cyphersonic

I swear I will connect back to RM -- but YES to all the bolded. I love Hobi's singing voice 100% of the time whereas RM's is very hit or miss for me. I really only like when RM sings low or sing-raps. Hobi, however, is the king of sing-rap to me. The beginning of his verse in Rain is one of the best examples of that in my opinion. I also feel the sentiment that he gave up spots to help the group very strongly, and I think that is a role that RM is more so in for this album. In terms of verse length and spotlight, the spotlight shifted to Hobi, which was the right thing to do. RM even mentioned it in one of the behind-the-scenes clips that parts he wrote and loved went to others, but it is better that way. A+ leadership right there, even though I imagine it is tough for RM who has so much to say and so much desire to make an impression. This speaks to their unity and cohesiveness. One of my favorite RM/Hobi moments recently was when RM talked about how Hobi is great at coming up with catchy hooks/melodies in his album review of WINGS and it is reflected in their music. Hobi has also been composing lyrics this entire time with the rest of the rapline, but it was really nice to see RM push the spotlight to him again about more than just writing his own raps.

Yikes, that sucks.

This is absolutely the Era of J-Hope. I, unfortunately and with much shame now, was someone who did not initially appreciate Hobi, but I realized I just don't care for the aegyo, hyperactive, "on" side of him. When I look at some of his verses, especially from recent work, he is also an incredibly talented rapper. In most other groups, I feel, he could be the best rapper easily. He has his own perspective and style. And his voice, like RM and Yoongi's, is distinct and memorable. RM and Yoongi are just forces of nature. I would love a rapline mixtape where other members feature, like Suran did with Yoongi. You know they have a catalogue of bangers that have been tabled as their sound as BTS evolves. I don't anticipate this coming soon, but I could absolutely see it within the next two years. I would love for them to promote it in venues that are not the traditional music shows too.

Sleep well~

I basically only have my sister. Which is why I joined tumblr. Then OH. Then reddit.

I don't know enough about the history of KPOP to speak on it. What I can say is that I personally had zero interest in KPOP and am well into my 20s, but BTS grabbed me and entranced me. I love their sound. I love their fusion. In the US, being a part of a "fandom" carries a slightly immature stigma so I was really resistant to adopting the title of ARMY and still don't really use it. It was also why I refused to declare a "bias" for a very long time because the practice seemed strange to me. But it was RM himself who made my interest permanent. Maybe it is cheap, but I was fascinated by a foreign rapper seamlessly blending two languages for 100 different layers of meaning in addition to his references to rappers I knew and homages to flows/styles. ("Wait, did he just say hegemony?") I had never before listened to music in a language that I didn't have some kind of understanding of, but BTS and RM broke that barrier for me. In some ways, it feels purer. When I listen to a track for the first time, I am just feeling it. I am paying attention to the consonance and assonance and flow and how they play with sound. I love songs before I know what they mean, whereas I have historically been a person to whom lyrics are paramount. Now, fortunately for me, when I then look up the meaning of the lyrics, BTS songs become even better. I must have listened to "Life" a hundred times before I bothered to look up the lyrics. And when I did, I realized it was about existential crisis in a lot of ways, something that I had missed in only understanding the parts in English. Love it too much not to link: When I became interested in RM, the wealth of content out there was intoxicating. I watched every subbed episode of Problematic Men I could find and was fascinated by the whole Korean structure for groups. Sure, there are parts that are not wonderful, but the idea of this connection between fan and artist being built on a foundation of music but then going deeper than that is insanely effective. I can't believe US artists don't use it. I feel personal investment in their success, and I am a cynical, skeptical adult. I also bought physical albums that I will never listen to because I also bought it on iTunes. Inspiring that kind of action and connection is special, to me.

Ahhhhhh, thank you, mimi and raspberry! Now I know for the future.

To the US? When WINGS came out, they had a special deal where you got all 4 albums for nearly the cost I paid for the two I was getting from somewhere else. But when I went to order, the United States didn't appear as a country option for shipping. So I googled and saw they apparently don't ship to the US. If this is wrong, then my wallet hurts, and I am further confused why I could not select USA on the country drop-down menu, weep.

Oh god, that mean hidden camera! His 4Things interview was one of the first things I watched about BTS, in general. Well, at least one of the earliest. And it killed me to see some of his friends talking shit behind his back. :( I agree that I would love more rapline in title tracks, but I have never liked title tracks as much as their B-sides. So I don't mind a slightly more commercial title track as long we still get Baepsaes, Cyphers, and mixtapes 5eva.

OH GOD WHY YOU DO THIS When my sister got me into the band, she refused to let me watch any live performances or see images of their initial debut. She told me I would understand one day. And then after I decided I loved RM, she showed me his debut styling.

Bless up, Spinebreaker~ You just have to look past my talented son's awkward "YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH" at the beginning. On a related note, I'm glad we upgraded from the English mentions before/after songs like: "THIS IS FOR ALL THE YOUNGSTERS WITH DREAMS OUT THERE~ AHAHAHA~" RM lines to him quoting Demian. I love him. I cringe still.

I also love their newest cypher, but Part 3 is on more or less every single playlist I make, outside of ones I listen to while I sleep. Within the first few lines of RM's verse, I magically became garbage and decided to follow a K-Pop group? At KCON NY this year, they performed it, and the crowd lost their shit. Like. Deafening. It was magical. I have a video of it, but all you hear is me screaming and slurring nonsense words in beat with the song. Very charming.

I assume you have heard all their cyphers, which are my heart and soul, but if not, here are two from earlier albums, plus others I love: And now I should stop before I list their entire discography.

My best shopping experience was with kpoptown4u. I preordered WINGS (shipping to the US) and my two albums arrived four days after it was released, which is bananas. Cost-wise, I could have hunted for better options, but YesAsia tragically does not ship to the US, weep. AS FOR OLDER SONGS, here are some that I love: And, if you are into rap, this is my favorite song from RM's mixtape:

I feel fortunate to live in a big city that is getting a concert, but I am such garbage that my sister and I have already discussed traveling if they announce more East Coast dates in the US. re: "s" album -- We still haven't seen that 'A-Yo' track that Suga teased on his birthday and that they mentioned in their 3-year (I think) radio show. I think a lot of us assumed it would be on his mixtape, but since it wasn't, I wonder if it will be the hype track on the repackage, sort of like 'Fire' was on Young Forever. This is me assuming the repackage is coming.

I remember this too, but connected to Jimin. Jimin thinking they should just go as BTS, or it being something they were discussing.

Agreed wholeheartedly. You even see it in small gestures like when he prompts others to answer questions during formal interviews, or how he almost never MCs their personal interviews.

Oh god YESSSS to Joke. The entire song is so delightful to the ears. I love reading this girl's analysis of his lyrics: https://muish.wordpress.com/2016/03/14/rap-monster-bts-joke-english-translation-ramblings/I'm sure it has been posted before, but I want her to break down all of his songs. Dreams 2k17~

His cheesiness, dad jokes, and "game for anything" vibe would make him an excellent host, I think! I think of it like improv. Jin is always in on the game. He will give a reaction, keep the joke going, play things up, etc. I would love to see him get even more practice with a semi-permanent hosting gig, even if it is one of the music shows. In my brain, he ends up on a panel-style show though where he can riff off of others. [edit] Typo~

Yay, BP~

Ugh, Lisa has so much charisma on stage. BP looked wonderful.

Damn, that skirt on Jisoo is tiiiiiiny.

I bet they are working on it! The timing just has to be right. I always wonder how Jin felt seeing Tae get there first :( , but I feel confident BigHit will pull through for Jin too.

Welcome~