#we were all rooting for a japanese subunit

[doiebun]

Hello I am back and wtf is NCT Hollywood and how can I get it cancelled

[nightswithkookmin]

RE HOW BIGHIT MARKETS BTS

Thanks for the question dear.

Marketing is for a lot of things but in BTS's case, I'd say the primary goal of marketing them is to expose the entire group and or the individual members to an audience, a particular audience at a time, to brand them in a way that makes them appealing to that target market- to put it simply.

During one of the recent run episodes, when Jimin performed his dance from Serendipity- which I must say, God he is breathtakingly beautiful when he dances. Serendipity and the choreo is my weakness. If I see anything better than that- hold on, there's filter too. Ayayaya.

Stream Serendipity and Filter🔪

Oh and did y'all see JM's bit in Film out? Omg! I'm afraid I'd have to fly to South K to kiss his talented ass morning, afternoon, evening.

Who's coming?

Anywho, when Jimin performed Serendipity on Run and suggested that was the dance the staff was performing, the members- cough RM, quickly pointed out how he was plugging, self promoting (to Run's target audience)

Run has a different demographic.

When Suga talked about them not being funny on their Let's BTS show on KBS the Host pointed out how they were actually funny in their Run episodes.

A lot of Army(who are already fans of BTS or each individual member) watch Run but not all who watch Run are Army or even listen to BTS songs. So any performance of an individual's music or choreo would attract such a 'unique' viewer who might go on to become that member's stan or bias etc.

Similarly, when a member embarks on a solo project they are exposed to a new or unique audience. That's where most of the solo stans come from.

For V, his fanbase are not just made up of people who enjoy him as a musician but as an actor as well.

He has a strong fanbase in SK outside of 'Army' because of his exposure to the Korean market beyond BTS and this comprises of his musical collaborations with Korean Artists and film companies such as his OST Sweet Night on the series Itaewon class.

It's the same with Suga and IU, his Agust D mixtapes which draws in audiences that are not necessarily into boybands, RM's Mono whixh attracts strong hiphop fans, Jimin's dance collaborations with Taemin for example and his contemporary dance performance which attracts people in the world of contemporary dance and ballet- point in case the black swan performance at the end of the year, Jin and Hobi's MCing etc.

All these projects exposes them to unique audiences and markets outside of Army or BTS's own fanbase.

And I think the best way to understand how this is important or how this affects BigHit's marketing approach is to look at their recent YouQuiz interviews.

Jimin, Jhope and JK were paired to attract aspiring dancers or persons who want to be dancers and learn from these three dance leaders of BTS- or at least they were paired to appeal to them in my opinion.

Tae and RM were equally paired to appeal to creatives and creative minds and persons who are more into composing and writing lyrics and are full of passion and musical geniuses.

Jin and Suga were paired to appeal to mature audiences.

Ten out of ten when any pair is paired in BTS it is for marketing reasons to appeal to certain fanbase or audiences and are often strategic moves unless of course it's to balance things out to not create the impression they are promoting subunits within the group in furtherance of the BTS kumbaya agenda- Team over units or solos.

So Jikook are not gonna be allowed to sit together all the time even if they want to, neither would JinKook, or Sope.

They shake and reshuffle sometimes.

And like Tae said in his 2018 VLive, the company decides who they collaborate in or what market to promote them in.

Tae was allowed to collaborate with Adora on his Chrismas song but not Jimin- which to me is very homophobic but it goes to show the company has a say in who they work with and most importantly which market they work in.

For JK, he's been working his way within the American marke and building a strong fanbase internationally from his English covers of Justin Bieber, Troye Sivan, to his collaboration with Charlie Puth, and most recently Jason Derulo in Savage love- that's a lot of English speaking fanbase he's attracting and appealing to outside of Army.

Tae's English mixtape would achieve a similar feat and draw in a lot of English speaking fans.

Bts did the same with dynamite and coldplay's Fix you.

So by allowing JK to work with renowned Japanese Artists and film companies, collaborating and composing original sound tracks for them such as his Your eyes tell OST, Film out, etc. he is appealing to and drawing in a Japanese audience.

As Hobi explained in his 2019 January Vlive, their mixtapes, solo projects, collaborations with Artists outside of BTS are all ways for them to expand their fanbase individually and build their portfolio.

And these new fans are mostly going to be solo stans who stan him for his music composing abilities but of course some may fall in love with BTS as well and go on to become Army so it's a win win situation.

WOULDN'T THE OTHERS OBJECT

Yes and no.

