Beyond The Scene…

Passion, Persistence and Dedication; it’s a one way road to success. 

All they had was a burning passion which fed their persistence and dedication and paved their way to success.

BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan, Bulletproof boys, Beyond The Scenes) is a Korean boy band of seven who debuted under a small company, BigHit Entertainment, in 2013. Coming from a small company meant they’d have to work extremely hard to get some sort of recognition in a highly competitive market filled with big shots. They were only baby fishes who were tossed out into the deep ocean, exposed to the deadly sharks, to face the harsh reality of the world. But they kept their passion alive and took confident steps forward.

There were times when they had to sleep or practice on empty stomachs as they didn’t have enough food to eat. There were also days when they practiced too much that they dropped with exhaustion as they barely had any energy to move. They were the underdogs of Korea. The media play was against them, their transmissions were cut, false rumors were made to defame them, the award shows didn’t treat them right, when they appeared on TV programs - which was once in a blue moon - they were treated badly or their show would air during hours of low viewership and when they won their first two daesangs, the majority said it was charity work.    

Their fandom in Korea wasn’t too strong, at least not until last year but, ever since the beginning, they received attention internationally. They had always shown interest not in US, but rather in global success, whilst not pushing their roots aside and began gaining their relevance little by little.    

Now when it comes to K-POP, an artist or a group owes almost everything to their a) Company, b) Fandom and c) Talent. Bangtan lacked ‘a’ as BigHit was just another small company, but they had ‘b’ and ‘c’. Their fandom actually made up for their lack of a big company, because it’s strong, loyal and bends backwards to give them what they deserve.

So when BTS was nominated for the Billboards, it was a catharsis because many K-POP artists had tried previously to enter the US industry but instead of being viewed as artists they succeeded as a circus spectacle for white people. No group/artist had achieved what BTS had, not even close. In fact, many didn’t even see it coming, because that group from a small company that had never promoted in the US, nor distributed albums in the US, nor ever released a song in English; was noticed by one of the three top most important award shows in the industry. Why? It’s all thanks to their talent and genuine way of being with their fans that helped them amount to an enormous and solid fan base.

Despite all the hurdles that came in their way ever since their debut and before, they never gave up. Not even once. They always kept their dream alive and pushed themselves to work harder than before to get to where they are now.

They were nominated at the Billboards for the ‘Top Social Artist Award’ resulting in not only America being excited about them but also an emotional shock for their fans. Regardless of how they were treated in Korea, when they reached America, they were treated like kings. Other artists were excited to meet them, the press got excited and they were even mentioned by those news papers that only publish national news and when they entered the venue of the award show the fans seemed to have confused it with a football stadium because the screams were indescribable. Upon arrival they marked their image as a humble group who look like kids that still couldn’t believe what was happening.

The Top Social Artist is an award that was normally given at the red carpet or in between some nominations; it wasn’t an award that was presented at the high level as the rest. But they did it this year for BTS. And how could they not? The fans’ excitement and theirs was palpable. Every artist was hyped up, excited and cheered so genuinely when BTS won giving them a standing ovation and the award presenter even bowed when handing them the award.

After that, BTS trajectory as worldwide artists began. US began to adore them and famous artists wanted to collaborate with them. BTS, who came from being treated unfairly in their country that they adore so much, never lost hope and trust they had in their fandom. And US, the country that tosses out the unknown and what no longer benefits them and view K-POP as a circus, started treating them as kings, viewing them as artist.

Next we have them entering into the Hot100 and BB200 lists. BTS didn’t need a funny song, nor viewed as a circus to break records and break down the wall that surrounded the US market. Soon after the BBMAs they were invited to perform at the AMAs where they were treated pretty much like the main show. Was it to gain the ratings? Quite frankly, yes, but it was also a genuine appreciation towards the seven boys. They weren’t presented like Psy in 2012, like a circus or some phenomenon and neither were they forced to perform with an American artist so that the show wouldn’t be out of ordinary. They had the stage all to themselves and they captured everyone’s attention. Ansel Elgort was excited like a little kid, The Chainsmokers were nervous to present them, Niall Horan was charmed and Jared Leto was left impacted by their amazing performance. Moreover, they were also invited to the three most important shows in the US.

While other artists tried and some even managed to enter the US industry, BTS didn’t just enter but they were also accepted, acclaimed, and received as complete artists and not a weird K-POP act. They truly put Korea’s name in high regards that Korea has finally started to take them into account, calling them the Pioneers of the Hallyu wave of their generation with Korean news outlets going crazy over them.

BTS achieved all this without seeking it, only because of their passion, persistence and dedication combined with the support from their fans. They didn’t promote abroad, they didn’t want to change their image to an American one. They sing pop, but aren’t a copy of Justin Bieber. They sing hip hop, but aren’t a copy of Post Malone or Lil Pump.

BTS aren’t the first, but they are the ones who have achieved the best and the ones who truly are leaving behind a lasting impression.