Hey! Hallie here!
I’ve been obsessed with BTS for a few months now. I discovered them while in quarantine, and I’ve been relying on their music and videos to get rid of my boredom. To many BTS fans I’m still a baby ARMY. I know quite a bit about the group, but I’ve only learned these things recently. BTS has been a large presence in the music industry for a few years now, so I absolutely had heard about them. But from what I heard, I presumed a lot of weird, and often undeserved, things about them. I’m not the only one, either. I see a lot of the same assumptions being mentioned quite a bit by people who don’t know much about BTS. So I’m going to clear a few of these things up right now. Whether you’re a long-time ARMY, or someone who just wants to know a little more about the boys, here are some misconceptions you should be careful of.
Jin is the weakest singer/dancer:
Kim Seokjin is easy to underestimate. He isn’t focused on as much as the other members in music videos and he’s said himself that he’s the worst at learning new choreography. But that doesn’t make him a bad singer or a bad dancer. Firstly, all of the boys dance in sync. If Jin wasn’t a good dancer, everyone would notice that something was off. But this rarely, if ever, happens. All of the boys are excellent dancers and skilled at keeping up with each other. Jin is no exception. The fact that it takes him longer to learn dances in no way means he’s less skilled at them when he does learn them. As for his singing, look up any of his solo songs. “Moon” is a good one to start with. His voice is beautiful, and that isn’t just me being encouraging. He has a large amount of talent and he’s released many, many, solo songs to prove it. His voice may not be your favorite of the BTS members, but that’s ok! You’re allowed to have your own personal opinion. Regardless of that, Jin has a gorgeous voice, and once you’ve learned to recognize it, you’ll notice he’s involved in many more songs than you might have originally thought. There are definitely music videos where Jin gets less of the spotlight than everyone else, but that has nothing to do with his talent. If anything, it’s probably because he’s the oldest member of the group, which is a lot bigger of a deal in Idol groups.
Suga hates everyone:
Min Yoongi is definitely the most introverted member of BTS. At any large event he shies away from large groups and tends to stick with the rest of BTS. He’s talked a lot about how he doesn’t like to go out very often. He can also seem stand-offish at times. He’s the most likely to shrug off physical affection and in a lot of BTS behind the scenes videos you’ll see him napping. But Yoongi is actually a pretty friendly guy. His introversion is simply something that affects him more than most. He’s talked about how going out to restaurants and movie theatres can cause him a lot of anxiety. Sometimes he’ll need to ask other members of BTS to get him food after performances because he can’t bring himself to go out to eat with them. He also really likes to mess around with the other members of BTS. Sometimes he’ll pretend to be disgusted by their hugs just to make them laugh. Other times they’ll wake him up from a nap and he’ll threaten them for fun. It’s all for their enjoyment, and if he or anyone else was actually uncomfortable, they would say so. But Yoongi is just one goof amongst a group of goofs and it would be a mistake to take every joke he makes seriously.
J-Hope is the ugliest member:
I’ve seen this going around a lot. A pretty large group of people have said that Jung Hoseok has a “horse face” and isn’t as attractive as the other members. This has caused a lot of new ARMY’s to believe that he has a small fanbase or that a lot of his fans pity him. This even got around to Hobi himself, who admitted that he was teased about his looks in school as well. You can catch a few videos where he compares his face to a horse and the other members of BTS playfully assure him that that isn’t the case. Yoongi has said that he believes Hobi is the most attractive member of BTS. Honestly, these were just mean comments that blew up at an extreme rate. It doesn’t take much to disprove this. As is true of most Idol groups, you won’t find anyone in BTS who isn’t conventionally attractive. Unfortunately, that’s a large part of choosing members of Idol groups. His fans don’t pity him, but they do appreciate him for his bright personality. This is coming first-hand from a J-Hope bias. And if you needed any more proof, look at the photo I used for this post. There. Disproved.
RM was only chosen to be leader because he knew English:
While this is definitely one of the reasons why Kim Namjoon was chosen to lead BTS, this isn’t the only reason. Namjoon was the only member of BTS who was part of the original lineup. He was the first one found because of his growing fame as a rap artist, and he was the most determined to stay out of everyone in the group. He even convinced J-Hope to stay after he decided to leave a day before their debut. In some instances, he was the reason why some members joined BTS. Jungkook has stated in multiple interviews that one of the main reasons he joined BTS was because he enjoyed Namjoon’s work. Namjoon pulled everyone together before BTS debuted. His leadership and determination didn’t go unnoticed. The fact that he could speak English was just a plus.
V is Immature:
Kim Taehyung is one of the youngest members of BTS, but he isn’t the youngest. Somehow, he still has the reputation of being immature while Jungkook, the actual youngest, doesn’t. Some of the members of BTS probably fueled this reputation. Yoongi has said that he found Taehyung quite immature in the first few years he lived with him and a fight he had with Jimin over dumplings is one of the most infamous stories the group shared. In some interviews he can also seem irritated, which has only worsened this reputation. Taehyung has talked about his immaturity before, but he has also spoken about coming a long way from that. He wrote an entire song about it called “Inner Child”. Taehyung doesn’t regret his immaturity. A lot of the youngest members of BTS had their childhoods stolen from them and Taehyung has appreciated that his environment, despite that, allowed him to be silly and goof around. But Taehyung has shown professionalism and wisdom throughout the past few years. As for his interviews, it isn’t a secret that many Western interviewers treat BTS poorly. Taehyung doesn’t put up with this treatment. He makes it obvious when he’s upset by sitting quietly and looking exasperated. He isn’t loud and he doesn’t disrupt the interview. That’s one of the most professional ways I’ve seen someone handle their displeasure while they’re being disrespected.
These are only a few misconceptions I’ve come across. There are many more going around. These are just some of the more serious topics I’ve seen. I can’t say I didn’t believe some of these at one point, but I’m glad I did more research. It’s important as ARMY that we appreciate every member of BTS for their uniqueness. They deserve to be respected for their accomplishments. And for those who aren’t ARMY, don’t judge a book by it’s cover! There’s much more to each member of BTS than just what a handful of people say. Look into them and form your own opinions! Whether you like their music or it isn’t really your thing, you have to appreciate the work they’re putting into make this world a better place.
Don’t do anything fun until I get back!
Hallie
Oreos & Peanut Butter 