By: Tina Wu
After meeting with President Biden in the White House to spread awareness about ant-Asian hate and dropping their album Proof, the band plans to take a break. BTS posted their 9-year anniversary “BTS Festa” on social media. In the video, the group announces their leave and promises a return.
The reason
The K-pop industry barley allows space for artists’ privacy. It takes years to train as an artist, and even then musicians face low chances of becoming a large act. BTS, a global sensation, has attracted Saesangs (fans that intrude on mostly Asian artists’ personal lives) that stalk them everywhere they go. BTS has faced huge amounts of hate, even from when they first started playing in 2013. In the “BTS Festa” video, RM, the leader of the group, said “I always thought that BTS was different from other groups, but the problem with K-pop and the whole idol system is that they don’t give you time to mature.”
Different Eras
Although BTS didn’t go through the idol show process, they did start as a lower-class group with only two people, RM and Suga. After J-hope, Jin, Jimin, V, and Jungkook joined, they started their journey as a band trying many different genres. Their debut album, 2 Cool 4 Skool, and the following nin albums and singles are based on hip-hop. Their next seven albums are based more on R&B and slow rap. They tried EDM on their 5th EP, Love Yourself 承 Her, and went back to R&B on Love Yourself 轉 Tear and Map Of The Soul: PERSONA. On their single “Dynamite” they sample western music. On their album BE they went back to EDM. Then they went back to sampling Western music on Butter and Permission to Dance. After this journey, RM thinks that their group has “lost its direction.”
What BTS wants to say
Jin, BTS’ oldest member says “I have my own hobbies, too, and things I want to do on my own.” Each member’s personal lives have been recorded and put on TV where everyone can watch them.
“I want BTS to go on for a long time,” RM says. But to do this, the group says they need to “step back and grow and mature as individuals.”