IDOL MAGAZINE
ALBUM
BE
Deluxe Edition
WORLDWIDE DOMINATION
BTS
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
Let’s B 2
Begin
kpop.asiachan.com
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yourself
L.O.V.E
www.dbkpop.com
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DYN
NamITE
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WORLDWIDE DOMINATION
BTS “There is something about complete world domination that can really cement a friendship,” writes Dave Holmes. “What jumps out at me as I connect with the members of BTS is their level of comfort with one another.”
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Though the new rules of COVID-19 mean they can’t come here and promote Be, its first single might not have happened in the first place but for the pandemic. “ ‘Dynamite’ wouldn’t be here if there was no COVID-19,” says RM. “For this song, we wanted to go easy and simple and positive. Not some, like, deep vibes or shadows. We just wanted to go easy.”
BTS fans offer a fascinating inversion of stan culture: Rather than bullying rivals like many other ardent online fan bases do, ARMY have put the positive message of the music into action. Their activism goes deep. Through micro-donations, they’ve regrown rain forests, adopted whales, funded hundreds of hours of dance classes for Rwandan youth, and raised money to feed LGBTQ refugees around the world.
Since the start of their careers, BTS have shown a certain confidence in their aesthetic, their performances, and their music videos. It’s right there in the name: BTS stands for “Bangtan Sonyeondan,” which translates to “Bulletproof Boy Scouts,” but as their popularity grew in English-speaking markets, the acronym was retrofitted to mean “Beyond the Scene,” which Big Hit has described as “symbolizing youth who don’t settle for their current reality and instead open the door and go forward to achieve growth.”
“Dynamite,” their first English-language single and their first American number one, is pure, ecstatic pop. Shiny and joyful. What sets them apart from many of their peers, and many of the pop acts who achieved worldwide fame before them, is what came earlier. Beneath the sheen and the beats has always been an unflinching examination of human emotion. Their lyrics seek to challenge the conventions of society—to question and even denounce them. BTS’s first single, “No More Dream,” unveiled at their debut showcase in June 2013, concerns the intense pressure South Korean schoolchildren face to conform and to succeed.
“We and our ARMY are always charging each other’s batteries,” RM says. “When we feel exhausted, when we hear the news all over the world, the tutoring programs, and donations, and every good thing, we feel responsible for all of this.”
One fan wrote: “thinking about that time someone said that BTS’ accomplishments always come in bunch of them per day and never just one and it just keeps proving, BTS world domination.”
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INTERVIEW
RM NAME : KIM NAM JOON ROLE : LEADER, RAPPER AGE : 26 (Korean Age) FROM : ILSAN
“I don’t think this album will have any songs that criticize social issues. Everybody’s going through very trying times right now. So I don’t think there will be any songs that will be that aggressive,” RM says of their new album, Be. esquire.com
The official leader of band, RM-formerly known as Rap Monster--has wnitten the lynics and had a hand in the composition and production of many of BTS’ biggest hits. He was the first of the boys scouted by BTS founder Bang Si-hyuk In 2010, when he was a freshman in high school and a batlle rapper on Seoul’s underground music scene. Faced with criticism for joining a mainstream idol band, the versatile performer snapped back on his 2015 solo mixtape, RM, “ I’m not pop, I’m not rock, I’m not funk, I’m not R&B or hip-hop.” Known for his fast-paced flow, RM has collaborated with artists like Wale, Warren G and Fall Out Boy. The only member of BTS who speaks fuent English, he famously taught himself by
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watching all 10 seasons of the U.S, sitcom Friends; he also briefly studled in New Zealand. A compassionate advocate for youth and a peacemaker within the band, RM told the U.N. General Assembly in a speech in New York City, “No matter who you are, where you’re from, your skin color, gender Identity: just speak yourself.”
“THE BIGGEST LOVE IS THE LOVE FOR ONESELF, SO IF YOU WANT TO LOVE OTHERS, YOU SHOULD LOVE YOURSELF FIRST.”
INTERVIEW
JIN NAME : KIM SEOK JIN ROLE : DANCER, VOCAL LINE AGE : 27 (Korean Age) FROM : GWACHEON
“I was just going to school,” Jin says. “Someone from the company approached me, like, ‘Oh, this is my first time seeing anyone that looked like this.’ He suggested having a meeting with me.” After stepping out of a limo at the Billboard Music Awards in 2017, Jin was captured in a gjamorous snapshot that caught the internet’s attention. The result: he now goes by the moniker “Worldwide Handsome.” (Other nicknames: Car Door Guy and Third One from the Left.) Jin was scouted on the street in Seoul, where he was a university theater student. Hired mainly for his good looks, he learned to sing for BT..--” I’m not exactly phenomenal,” he once said in an interviewand eventually recorded a solo single, “Awake.” on the Wings album. He plays the gultar in his downtime. A devoted foodie. Jin garnered his own audience early on with a popular
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food blog, Eat Jin, in which he posts videos of himselfand sometirnes his bandmates eating home cooked meals and sharing opinions, of course. The band’s resident romantic, he’s known for fiourishing a red rose and giving fans paper hearts. With his 28th birthday approaching in December 2020, Jin, BTS’ oldest band member, will soon join their ranks. “Someday, when duty calls, we’ll be ready to respond and do our best,” he told CBS in 2019. But exactly how and when he will fulfill his patriotic duty remains a matter of speculation among fans.
