You've unlocked something within me with those last few bts asks and now I need to get it off my chest - sorry to add on your ask pile with a long rant like this. But honestly my God I've been silently angry at the "bts paved the way" mantra hammered into everyone by armies on twitter for SO long. The idea that bts were the first of everything, the most important, the grandest because they came loudly into western consciousness (and now look at that, completely lost their artistic identity to the West) is all sorts of fucked up to me, not to mention factually incorrect.
I've been outraged at this behaviour particularly since 2019 when Sunmi responded in an interview that it was BTS and not Wonder Girls that substantially cemented kpop in the US, in what was a CLEAR show of 2nd gen humility rather than a statement meant to fuel armies' questionable perceptions of who is worthy in the kpop industry. I remember the way she was treated afterwards, trending for the whole day, positively but simply as if she were a herald of BTS's importance, deferring to them, and not a 2nd gen senior who in her however many years of immensely succesful career has just learnt to share credit. In general, the fact that armies have taken the praise given by fellow kpop artists to BTS as words of absolute reverence (and deference) rather than what they are - respectful nods of acknowledgement by colleagues - is insane to me.
They have set them up as a kind of God in the industry, in their minds both as people and as artists, when I can name off the top of my head 15 other kpop acts with more integrity and artistic growth than bts has ever shown. It is also insane to me that a person will praise a 2nd gen group for what they've done on twitter and will immediately get jumped by armies hijacking that pride. There's a reason why BTS is so emphatically not warmly treated by variety shows domestically, they are rarely mentioned and when they are it seems purely lipservice. So in my eyes what armies are really proud of is BTS's worldwide appeal - the approval from the West, the feeling of "surpassing" and no longer needing their Korean-ness for success - and that makes my blood boil. Hopefully now that they're on their separate ways for a while they will touch some grass and get better.
there there anon just let it all out (pats back gently)
yes it is uniquely frustrating. that's why i said i was curious to see if any of them branch out to do variety, because i'm not sure how that will go. i'm sure it would be fine since variety culture has changed in the last five or so years but the k entertainment industry is so intertwined and it's really weird that the biggest kpop group in the world just....doesn't participate in it. for better or for worse it is a community and part of being in a community is like. showing up and participating? like they only just came back to music shows now there's audience back and i'm pretty sure they aren't even filming in the same studios as the rest of the groups? i doubt they would be anything other than well received if they did decide to go back to broadcast variety shows but yea. it's weird that they eschew one of the aspects of kpop that is extremely specifically unique to korea.
📝: ENHYPEN are gearing up for early July comeback! The band is on its final stages of recording the new EP, and is ready to embark on the promotions as early as "early" this week, according to our sources. Who's ready to greet the next generation kings? 🔥 #ENHYPEN
Got any questions for @HOLLAND_vvv? Leave your comments here and we'll ask him as many as possible when he visits us for a special live stream this Friday!😉
230719 - kpop herald on twitter: @/BTS_twt V is now the ambassador of @/Cartier and the new face of “Panthere de Cartier” campaign. “His distinctive characteristic as a dancer, musician and art enthusiast makes choices driven by his own creativity and shows his unique style and elegance,” they said.