21 chapters of this series and there so amazing and informative. I love how reactors watch these they are amazing. Oh there are deleted scenes and bonus content as well to these they are all one piece to the puzzle also.
Mark, I don't want to ramble on and everything has probably been said in the comments but yes, yes, yes and yes. You are very perceptive and hit the nail on the head with your assumptions. Rise of Bangtan is a fantastic series that covers EVERYTHING, I'm so glad you're reacting to it. I LOVE your reactions, they are so open minded and genuine (just like BTS). You remind me a lot of Suga (Yoongi), all tough talk and prickly but underneath your just a genuine, funny guy with real heart. You deserve a purple heart, Happy New Year 💜
I really liked your reaction - I can see that you are thinking and asking yourself questions. And what's better than a person who asks himself questions. BTS are extremely different from the concept of the K-pop industry as a whole. Yes, you are indeed right - the K-pop industry produces idols. As a result of exceptional training, very few youngsters manage to make their debut. Even if they debut, many of them fail to continue. The BIG-3 are the three companies that held the money and the power. Until BTS, no group outside of the big three companies had won desang... Advertising, participation in music shows, that is, the things on which the popularity of a group depends - all this was in the hands of the BIG3. Poverty plays a big role in BTS' success - not only did they come together and become a family, but their innovative ways of promoting them brought them to the global stage. I personally don't consider BTS to be K-pop - neither their way of creating nor their music is similar to others...For me they are real artists who have a global impact. If you pay attention in economic terms - BTS bring 50% of the revenue from the entire K-pop industry. I still find it weird when they compare other bands to them. They are on a whole other level. And no - I do not belittle the success, hard work and talent of others. I just don't like that they downplay the successes and achievements and that they promoted Korea globally
BTS was indeed originally intended to be a rap/hip hop group. Initially all of the trainees thought that was the plan. Suga was a rapper and JHope excelled at street dancing but he learned to rap while as a trainee with the other rappers in the dorm. Through elimination and some trainees choosing to leave once the mission changed to kpop instead of rap the group eventually got reduced to the 7 we have now
J-Hope was an underground street dancer. He and his crew Neuron won many competitions. Jimin, however, studied contemporary dance in school. He also learned hip-hop dancing. They are both Main Dancers in BTS. J-Hope is the Dance Leader. He is strict with the guys in pursuit of technical skill, precision, and placement. They’re both excellent dancers with very different dance styles.
Big Hit was always very different from other K-Pop companies in that these 7 boys already had honed skills that they brought to the group and they composed and produced. The CEO was much more lenient, allowing them to develop more organically. (Big Hit was on the verge of bankruptcy too so didn’t have the money to “create idols.”)
Children who want to be gymnist and ice skaters start in grade school. Some that become world class did leave home and lived with their trainers. I think these 2 sports have many parallels to KPop trainees' experiences including strict diets
And now you see why we asked you to look deeper! There’s so much more depth to BTS, and knowing that the lyrics have always been personal and they’ve all taken roles in all aspects of the group, makes their story and their music even that much better. I think the rest of this series is a good watch because it really shows things in less biased ways than other series. It’s easy for us ARMY to gush, but honestly, we don’t need to because BTS are just THAT phenomenal. 💜
Sorry for so many comments but answering as I go or telling you videos to watch to address your questions. Not using the internet like YT & twitter wasn’t normal, until BTS. (Also internet was fairly new when they debuted). Other groups didn’t start making their own channels and accts until bts got went to BB stuff in 2016, I believe. This is a large reason they got big is bc they used the internet but actually communicated with the fans & created a unique relationships with the fans. (Which is ARMY are so strong and supportive)
Also, these blogs/videos you can still find on their channel BangtanTV (some of the older stuff might not hv cc so you can go to BangtanSub’s channel). BTS still post behind the scenes stuff on their UA-cam channel.
Bts pretty much said we will literally just go straight to blogs ...basically to say if we get fans then they see us for how we are if they like us its a bonus ...this is why bts and army grew together organically. .they don't hide behind marketing or pr...its literally what you see is what you get ..that's what makes them above anyone ...they are still the same guys now as they were in 2013..regardless of the fame they have acquired 💜
Thanks so much for taking the time! It was so fun watching you learn all this stuff! The idol industry is so different from the western model so I think docs like these really help us understand not only BTS but all the kpop groups. Like you said, regardless of whether you like their music, every idol has worked extremely hard to get where they are.