“YOUR PRESENCE CAN GIVE HAPPINESS. I HOPE YOU REMEMBER THAT.”
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INTERVIEW
SUGA NAME : MIN YOONGI ROLE : RAPPER AGE : 27 (Korean Age) FROM : DAEGU
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Starting in his teens as an underground rapper with the stage name Gloss, Suga got his current moniker from early years spent playing basketball-it’s short for “shooting guard.” Suga is known for his introspective, rapid-fire rhymes. He’s also happy to be vocal about everything from mental health to politics, especially on his solo 2016 mixtape under the name Agust D. He also is a producer with a private studio, Genius Lab, who has contributed to award-winning songs on other artists’ prolects as well to many of BTS’ own tracks.
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“There is this culture where masculinity is defined by certain emotions, characteristics. I’m not fond of these expressions,” Suga says. “What does being masculine mean? People’s conditions vary day by day. Sometimes you’re in a good condition; sometimes you aren’t. Based on that, you get an idea of your physical health. And that same thing applies mentally. Some days you’re in a good state; sometimes you’re not.” Earlier this year, he released his second solo project as Agust D, a 10-track collection of thoughtful raps recorded while in COVID-19 quarantine with the rest of the band. Asked how his Agust D solo personality varies from his work as Suga and the real-life Min Yoon-gi, he told Billboard,” You could say there is and there isn’t. [It’s] ‘Me’ and ‘Me’ and ‘Me.’ They are different and the same.” In a crowd known for bold experimentation, he may also wear the crown for trying more halr colors than any other band member; Suga has rocked locks in mint-green, red, orange, lilac, gray and more
“IN THE END, SOME OF YOUR GREATEST PAINS BECOME YOUR GREATEST STRENGTHS.”
INTERVIEW
J-HOPE NAME : JUNG HOSEOK ROLE : RAPPER AGE : 26 (Korean Age) FROM : GWANGJU “Season two is when we officially underwent hard training,” J-Hope says. “We started dancing, and that’s how I would say our team building started.” Jhope said in this year his aim will be. At that time, he was widely known as Smile Hoya. Smile Hoya was also very accomplished as a dancer. He has tried a number of competitions and he always managed to come out as a winner. Realizing his skill interest expand. ly interested in was motivated to
in dancing made JHope’s He became increasingdeepening vocals and become an idol trainee.
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The third member to be tapped to join BTS, after RM and Suga, J-Hope was first known as a charismatic dancer in the underground competitive crew Neuron in his hometown of Gwangju. Since becoming a part of BTS, he has expanded his skill set to become one of BTS’ trio of rappers, as well as a songwriter with credits across the group’s discography. As the dance leader, he often learns the choreo first and teaches steps to his bandmates. He released his own mixtape, Hope World, in 2018, which charted independently on the Billlboard 200 and expressed his signature message of optimism and peace. “It would be fantastic to become a part of someone’s personal peace through my music, he told TIME. At BTS’ luxurious dormitory in Seoul, he was roommates with best buddy Jimin jhope is the member who likes bright colors the most and is a member who has a very hypebeast fashion style compared to the others
“I’M YOUR HOPE, YOUR MY HOPE, I’M J-HOPE.”
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INTERVIEW
JIMIN NAME : PARK JIMIN
ROLE : SINGER, DANCER AGE : 24 (Korean Age) FROM : BUSAN “Jimin has a particular passion for the stage and really thinks about performance, and in that sense, there are many things to learn from him,” J-Hope says. “Despite all the things he has accomplished, he still tries his best and brings something new to the table, and I really want to applaud him for that.” esquire.com
After moving to Seoul from Busan, where his parents once owned a cafe, Jimin was di scovered by Big Hit Entertainment when he was a student at Seoul’s prestigious Korean Arts High School. He’s known for his sharp dance moves first and foremost; when he was younger, he attended an arts school with V, where he focused on moder dance but also mastered popandHock and hiphop. At concerts, he performs the solo “Serendi pity”--and his moves offistage, from sharing a laugh with Jimmy Fallon to hugging a fan, often go viral.