As long as the company isn't pushing him as a soloist outside of BTS and creating a separate brand with him outside of BTS's own brand I don't think the boys would object to it.

That was the problem they had/have with Jikook. In my opinion.

The company branding Jikook, distinctifying them from the group as a 'couple' subunit, selling their chemistry to fans and advertisers really doesn't and didn't sit well with the group. AT ALL.

In my opinion of course.

You can't create a brand within a brand.

It goes against Bang PD's own objective of prioritizing the team over all else which is what sold the members in the first place.

I just think in JK's case, since 2020, they are just trying to help him find himself and his bearing and his purpose.

He's been trying to find himself since 2020 and he'd talked about losing his passion and had had his passion hijacked and commercialized by the company.

He used to say he didn't know what he was going to do with himself and his life and career after BTS- having him work on music videos, directing, composing, reading these are all ways that they are doing right by him if you ask me.

They are helping him not trying to push their own agendas- which is not to say they might not change their minds about it in the future.

JK is an artist being managed by the company and they owe a duty to him to make the right business decisions for him with his consent- can't stress on the consent bit enough.

Personally, I'm happy about Japan because they are and are shaping out to be queer friendly and have a bit of progressive laws and conducive environments for queer artists to flourish in- if coming out would ruin their careers that's one less worry.

Which by the way I hate anyone who peddles this 'coming out will ruin their careers' nonsense because I can tell you one hundred percent that that is rooted in homophobia and it's not OK.

Don't tell that to no queer people shut up. You are not helping.

I know some say that out of genuine concerns for the boys but PLEASE DON'T. Don't use fear to keep queer people hidden and out of sight. Don't promote closet safety. Rhetorics like that only perpetuate queer invisibility and homophobia- do I need to spell it out to your liberal homophobic ass?!

Coming out is entirely up to them regardless of the risk you think is involved. If they want to take it. They'll take it. It's their choice to make regardless of whatever consequence.

That there are or should be consequences is a problem in of itself.

I don't want to hear 'if JK comes out he's been stupid and reckless and putting Jimin's career at risk'

'If he loves Jimin he wouldn't come out'

Go ahead kiss it😌

If he wants to stay closested respect it. If he wants to come out RESPECT IT TOO.

Support him either ways goddammit!

Y'all gone get me bothered like that huh.

JK POTENTIALLY WITHOUT JIMIN

They both have different career objectives.

I know Jimin says JK is imitating him but chilee JK is his own person. Lol.

Jimin plays too much.

He has his own aspirations.

In 2014 Jimin posted this Christmas song he did with JK. In 2020 he posted his own Christmas song without Jk.

It's not hard to see where his interests in music lie as a musician.

JK covered We don't talk anymore by himself and later did a collaboration with Jimin on the same song. He's done Fools with RM- see where I'm going with this?

Suga said he was more likely to write pop songs for JK but write dance songs for Jimin.

Jk said in the Be interviews bang PD advised him to consider dance performances when writing songs as he himself is a dancer too and need to incorporate in his compositions.

They are two distinct artists and at some point it would become necessary to brand, promote and encourage their uniqueness in their professional lives. They don't got to be tethered to each other all the time.

Personally, I don't think BigHit would want to push official subunits within BTS- yet and it's inclination towards Jikook have always been because of their marketing appeal rather than to further a career objective for both of them.

This goes back to the pairing objectives I talked about earlier. If they are going to pair Jikook professionally as an official subunit within the group it wouldn't be because they are a couple and ought to be together all the time but because it is smart for them to do so business wise.

If their pairing isn't commercially profitable they won't be paired at all- unless of course Jikook themselves want and request to be paired in that way. Know what I mean?

They each signed separate contracts with the company from day dot. They didn't sign on as a unit.

Whether or not they've decided they are a package deal I cannot say- yet, as their new contract just came into effect.

We would have to observe how they are being handled by the company going forward.

HE'D NEVER DO IT WOULD HE

Come now sis...

It's not like he's leaving Jimin😅

Jimin and Jhope were equally sent to Japan for promotion purposes without JK.

Out of all seven, Namjoon is the most promoted member in the international Market not just because he speaks English but because he is often made the spokes person for the group in interviews, at awards straight up to the UN.

Look how happy they all were and how chatty they were at the KBS Let's BTS interview.

I mean they all talked about it. About how they can't say much on foreign forums and often step into Namjoon's shadows.

RM is the most recognized and dare I say the most liked member out of all seven in the international market outside Army and their music profession.

In Japan they all have a chance to be front and center at interviews etc.

It just so happens that JK as it stands is the one member pushing to build a portfolio within that market.