I think we all end up watchinf ROB at some point. Its really good and takes its time with the information. After ur done w/ the episodes i think it would b a good idea to hit Boracity Magazine. I think once u have some context Bora really lazer focuses on our current state as ARMY
Your thoughts and questions are going to be answered in future episodes. This series was made by Aneesa with other ARMYs helping with things like translations, feedback, and so on. She made it because she as frustrated by the Western media reducing BTS to a fluffy manufactured boyband with screaming teenage girls as fans. She wanted to show them as they are and inform people of their journey. It's a labour of love. The series is also great to see their evolving music through different eras. People paid her out of appreciation but she only took what it cost to make the series and gave the rest of it to charity.
Ok Go - I get so much nostalgia from the bands you bring up. So many good indie rock bands in the early 2000s. Used to listen to bands like Frightened Rabbit (RIP Scott Hutchison), the Maccabees, Here We Go Magic, Alt-J, Noah and The Whale, Midlake, Tigers That Talked and so on. Good times.
But when you bring them up, it kind of connects the dots to how I fell in love with BTS when most of my musical tastes run towards indie and folk rock. So I enjoy your perspective.
I love all of those bands lol, especially FR and The Maccabees!
@@markabusireactions I did think we had an overlap of music tastes. Most BTS reactors speak from the perspective of pop or rap, so it's fun listening to someone who makes references that are more familiar to me.
At the end of the first year Jungkook was there he actually does a vlog mentioning that he misses his mom. J-Hope also has a 25 birthday there with the members and watches a video of his family wishing him a happy birthday and he cries thru it all as he hadn't seen them in a very long time. It was hard for them to be separated from their family but they felt that being connected to Big Hit was better as they all wanted to be in this group called BTS. Also just remember that when Jungkook talks of his age he is a year younger than he says. The Korean age is one at birth. It reminds me of going to college where you go to another state and can't just visit your parents whenever you want.
Big Hit ran for BTS what the members call a music camp, they encouraged the members to bring them lyrics, musical pieces, thoughts for songs to them and they could help them develop those into songs. So that later they were able to produce their own songs regularly. In 2013 I watched first their trailer then their promo thru a now past show called DDANG TV show. It was a small show that spoke English but showed kpop groups and their interviewed BTS then showed that trailer and promo. The next week I went on to see their first video, it was hard as I had to find it on TV because I didn't know what music program they were going to be on and as it happened the music show didn't put it on their streaming program so I had to look for their video. Also Big Hit did not have a channel at the time so I had to find BangtanTV stream and I don't speak Korean but watched everyone of their videos. Just watching them was funny I later saw them once they were translated it was funnier. Back then they had more views from the US than they did in Korea. They Korea base was small but strong, but internationally (though they didn't know), was much bigger.
24:37 I agree the isolation is a big part of what makes a difference from like a ballet Academy and things like that. Also, I think the big difference is in Korean culture there’s such a focus on success and filial loyalty. Making your family proud is everything for a lot of these young people so a failure is not just oh I won’t be able to make my dreams. It literally feels like you’re letting everyone down. I think that’s part of why Korea has such a high life ending rate. in South Korea, the number one cause of death for young men is Self ending. There are some pretty high profile cases of idols choosing to go that route.
Quick warning, this is fan made so not 100% accurate and it does glorify their journey and covers only a few of their hardships and struggles, focusing mostly on the positives. The editor chooses 1-2 "hardships" per episode to strengthen the narrative, which is good from an editing and storytelling standpoint but it leaves out a huge chunk of their story. Also, since this was made for fans it assumes you know bts and how they work pretty well already, which means misunderstandings can happen easily. For example she often talks about kpop in general while showing videos of bts, even when it doesn't apply to bts at all, which makes you think she's referring to bts when she isn't etc.
That's it, this is generally a very well made series and a good starting point for new people :)
Another example: during the time period this episodes is about they were almost done for already. The company didn't have enough money to debut them, BigHit had told bts to pack their bags and leave but the members refused. Yoongi/Suga worked 3 jobs in an effort to help sustain them and they were all struggling with not having money. Their studio/practice room was also run down, had mould growing everywhere that the boys would scrape off just for it to grow back, the studio would flood when it rained and they always had to run in to get the equipment out so it wouldn't break etc. What you see in this episode makes it seem like they were much more well off than they were.
(if you're wondering how they still managed to debut, they bagged an investment which allowed the company to afford debuting bts, they put all the new funds into their debut)
And that's not the editor's fault, it would be a very long and depressing documentary series if she focused on all the hardships, but this is an example of how the series is a bit different from reality.
