It all started on April 4, 2022, randomly scrolling through social media and various uploads of the members on the Grammys’ red carpet, peppered with ARMY’s imaginative reels.

*BTS. Yet to Come in Busan, 2022. Image:* *BTS Official Twitter*.

My best friend and I had been planning our 40th birthday celebrations with the intention of visiting New York City in January 2021. We all know the reasons for the trip not going ahead and although it was not the milestone birthday celebrations that we’d hoped for, I’m thankful that at least my friends and family escaped the ‘lost years’ physically unscathed.

During the forced isolation, I, like countless others, turned to Netflix for solace. Whilst the Tiger King and Birdbox were entertaining, there was a whole genre of untapped escapism that I’d not previously encountered that I experienced for the first time. The K-Drama. My first ever K-Drama was one called Record of Youth. Watching this drama led to a complete revelation. It took hold of my soul and showed me a world of amazing apartments overlooking the Han River, delicious food, a tantalising but respectful courtship that felt as if it came straight from a Jane Austen novel — I was hooked.

During some down time from Netflix, I noticed that the members of BTS had become active on Instagram, prompting a casual follow. But it wasn’t until the jaw dropping jacket choreography of their performance at the Grammys did I actually take notice.

I believe the start of my journey echoes that of many, many new ARMYs. I was just curious to find out their names, but one thing led to another and suddenly I found myself binge watching Run BTS at 2am. I then quickly found myself falling down a rabbit hole watching hours of BTS’s dance practice videos and live performances.

Why BTS?

Formed by Big Hit Entertainment Chairman Bang Si-Hyuk, the group of seven faced several battles on their road to super stardom — with many sleepless nights spent practising in the studio, and with the company on the brink of collapse — but they made it. And despite being the biggest boy group right now, they stay humble. Their interactions with one another are utterly captivating and are a testament to how closely formed their bonds have become over the years. For an insight into how closely formed their bonds have become over the past few years, take a look at their reality shows Bon Voyage, In the Soop, and Run BTS. It’s difficult not to fall head-over-heels for these adorable members.

At the time of writing the septet has just performed at the Busan Expo to over 50,000 people in the stadium with a worldwide livestream audience that reportedly topped over 50m (the less said about Weverse and the live stream debacle the better). Shortly after which the group announced they would be fulfilling their Korean duty and enlisting into mandatory military service.

ARMYs worldwide took to social media to exhibit their collective emotions and support each other. It may seem like an overreaction to some but as a new ARMY, I can empathise. The OG ARMYs have been with this group for nearly 10 years. These people have literally grown up with this group of seven boys from South Korea.

The group’s use of social media, where it’s normal practice for the members to live stream from either their studio or homes, offers the fans an immediate connection with the group. As a kid growing up in the 90s, the idea of video calling to connect with friends has always been a little alien to me, but with these live videos helping to boost the parasocial relationship between BTS and ARMYs worldwide, it’s understandable that this type of interaction will be sorely missed when the boys undertake their military service.

The members are always considerate of each other and to others outside of their close-knit circle which warms my heart. Their messages of joy, love and laughter are infectious. They blurred gender roles long before Harry Styles wore a dress on the cover of Vogue, and continue to constantly challenge toxic masculinity, which is embedded in Korean heritage and customs, and don’t shy away from skin-ship and showing one another true affection.

With great power comes great responsibility

Imagine always trying to be the best version of yourself because you don’t want to let your fans down. Imagine only showing your best traits so that your fans won’t think badly of you. Imagine being a role model as a man, as a Korean, and being asked to represent the Asian community giving speeches at the United Nations and the White House. Imagine spending your youth in the spotlight, unable to enjoy the little moments of life and joy that we all take for granted. It’s heavy, but these seven men carry it so well.

My own personal jaunt into the fandom of BTS has been a short one but it’s left a lasting impression. I have so much respect and admiration for these young men and it has completely caught me off guard. While I do enjoy their music, I’m more impressed by them as human beings.

Growing up in the UK at a time where there were virtually no role models that I could look up to, it was really difficult to find my identity and who I wanted to become. There are similar stories to mine, where we as first generation immigrants, would always try to fit in and whitewash ourselves as much as possible. When it came to being in secondary school, and schoolgirl crushes, there were zero Asian boys in the media. I, myself, admitted to various friends that I simply didn’t find Asian men attractive.

I’m beyond ecstatic that there are many, many K-Pop idols, TV and film stars that have flooded the industry in the past few years. Representation matters and I’m so happy that my son has friends that love BTS and that he’ll be able to see them reflected a little within his own identity and hopefully feel a little more included than I did growing up.

My time as a BTS Unnie so far has been a blast and I look forward to the future and being a fan until my hip replacement. I only hope that I get to see them live before my old lady legs can no longer hold my weight and the hot flushes of the menopause kicks in.

Edited by Chelsea Cheetham.