Being the biggest music artist in the world right now, BTS shook the world with their dedication to their fans, music with heartfelt lyrics, and breaking records and taking names. Consisting of seven members, RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook became influential icons from a record company that was relatively unknown at the time.
Ever since debuting in 2013, the band has trended worldwide on social media and achieved many records that previous K-Pop stars haven't done so far around the world. If you are curious about the K-Pop sensation, here are 10 things you should know about BTS, including what it stands for.
10 BTS Has More Than One Meaning
The beauty of the name behind BTS is that the three initials have many meanings. The first, original meaning for BTS is Bangtan Sonyeondan or Bulletproof Boy Scouts. According to the name, it is to deflect stereotypes and expectations like bullets.
Other names for BTS also include Beyond the Scene and more commonly known, Bangtan Boys. So really, how you want to call BTS is entirely up to preference, but it is easier to remember them as the three letters.
9 Their Fanbase Is Called A.R.M.Y
Many fandoms have names that represent an artist, band, actor, or influencer of any kind. BTS' fanbase is simply called A.R.M.Y. While that might not sound entirely original, the name is an acronym for Adorable Representative MC for Youth.
Similarly to a military, Army will always be with BTS. The loyalty and dedication the fans bring to the band is immense, and the same can be said for BTS to their fans. Without fans, there wouldn't be BTS and vice versa.
8 Suga Was Originally Meant To Be A Record Producer
Suga, who also goes by Agust D, is very proficient in music production thanks to his background in playing the piano and writing lyrics since he was 13. He made his way into Big Hit Entertainment with intentions of being a music producer, but Suga was apparently "tricked" into signing in a group similar to 1TYM by Big Hit Entertainment founder Bang Si-hyuk.
Despite this ironic twist of events, Suga is a pivotal member as he still produces music with the band and writes convincing and strong lyrics that give more attention to mental health.
7 RM Learned English Thanks To Friends
In a handful of interviews including on The Ellen Show, RM has proven to be fluent in English, and given his role as the leader of BTS, it makes sense for him to provide a lot of answers in English-speaking interviews. But how he learned English is rather surprising but interesting.
When he was young, he watched Friends with his mother and went through the show many times with Korean subtitles, English subtitles, then no subtitles.
6 Where The Boys Started
Many K-Pop groups you might be familiar with, such as Big Bang, EXO, and Twice are represented by YG Entertainment, SM Entertainment, and JYP Entertainment. As for BTS, they are represented by Big Hit Entertainment, which was founded 15 years ago and while it did house artists including 2PM and 8eight, they were co-managed by other entertainment companies.
Big Hit nearly got hit with bankruptcy in 2007, but 8Eight's temporary success helped the company stay in business, and BTS became responsible for skyrocketing its monetary value.
5 Jungkook Was In Middle School When He Joined The Group
Jungkook earned the nickname Golden Maknae for a ton of reasons. He is very talented in what he does, and even if he didn't get selected to be in the Korean talent show Superstar K, he got a lot of offers.
He was around 13-14 during that time and would join BTS before he even turned 16. It seemed like a lot of work for him to be an up-and-coming idol while going to school, but he managed to make it work.
4 Jimin and Jungkook Kept Their Names As Aliases
Out of the seven members, only Jimin and Jungkook have their birth names as their stage names. They initially had stage names, with Jimin being called Baby G and Jungkook called Seagull.
Despite going by their first names, they still have nicknames given to them by fans, including Jimin's Chim Chim and Jungkook's Golden Maknae. You could also make the argument that Jin uses his birth name too, albeit shortened from Seok-jin.
3 J-Hope Almost Did Not Make It In The Group
There is no one that can replace anyone in BTS, including the ray of sunshine, J-Hope. Originally, Jung Ho-seok wasn't supposed to debut with the band, and it was definitely a worrying time. When he told Jungkook that he was going to leave the band, it left the maknae in tears.
With the help of RM convincing Big Hit Entertainment that they couldn't go on without him, Ho-seok was convinced to stay with the rest of the boys and remain as part of the biggest K-Pop band in the world.
2 BTS Has Their Own Twitter Emoji
Due to their big impact on social media, especially Twitter, BTS became the first K-Pop band to have their own Twitter emoji. Many other K-Pop acts would follow suit including EXO, ASTRO, and Blackpink.
There are just so many of them that it includes #BTS in English and Korean, #BTSARMY, and more. You can expect many more for them in the future when a music video, tour, or trend happens, and we're all in for it.
1 The Band Produces Most Of Their Music
There is a reason why BTS' music resonates with so many people. For the most part, the band, especially RM, Suga, and J-Hope, produce most of their music. Accompanied by other producers including Pdogg, they create countless catchy beats ranging from hip-hop beats to EDM-inspired tracks.
The amount of effort put into every song BTS makes shows how dedicated they are to their craft, and that is something any band should achieve to strive for.