I know they used the word "manufactured" but doesn't that really just mean "trained"? Would we use the same word "manufactured" for highly trained athletes, or even ballet and opera singers? What does that even mean to say these labels "made" that artist. Isn't it really that the label offered the training, but still the individual themselves has to choose to put the time, effort and dedication in to applying what they are learning to become a skilled singer/rapper/performer. As for the rigorous training hours, when you consider the Korean cultural context, where "hard work" is prized and many students their age also go on to cram school after class and often don't get home until 10 or 11 pm on most school nights, they really aren't doing anything above and beyond what their peers are doing. It's just when we compare that to the west....
When I try to explain the training programme and living away from home to my friends who think it is child abuse, I put it in the context of being in a top football academy programme or training to excel in a particular sport. Teenagers are often training abroad away from family. The training hours are extensive and demanding. That is what is required if you are going to excel at that level.
You have to know that Korean age was different than international age :you already have 1 year when you're born, and every body add one more year every 1st january. So when BTS made their debut, in June 2013, the oldest Jin said he has 22 years old, but he only have 20 years old, and the youngest JK 15 years old (he joined as trainee as 13 )
BTS weren't the first group to have their formation and preparation filmed throughout. They were just the first great band with great songs that did that that people will be watching for generations to come. So yeah, we should thank Bang Si Hyuk and Kim Namjoon for their vision.
I see the comments already said, everything there is to say.
Most of these 'logs' should still be available on their Bangtantv youtube channel; some people posted on Twitter that they are finally putting sub on their older videos, so I am not sure if they already have subs or not. But back in the day we had a youtube channel called 'Bangtansubs' which was a team of ARMYs translating all of their content; so it maybe still is on their channel with subs too.
BTS when they debuted started posting some others things that are now 'normal' things in kpop that EVERY group does, but back they were the only (and having an ARMY youtube channel that translated videos back then was also a NEW uncommon thing):
Shooting scetch - behind the scenes of a music video
Bangtan bomb - behind the scenes random clip
Episode - a longer behind the scenes video, usually of an awards show, the UN visit also has an "Episode" on their youtube channel of them preparing and attending UN
Log - they actually still sometimes post logs (livestreams are more popular now). But I am pretty sure in 2020 they posted 'logs' of them preparing their BE album
bts were releasing covers and vlogs even before they debuted, they had some online presence just to reach out to anyone who is interested enough to watch and listen. so there were some fans even before bts debuted, but we a talking about like below a thousand people, based on bts twt following back then. that little crowd of supporters are the ones bts address in vlogs that were included in this episode. in first 3 years their gain of fans was kind of slow, but it was accelerating nonetheless, until it reached crazy rate of fan conversion starting from like 2017. and they don't stop, next huge influx of fans was 2020, and for example the 2022-2024 solo era literally doubled the amount of bts followers
Also I wanted to point out that the editor tried to show that Bighit was different compared to other companies. For example: they said “no going out” but saw members going out, etc. Bighit was still had rules but not as strict & toxic as other companies.
You should watch the deleted scenes as well for a little bit more of a look into their lives, and their goofiness!
This series was edited by one person called Aneesa, who put over 4 years of work into this for free! She’s very very impressive and I’m so grateful to her for telling BTS’ story with so much love and care and professionalism.
Hope you watch this whole thing along with your music reactions, it gives great context as you’ve seen. Your thoughts were very interesting, I agree a lot with what you’ve said about BTS and/vs the industry.
For clarity, since the members used the korean age counting here, in 2013 with their first album, their ages were:
Jin and Suga: 20
J-Hope: 19
RM: 18
Jimin and V: 17
Jungkook: 15
Jin was the only member of age when he became a trainee (he was in university), everyone else was a minor (in high school, and Jungkook in middle school) when they started training.
