Not long ago, the 3rd BTS International Conference was held at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. A variety of ARMYs from 24 countries gathered in Korea, including those representing the deaf, those with political voices, and those who work for the global environment. BTS fan activities lead to social activities and intellectual awakening.
In previous conferences, English was used, but this time in a variety of languages. Reflecting the meaning of BTS, which broke the white-centred system, the language of the conference was also shifted from English. BTS insisted on ‘Let’s love ourselves’, and the participants also used their own language accordingly.
BTS also sent a message to ‘Speak Yourself’, which made ARMYs from all over the world speak out for themselves. For example, Brazilian armies conduct the ‘Army Help The Planet (AHTP)’ movement. In 2019, the great fire in the Amazon rainforest threatened the devastation of the Amazon rainforest. This movement developed into an emergency fund-raising campaign to support medical supplies during the COVID-19 outbreak. Furthermore, it led to a campaign to encourage voting, and it is said that the voter registration rate of Brazilian youths actually increased after ARMY’s activities.
A Brazilian participant who announced this movement at the conference said, “Seven Korean boys have touched millions of people around the world through their art, and everyone can use their voices to overcome barriers of language, race, gender, age and religious beliefs. “Army realized that their voices have power and created a strong network for social change.”
The Filipino army jumped into the election. When the dictator’s son ran for office, he campaigned against him to win another candidate. Professor Noel of La Salle University, who presented under the theme of ‘Army’s Role in the Philippine Presidential Election’, said, “Army is a representative of youth and young people who are voices in the current generation. While working as an ARMY, we were able to develop social awareness and work under the theme of growth and hope.”
Because BTS is a friend and advocate for the minority, the other, and the underprivileged, and as mentioned earlier, ARMYs from all over the world have become a social voice because they encouraged ‘Let’s love me and speak out for ourselves’. It is also known that there are political movements by some ARMYs in the United States as well.
Because he is a star at the center of such a huge movement, he gave a speech at the United Nations and was invited to the White House. It’s not just because they’re popular idols. BTS also sparked an international movement to create a better world together. BTS’ ‘Not Today’ rang out at protest sites in Indonesia, Myanmar and Hong Kong.
Stars with this level of influence are rare even in the West. It is truly a miracle that such a star came out of Korea no matter how much you think about it. Although BTS has announced that they are currently suspending their activities, their international influence is still ongoing.
Although BTS has hinted at a return to team activities in the future, the outlook is unclear at present. Individual activities will continue, but there is a high possibility that the explosive power will be lower than that of team activities. It is a pity that the journey of this miraculous team is uncertain here.
It is impossible to predict what will happen in the future, but I wish BTS would take their team activities a little more lightly. Not long ago, BTS said that they were tired and that they did not know what to say because of identity confusion. He said that confusion came when he tried to sing a light song like ‘Dynamite’ or ‘Butter’ while sending out a heavy message.
You must have experienced that confusion because of the weight of the message. If it was just a light music attitude, there would be no confusion. The weight of the message, to the point where they were confused by the light song, would have worn them even more. If there is such a sense of pressure, it will be difficult for us to actively participate in team activities in the future. In fact, the social repercussions and academic conferences mentioned above can be burdensome for BTS.
If you are free from this burden and pressure and have a light music attitude, BTS’ activities will be smoother. No matter how light music they make, BTS cannot go 180 degrees different from the past, so their activities themselves will maintain their international influence. Messages can also be used in an appropriate way.
Academic conferences have important meanings, so of course, socially, it should be lit up, but I hope that BTS themselves will forget about these conferences and be in a state of negligence. If stress is minimized with such a light-hearted attitude, the possibility of BTS activities increases a little, so if the team activities are successful, their miraculous international presence will also increase.
ⓒWritten by Ha Jae-geun, cultural critic
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