BTS: Everything you need to know about the K-Pop icons
K-Pop band BTS are the hottest property in music right now. Hailing from Korea, the seven piece band - consisting of RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook - are fast becoming a household name in the West. For those not in the know, here's a BTS 101 on the meaning of their name, relationships and collaborators.
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1. What is the meaning of BTS?
The group's name, BTS, is an acronym for the Korean expression Bangtan Sonyeondan, literally meaning "Bulletproof Boy Scouts”. More recently BTS has been linked to an acronym for ‘Beyond The Scene’’ but this doesn’t tend to come up.
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2. Which languages do BTS speak?
Korean fluently, obviously. A lot of the members can speak Japanese very well and they have released exclusively Japanese albums. Jin and J-Hope can speak good Chinese and RM can speak English.
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3. Who have BTS already collaborated with?
The Chainsmokers collaborated on a tune called Best of Me in early 2017. Steve Aoki did a remix of their original tune Mic Drop in October 2017. RM featured on a remix of Fall Out Boy ‘Champion’. Connor Maynard co-wrote Answer: Love Myself on the new album. Nicki Minaj added a verse to their new track IDOL. Since then, BTS collaborated with Halsey in 2019 for their chart-topping single 'Boy With Luv'.
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4. Are BTS allowed to date?
There have been several public statements about BTS being ‘allowed’ to date by their management team. The response is clear, of course they are allowed to date. However, because they are so busy touring the world and releasing so much music, members of the band choose to focus on their work rather than put pressure on a relationship.
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5. Who is the leader of BTS?
RM, real name Kim Namjoon, is the leader of BTS. He is responsible for guiding the group and providing thoughtful advice. He reportedly has an IQ of 148 and has helped them reach astronomical levels because of his ability to speak English. He taught himself by watching Friends over and over again.
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6. What is K-Pop?
K-Pop is a genre of music massive in Korea but excels in many eastern Asian countries. It is different from the British music industry in that big media companies openly scout for talent creating music groups with a mixture of skill and personality. It’s like the X Factor but instead of a TV show, that’s just how the entire industry works. Once talent is signed to a media group, they train, become better dancers, performers, singers, rappers and are called ‘idols’.
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7. Why have BTS become SO famous?
BTS have a very consistent theme in the music they produce. It is about being the underdog and pushing through that to become the best version of yourself which has connected with many disenchanted youth globally. They also have a reality TV show called RUN BTS which arguably has allowed fans to truly understand the personalities of a band which is otherwise so polished and clean cut on stage.
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8. Why are there so many members of BTS?
Generally speaking, K-Pop groups are big. Girls Generation have 9 members. EXO can have up to 12 members performing. The theory is pretty simple. Usually everyone has a favourite member of a band or a ‘bias’ as it’s called in K-Pop. If there are more members, you are more likely to find someone you identify with. IT’S JUST SIMPLE MATHS BABES.