I think you will fall in love with these seven crackheads through Rise of Bangtan episodes, and even more so through Run BTS episodes if you choose to watch those later down the line! 😁 Borahae 💜
The ages are wrong as they are 1 to 2 years younger in western age depending on which month they are born in. If you are born in December you will be 2 years younger in western age. JK left home just before his 14th birthday. Thats why JK says BTS raised him. J Hope was the street dancer. RM had only graduated high school couple weeks before becaming leader of BTS and Bang respected his opinion right from the begining. Trainees were chosen for were they a good fit with RM. Jimin contemporary ballet, traditional Korean dance, hip hop, black belt karate( tumbling skills)
I am so pleased you are watching this series and I think it will inform your thinking and assumptions as it explores k -pop and contextualises BTS within that. Kudos to you for saying that you are willing to take on board the commentary from ARMY (recognising too that not everything that is posted is accurate) in adjusting some your views - many don't. Some have already touched on things such as SK age, RM's American accent, the very limited resources their company had and therefore the impact on how they evolved as performers and artists but also how much they were actively involved in the decision making, artistry and development with their company and therefore the mutual trust between them and their company. This may not be where you were going but I do want to add to your commentary about being uncomfortable about telling young girls they weighed too much, that unfortunately young girls trying to make it in the entertainment industry worldwide are told they are too fat, too skinny, too short, too tall, not beautiful enough or not cute enough. While I think SK's focus and expectations of beauty standards and perfection of all idols and actors is insane, it is somewhat shared by western cultures too and not entirely only evident in k-pop. The main thing I wanted to say is that I hope you do continue to watch this series and I hope that you do watch the bonus content and deleted scenes. Each episode has a theme and the material in the bonus scenes and deleted scenes form part of the theme but not included in main part as some of the hard decisions at the point of editing for flow or priority. All three components- deleted, bonus and the main will give you sense of the boys, who by and large, have not changed, just matured. Most of their die-hard fans came for their sound, music, choreography, lyrics and then by watching their behind the scenes and vlogs, fell in love with boys themselves. We stay, become very protective of them, because we stay in love with their music and lyrics but mostly we love that fame and fortune has not changed these talented, hardworking, humble, chaotic, charismatic, genuine individuals at all. I hope that you will also explore some of the content that delves into them as a team and individuals ( eg Run BTS series) as that may also answer some of the answers you are looking for and not yet finding. I like your reactions although have been frustrated at times but ever so pleased that you continue to give them a go and understand the hype.
Long post and I hope my edit gets rid of the strike through some my comments after my original posting.
Siempre velo completo please, incluso que sigue en el siguiente capitulo, ya que los finales extras son muy divertidos please❤
Que buen video para empezar el año 💜💜 feliz año querido Markabusi👌
Jungkook was in his 14 year, but his birthday was September 1st so he was still 13 when he joined. He was 15 at debut and turned 16 later that year also Suga said he was 21 but he was 20 he was telling his age in Korean years which Korea stopped using for official stuff last year I think
Did you notice V didn't feature in the pre-debut build up? They kept him secret till they debuted as 7.
The problem around image in Korea is really big to be fair, it isn't only in the k-pop industry, it's the Korean society in general, they care too much about how you look, how much you weight, how you present yourself to others etc.
I think of the idol training system as akin to what the old Bolshoi Ballet used to do, only they started even younger. Take a kid age 8-10, train correct form into them to get it locked into muscle memory, and hope they're not burned out when they're old enough to perform.
I really enjoyed all the comments and questions you were bringing up throughout your reaction to this video, thanks for sharing with us! I love this series 💜
I initially liked the dancing (I love dance) and then fell in love with their fun and introspective personalities, and their wonderful team relationship. And only after I grew to like most of their music.
These series are okay to upload without issues.
it was fun watch and good comentary.... ;)
There is a lot of people that really get in to BTS, bc of guys and they personalities, so it isn't that weird what you said, about liking them... ;)
the series is from 2013 to 2018/19 there will be answers to your questions but not all bc simple time and how much you can put into episodes, so with hardships they talk about personal hardships in series and few big one for group but no all things that they faced. I would say that series stays \with facts and offiicial things, plus all the things boys talked about and they comented, it is more focused on history and grow (then haters).
Yes, video vlogs were form of marketing bc they didn't have money for big promotion to put their name there... and yes they did all themself, normaly kpop companies didn't let idols to be free in a way speach and contact all was contorled so reputation would stay put.
all song used are credited in this small boxes so there you can see if it is original song, from what album, or cover maybe or something. hmm also you can watch videos to end ;)
They were the first to use UA-cam as a way to promote mainly because they didn't have money for a PR team or the glout to be able to use Kmedia to promote them.
They were also very, very lucky that UA-cam was just starting to take off.
Good idea to watch this series! It's a wonderful in-depth look at bts and K-pop. Great to watch it again with you💜
Rise of bangtan lets go! Such a great series!
