Table Of ContentWritten by Youngdae Kim Youngdae Kim is a music critic and an author, who
serves as a member of Selection Committee for Korean Music Awards. Kim
studied business administration at Yonsei University in Korea and completed Ph.D
program in ethnomusicology at the University of Washington. Born and raised in
South Korea, he moved to Seattle in 2007 where he has been closely observing
American pop music trends and the development of K-pop for over a decade. Kim
first started critiquing music in the mid-1990s under the online alias toojazzy,
publishing widely through online magazines. Kim served as a Selection Committee
member for “Top 100 Albums in Korean Popular Music” projects organized by
Kyunghyang (2007) and the Hankyoreh (2018), two of the most influential daily
newspapers in Korea. Kim contributes his critical columns in various mainstream
media outlets, including Vulture by New York Magazine and MTV, and operates a
YouTube channel that analyzes K-pop in depth. He is an author of multiple
publications in Korea, including Top 90 Albums of the 1990s and Korean Hip-hop:
The Footprints of its Passion, and translated American Popular Music: From
Minstrelsy to MP3 into Korean.
Translated by H. J. Chung H. J. Chung studied Korean history and political
economy at UC Berkeley, Seoul National University, and University of Washington.
She has been a K-pop music junkie for as long as she can remember. When she
was a kid, her parents had to pull her away from the TV whenever Lee Ji-
yeon―the prototypal solo female idol in the 1980s―performed “Wind, Please Stop
Blowing.” After immigrating to the United States, she started frequenting “Soompi
Town,” the initial version of today’s Soompi.com, to spazz about H.O.T. with fellow
Korean American fans. Currently, she is a translator of texts and multimedia in
Korean and English on a wide variety of subjects, including K-pop and K-drama.
What Sets BTS Apart?
The Music Behind BTS’ Phenomenal Popularity
What is the secret to BTS’ exceptional worldwide popularity, referred as the “BTS
Phenomenon”? Is it because of the seven members’ X-factor, their amazing talent
and explosive energy on stage? How can they be understood within and without
the context of K-pop? What do the ARMYs, their loyal brigade of worldwide fans,
mean by “BTS-Pop?”
Youngdae Kim, a seasoned critic of Korean popular music, boldly tackles an
unprecedented task: an in-depth review of BTS’ entire discography. After all, the
proper approach to give musicians their due respect is by listening to their
music―it’s the heart of their message and their route to the top.
BTS in the Eyes of Experts,
Industry Insiders, and Fans
Bong-hyeon Kim, Hip-hop Journalist
◆
◆ Hyeong-cheol Shin, Literary Critic
◆ Chang-nam Kim, Chair, Selection Committee of Korean Music Awards
◆ Jeff Benjamin, Billboard Columnist
Hyung-joo Lim, Popera Tenor, Voting Member of the Grammy Awards
◆
◆ Brother Su, Composer of “I Need U”
◆ Myungji Chae, Fan Translator for BTS
Prologue
Unraveling the Secret of
BTS Phenomenon
The early 1990s was a watershed moment for Korea’s popular music
industry, led by artists such as Seo Taiji and Boys. This is the period
when gayo, the trendy local music, started achieving the level of
contemporaneity and quality similar to American popular music. Over
the mid-1990s, systematic establishments began to industrialize the
market for the first time. By the twenty-first century, the focus of
Korean popular music shifted outwards, beyond the limitations of its
domestic market. There, it was renamed “K-pop.” In this up-and-
coming music scene, we encountered two turning points that
deserve the title of phenomena. The first is undoubtedly PSY’s
“Gangnam Style” (2012), an international viral sensation that became
the greatest K-pop hit in history. Then there is the rise of Bangtan
Boys or “BTS phenomenon,” the topic of this book.
When something rises to the fore, people tend to look for simple
explanations and analyses that make sense and are easy to
comprehend. I fully understand the psyche behind such desires.
Since it is part of my profession to analyze such phenomena, I also
try my best to illustrate things in a coherent, comprehensible manner.
But the major lesson I learned from studying, teaching, and
reviewing music is that most of these convincing, clear-cut analyses
tend to be embellished or unrealistic. Although every phenomenon
must have its roots, the rationale may not necessarily be logical.
Also, even if the surrounding circumstances are logically explainable,
the crux of the matter is overly complex and multifaceted to be
reduced into a few sentences or paragraphs. The same goes for the
BTS phenomenon.
“What differentiates BTS from others?” “What is the essence of
the BTS phenomenon?” “What does their success tell us?” People
often ask me these questions, as I have followed BTS’ music and
activities for quite a while. Though it may sound disappointing, I will
not attempt to provide straightforward answers to those questions in
this book. If someone asserts that they know such a definite answer,
I hope you wouldn’t take it at face value. On the distinguishing
features or the special characteristics of BTS and their success,
there may exist a myriad of different (and sometimes wrong) analyses
depending on each commentator’s expertise. Unfortunately, to my
knowledge, there has not been any analysis that accurately identifies
the heart of their success. It is probably because we focus on their
success, without paying attention to the process or the journey that
resulted in such an outcome. The success of BTS was not built in a
day, nor is it a work of someone’s magic. Every step of their way is
what made them who they are today.
In this book, I will trace the trajectory of BTS’ rise to stardom in
the U.S. market since 2014 and delineate various contexts of the
BTS phenomenon that BTS and their fans have created together.
Nonetheless, more than any explanation or interpretation, I believe
this process must begin and end with listening to their music and
appreciating their messages. People seem to disregard that BTS
members are first and foremost musicians. Most of the focus seem
on their statistic records, sales, and other numerical achievements.
While accounting such numbers are amusing, those efforts often
miss the point. BTS is a group of musicians, and the biggest appeal
and the secret to success are in their music and performances. But
not many try to take their music seriously and discuss it in-depth.
Perhaps they think that analyzing music is difficult and abstract, and
idol music does not require such a sophisticated level of listening.
This book will explore the key to BTS’ success by listening to their
music. However, simply listening will not clarify the issue, either.
Unless we take a multidimensional approach as we survey the past
and the present topographies of popular music within the context of
both K-pop and the global pop music, the answer to the reason
behind BTS’ success will not be fully grasped. This is where my
persistent effort to research and review music becomes relevant.
The largest portion of this book is dedicated to the examination
of sixteen albums that BTS has released. It was an unquestionable,
obvious organization for me, albeit it may be demanding for the
readers. To write this book, I replayed BTS’ entire discography ad
nauseam, though I am already familiar with the songs from previous
repeated listens. I re-analyzed all the tracks in all of their singles,
albums, solo albums, and activities in their entirety from scratch. I
replayed same songs too many times to the point of blanking out
occasionally. To elaborate the meaning and the appeal of their songs
in musical terms, and to formulate a guide for those who listen to
their music for the first time, I kept repeating the songs to develop a
new framework. As a result, this book became compilation of
critiques, reviews, and liner notes. It is my answer to how BTS came
to be the sensation they are today. You will not find it in a few
sentences or an article, but throughout the analyses of all the songs,
lyrics, and the steps of the journey that BTS has taken.
As you read this book, I wish you will turn on your favorite
speakers or put on headsets and enjoy BTS’ music again as you
recap their career from the beginning. You may as well compare and
contrast your impression with a music critic’s perspective. When you
turn the final page, I hope you are satisfied with my answer on the
essence and the secret of BTS’ success.
