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Many of the people in this little universe understand how easily their happiness at seeing a “boy band” or a “K-pop sensation” could be derided as trivial or childish. They’re dancing like one body, singing with a single voice in a language that may not be their own. Imagine some 50,000 people gathered in the dark as lights blink around them like stars.
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shows, which were named for the band’s latest single, “Permission to Dance.” In the preceding weeks, I couldn’t conceive of spectacles of sound, movement, and community after spending much of the past two years in silence, stillness, and solitude. I had experienced all of this as a brand-new (and somewhat intimidated) ARMY attending my first BTS concert in May 2019, but I still felt unprepared for the L.A. The four nights were loud, ecstatic, and poignant proof that they had all been wrong.ī TS shows are legendary affairs, known for elaborate production design, pairing demanding choreography with live vocals, goofy banter, sincere speeches, inside jokes, and a high level of crowd participation by their fans, known as ARMY. All of those things had been called into question by critics, or at times by the artists themselves, in 2021. In truth, they also served as a kind of vindication of BTS-of their talent, authenticity, reach, and emotional connection with fans. So when the group finally took the stage in Los Angeles in late November and early December, the shows might have seemed like a simple victory lap. This fall, they spoke at the United Nations General Assembly for the third time, accompanying South Korean President Moon Jae-in as special envoys. They won millions of new fans and became the first K-pop act to receive a Grammy nomination last year for their single “Dynamite” (followed by another nomination this year for “Butter”).
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They’d released three albums and scored six Billboard Hot 100 No. Already global superstars before the pandemic, RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook had only gotten bigger since 2020. And for the first time in months, I smiled at the idea of time standing still.īy all appearances, time had been kind to the seven members of BTS.
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For one week, I’d share hotel rooms with dear friends, attend shows, and blast BTS’s extensive, genre-melding discography while carpooling in L.A. (Mask wearing and proof of vaccination or a recent negative COVID-19 test would be required.) Knowing that demand was bound to be fierce, I hoped to attend once after a lot of planning, stress, and luck, I had tickets to all four dates. They’d play four nights at the open-air SoFi Stadium, in Los Angeles, where the Super Bowl would be held in 2022. In September, as live music was returning in earnest, the South Korean pop group BTS announced their first in-person concerts in two years. Then, for two weeks at the end of 2021, I tried to control time for myself. On others, like when I saw family and friends, it seemed to flow like a river that I couldn’t stop or outrun. Time warped around me, as it did for so many people. For 20 months, I was haunted by two fears: that some things (the pandemic, isolation, anxiety) would last forever, and that others (dreams, loved ones, entire years) would be lost forever.