Hi🇨🇦🙋🏻♀️ First time here. Loved the reaction. Your Nick Fury/Avengers analogy made me cackle 😂
This series (although unfinished) is the best docu-series on Bangtan. The level of detail in their the back story and social context the editor and creator provided is awesome. (FYI she didn’t complete it partially due to returning to being a full time professional editor after the pandemic). Most of your questions will be answered as you continue. 😊
For more editorial style content about BTS’s presence in the industry and their effect, I would recommend 'boracity magazine'. Her content is also next level, and might be something that interests you later down the road.
Looking forward to checking out more of your channel ~ 💜
Don’t go to the early bts reactions, you’ll think I’m a right prick 😂
@ lol 😆 I’ll keep my thoughts kind when I watch them. But you seem to have opened up to them despite your initial ideas… I actually think that shows you’re not a prick actually! 👍🏻
@ my view is… and this might be the wrong way to go about things tbh, but I always see it as: huge artist, I haven’t heard them. They need to prove to me why they’re so good, and if I don’t hear astonishing, then I’m calling bullshit.
Then I take a moment and go back in and deep dive 😂
@ I understand that. I've had k-pop on my radar since 2012. Watched a lot of vids, by MANY different K-pop groups.. really enjoyed some of them. Been listening to rock, metal, hip-hop, pop… everything really, my whole life. I’d be lying if I said finding out how involved BTS is in creating their music.. didn’t come as a surprise (given what I knew of K-pop ) .. I listened/watched 'Not Today' in 2017… a few days later I started listening to their discography and was blown away. I understand your misgivings, I shared them at one point. I’ve personally found BTS to be the exception to that rule… and others, over the years~ 😁✌🏼
You need to remember that all these ages they're saying are Korean ages. So you need to subtract 2 from each one. Jin was 20yrs and Jungkook was 14yrs
Omgg please watch more of the episodes, they’re all so good! btw I enjoy watching your honest bts reactions ty :D!!1!1
If not the first then definitely one of the first to do these UA-cam vlogs and later on popularize them in the industry. A lot of other new groups at bigger labels either had network tv survival shows to build up hype or had company seniors (who are already doing well/known) kinda introduce them, bts had to be creative to build themselves some hype via UA-cam, SoundCloud covers and blogs (which are all still around, you can go check out Jin’s recipes etc).
I don’t think RM imagined being western rapper competition at that point, but they were supposed to be a hip hop group initially and Korea had hip hop groups who didn’t do choreography (for example epik high, whom rm&suga were fans of). And unfortunately the rappers, particularly RM & Suga did get a lot of flack from underground hip hop for being idols in the beginning.
They ranged from 13 (jungkook) to 18 (Jin) when they were first signed
This series was a passion project of a professional Hollywood editor ARMY, she said she wanted to have something to explain to her friends &family about her love for bts. So it’s an excellent from a fan’s pov series. She didn’t focus much on the hardships and tried a balanced storytelling focused approach and the editing gets even better as the series go on. It complements the autobiographical books and series from bts themselves.
There debut was in June 2013 and the 1st episode was up to march! The documentary’s are so good there are quite a few!
I love love this series. Im going to enjoy your walk with bangtan. By the fourth episode you will know them all. Just by personality alone. Lol
I really don´t think BTS had succees in the west as their main goal in the beginning..... But they turned out to be very popular abroad.....they became bigger abroad before getting big in Korea.....
RMs mum bought him the box set of FRIENDS as a teenager. That's how he learned English. He learned Japanese at school. Unlike BTS in kpop rappers rap and sing someone elses lyrics. Big Hit did not have the money to do things the traditional kpop way. This contributed to some of the the hostility BTS met on their rise. Plus they rejected typical kpop stereotypes. Jin went straight on camera told ARMY the company told him as he was handsome he should be cool and mysterious but he wasn't going to do that. It was not long before the company gave up after realising the fans liked BTS brand of chaos. Jin, RM and Suga were at the bottom of the dancing ranking every month. Even Jimin was under constant threat because his dancing style was too flowing and stylised for Kpop. Plus he only had 6 months training. Alot of that time wasted trying to teach him to rap until Suga intervened saying he was a singer. Another difference with Bang Si Hyuk he listened to the members and staff who championed them. RM told Bang he had to get J Hope back after he left. Suga and training and developement championed Jimin.
Oh this is a pleasant surprise lol
Just to let you know korean age was different they are counted as one when they are born and depending could be one or two years different
Hello, I'm a 48 year old Brazilian ARMY. Thanks for the reaction. You should definitely react to the other chapters and also BTS's speeches at the UN. I will be waiting for your next reaction from this journey with BTS.