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“When the fans sing along to the songs, that’s one of my favorite moments,” Jimin told TIME “We give energy to our audience members and listeners, but we also draw energy from them.” Indeed, the conscientious musician can be seen rehearsing on BTS iideo logs and woring aloud that his peiformunoes aren’t good enough to share. Park Ji-min, better known mononymously as Jimin, is a South Korean singer, songwriter, and dancer. In 2013, he debuted as a member of the South Korean boy band BTS, under the record label Big Hit Entertainment.
WE GIVE ENERGY TO OUR AUDIENCE MEMBERS AND LISTENERS BUT WE ALSO DRAW ENERGY FROM THEM
INTERVIEW
V
NAME : KIM TAEHYUNG ROLE : SINGER, DANCER AGE : 24 (Korean Age) FROM : DAEGU “We’re outsiders—we can’t really express what we feel about the United States,” says V. But their actions speak volumes; in the wake of the George Floyd murder and subsequent protests in America, the group made a $1 million donation through Big Hit Entertainment to Black Lives Matter, one that was matched by BTS ARMY. esquire.com
V is the R&B crooner of the bunch, known for his smooth baritone voice that sizzles on the band’s lower-tempo songs. At concerts, his standout moment comes with the solo song “Singularity,” which he sings while dancing alongside a life size figure an emotive avant-garde duet with himself. A songwriter and producer as well, -as in “victory”-joined the band after impressing Big Hit Entertainment at a regional audition held in his hometown,
He is a talented actor, having made his debut in 2016 in the period K-drama, Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth. He is currently interested In photography, he told TIME, and shares his artful nature shots under the name #Vante, V coined the term “I purple you” whille speaking with a fan in 2016; that color has gone on to become the band’s official favorite, used in concert sets and promotional materials, V loves fashion, especially Gucci.
“FORGET WHAT HURT YOU BUT NFVER FORGET WHAT IT TAUGHT YOU”
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INTERVIEW
KOOKIE NAME : JEON JUNGKOOK ROLE : SINGER, DANCER AGE : 22 FROM : BUSAN We asked about dating, broad questions like “Are you?” and “Is there time?” and “Can you?” and the answer to all of them is pretty clear: “No.” “The most important thing for us now is to sleep,” Jung Kook insists. esquire.com
As the youngest member of the group, Jung Kook fills the special role in K-pop groups called the maknae, meaning the youngest member of a family or group of frends--but to BTS fans, he’s the ~Golden Maknae,” in recognition of his dazzling dance moves,lead vocals, athletic skills and more. He is credited as lead artist on 2016’s “Begin” and 2018’s “Euphoria “--as well as a songwnter and producer for the band, In 2016, he appeared on the originalSouth Korean version of the anonymous singing reality show King of Masked Singer, performing the Big Bang hit “If You” while dressed in a fencing costume, (He was one of the first contestants eliminated but remains a huge fan of the show.) On social media, he shares his pen and paper illustrations and love of food, exercise and martial arts. (He holds a black belt in taekwondo. Most of all, he loves to perform, telling TIME that in the months off when the gyroup is recording, and rehearsing, he looks forward to returning to the stage.
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“LIVING WITHOUT PASSION IS LIKE BEING DEAD”
The Golden Maknae Ootd
‘EUPHORIA’
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DELUXE EDITION
BE
BTS is returning with their new album BE (Deluxe Edition) to unfold another chapter of 2020.
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As a sense of helplessness looms in every corner of the world, BTS opens themselves up to express their mixed feelings about this situation—fear and anxiety mingled with the determination to overcome all this. The album consists of a total of eight tracks including the No.1 summer hit “Dynamite” and lead single “Life Goes On”. The latter speaks on behalf of everyone stuck in the new normality brought on by COVID-19: one day, the world stopped without any warning, streets erased of footsteps and the way out is nowhere near in sight. BTS echoes in a low voice the comforting message that in the face of unexpected turns “Life Goes On” and extends their hands towards the future.
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AWARD OF THE ALBUM ON 2020
Mnet Asian Music Award for Artist of the Year
Seoul Music Awards Daesang Award
iHeartRadio Music Award for Best Fan Army
Golden Disk Award Popularity Award
MTV Europe Music Award for Best Song
Golden Disc Award Song Division
People’s Choice Award for Favorite Music Video
American Music Award for Favorite Social Artist
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IT TAKES AN ARMY
kpopareashop.com
Talent is only part of BTS’ Stunning success: they also have their fans, a creative master mastermind and K-Pop’s inspiring legacy
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“ARMY! Thank you for all the love,” once BTS said
BTS speaks a language that millions offans don’t understand, but the band’s addictive blend of rap. R&B and a message of loue go to the heart