💜🇧🇷💜🇧🇷💜🇧🇷💜🇧🇷💜🇧🇷💜🇧🇷💜
First, Thank you for watching and investing your time in starting this series. 👍👏💜
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Second, you have every right to speak YOUR opinion(s) on YOUR channel. Unfortunately, there are A LOT of people in the fandom/pretend to be in the fandom that criticize people that have opinions/comments different than theirs or complain to complain/correct to correct.
If you don't agree with what this gentleman is saying, don't watch him. Simple.
BTS DOES NOT encourage negativity in music and ARMY!
Per RM: "Love yourself. Love myself." 😎🎶🌟💜💜💜💜💜
Aw thanks! I don’t mind a little negativity tbh, I know people aren’t always gonna agree with me, cause I do like to point out the negatives and positives in stuff, and people mostly come to these videos expecting just positives. But that’s okay.
Jungkook was 15 when they debuted but when he was a trainie he was i believe 13 or 14 if im correct Army please correct me if I'm wrong. Jungkook now is 27 and Jin is 32.
I'm sure others have pointed this out too but it's very important to understand that the traditional Korean way of counting age is different. They are all basically 1.5-2 years younger in international age than what they say themselves. (You are 1 when you are born and turn a year older on January 1, no matter when your actual birth date is.)
BTS. Has had their entire lives filmed since they were recruited
Thank you 💜
I'm so excited to watch this!!!
Until recently, Korean age was 1-2 years older than the rest of the world. Koreans consider themselves 1 at birth and then everyone advances a year on Jan 1.
For example, V was born on Dec. 30, 1995. On Dec 30 he was 1. 2 days later, on Jan 1, he was 2. He was only 2 days old but was considered 2 years old.
So, subtract 1-2 years from whatever they claim is their age at the time. At debut (2013), they were 15-20 years old.
You should have noticed V did not appear in any segments of online or promotional activities. He was already a member (before Jimin), but he was kept hidden. Some say it's to avoid other agencies snatching him, which they could do before the debut.
V was involved in everything, including preparing for the debut, making the vlogs that nobody saw, and attending Jungkook's high school graduation. In general, he had to stay away from the cameras or sit in the corner, watching the other members reach out to their fans. He must have a high EQ to get through that long period of public isolation as a teenager. I admire him for that.
*PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU PLAY THE VIDEOS UNTIL THE END. YOU ARE MISSING CONTENT AND INFORMATION*
The goal for RM was never to get accepted in the Western Market. His goal was to debut as a Hip Hop Group, in South Korea, and to be able to write his own messages in his lyrics. Bang Si-hyuk promised them that. He actually required BTS to write their own lyrics, and to tell their own stories. But the Western Market was not a goal of Big Hit. The Goal was to create a Hip Hop group that would be able to resonate with the younger generation, through Hip Hop. South Korea has their own Hip Hop scene.
Jimin is the contemporary dancer, and J-Hope is the street dancer, that is also the dance leader.
Gymnastics, especially at the Elite and Olympic level is like that, and ballet and other sports.
All music being played in this are BTS songs. And remember that BTS debuted in 2013 as a Hip Hop Idol group. They were Hip Hop. Also, yes they were the first ones to do vlogs on youtube and open a twitter account to promote themselves,. Because they had to be creative in how they promoted. The Korean music industry were not kind to them. and they had a hard time getting on music and variety shows.
No need to shout
Just wanted to let to you know SK has/had a different ages lol. Up until last year they count the day you were born as 1 years old & sometimes they add another year (I forgot how this rule works). So when JK said he was 16 in international age he was like 14-15yrs old. However laws changed like last year to change their age system to be same as international. 😅
I am sure others can explain better but yeah.
You gotta understand at the time when BTS came up they were a small label Korea Korean entertainment was controlled by 3 major Agencies agencies Control shows And all that BTS is from a small label . So it was hard for BTS in the beginning.,didn't help that the other fandoms were attacking him all the time. This is the reason why armies are so very protective of BTS We've been through a lot of crap with other artists And labels point after our boys
Actually Jungkook was thirteen when he moved into the dorm, RM was not even quite sixteen when he moved in. JK was fifteen when they debuted.
You need to watch the end credits there in fun stuff at the end of each episode. Please always watch to the end in BTS videos, you always miss stuff if you don't. 💜