Let's pray he gets mainstream and build a strong presence within the music industry there because we all know he's gonna drag Jimin up there with him😏

Just pay attention to the songs he's written and the parts Jimin sings in them- he makes Jimin shine on those songs.

They have so much potential my God.

Let's support them individually and as a unit.

I purple you and sorry I had to respond here.

Stay gold. Let's keep supporting and rooting for our guys.

Signed,

GOLDY

[paradox-media]

#SUPERMInLondon

It’s a rainy, windy, gloomy Friday morning when I leave the house to travel the 30 minutes into the city to the O2 Arena. It’s already bustling outside as we leave the underground station and fans adorned with clothes, banners and light-sticks are milling around near the merch stands. We take a moment to breathe everything in and get our bearings straight and as we’re heading towards the main entrance, a huge video begins to scroll round on the huge screen outside the arena – their name flashing in white, followed by a brief message from the members. If you’ve been around in K-pop for a while, you’ll probably know all of the members of SuperM already, despite the fact that as a group they have only been debuted for about a year. Consisting of Lee Taemin [SHINee], Byun Baekhyun [EXO, EXO-K, EXO-CBX], Kim Jongin (Kai) [EXO, EXO-K], Lee Taeyong [NCT, NCT U, NCT 127, SM Rookies, SM Town], Ten (Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul) [NCT, WayV], Lucas (Wong Yukhei) [NCT, WayV], and Mark Lee [NCT, NCT 127]. Again, if you’re into K-pop these days, all of these names will be familiar to you and there’s a reason why SM has put this super group together – to rival other artists already breaking out in the Western world.

We mill around the O2 before stopping and getting something to eat – the restaurants all filled with other fans, still adorned with their light sticks and photocards in their phone cases. A trend that isn’t really seen in any other music genre industry is the idea of ‘freebies’, fans will put their own time, effort and money into creating freebies for other fans at these events, and we’re off in search of some. Banners are one of the main projects, mostly set up by fandom groups and given out for free to the public to use when a particular song plays later that night. On the other side of the tube station, crowds are gathering around artists handing out free prints of members, drawings and pictures, pins and badges alike. This aspect really shows how the community comes together and supports each other, even if that means losing a little money in the process.

We head back towards the building and find a place to sit – which is becoming increasingly more difficult as we near towards the opening of the doors at 6:30PM. We meet with a couple other friends that we’ve made and find out that we can head straight into the O2 priority lounge ahead of time, so we make it through the checks and we’re in. I’ve never used this lounge before and it does make you feel like royalty as we’re sat about listening to different K-pop artists over the loudspeakers.

Finally, we all split off (we bought seats in different sections but oh well) and I find my seat towards the far-side of the stage. Energy is bustling, and there’s still 45 minutes to go until showtime. Like I said before, SuperM haven’t been around for that long, just shy of a year, and so they don’t really have all that many songs. ‘Super Car’, ‘Jopping’, and ‘I Can’t Stand The Rain’ cycle through the speakers as we wait. And then before I know it, the lights go dark and screams erupt through the crowd – most of the members of SuperM haven’t visited the UK in their respective groups like SHINee and EXO, so for many in the arena this is the first time they’ll be seeing these idols they’ve listened to for years, and you can tell. The group come out and the start of ‘I Can’t Stand The Rain’ begins but then all of a sudden the music stops and the boys stand confused in the centre of the stage, midway through their dance performance. Mark begins to speak and tells us that they’ll be right back, but before they leave the stage they turn around and announce they’re just going to start again. This time, the song goes on without a hitch and the crowd seems enthused at the performance so far.

Because SuperM as a group don’t have many songs, the individual members have ‘solo stages’ and perform their own individual songs.

Taemin is the first member to come out. If you’re a fan of Taemin as a soloist or a fan of him in SHINee, this next bit will get you excited. The words “SHINee’s back” play over the speakers and the crowd goes wild, jumping and screaming like there’s no tomorrow. It heads out Taemin’s first song ‘Danger’, of which he does a small remix to incorporate aspects of other SHINee songs into his original track. His next song is Japanese release “Danger”, and despite the fact that it’s the only Japanese song on the setlist, the people around me are singing with their whole chests. Taemin leaves the stage after this and Mark appears, singing his unreleased solo song “GTA”. Now, we can all debate whether or not it’s a good idea to perform an unreleased track at a show, but Mark handles it well and has the crowd interacting with him just as well all the same.

The rest of the members reappear for “Super Car” but depart again fairly quickly, giving away the stage to Ten to perform both “Dream In A Dream” and “New Heroes”, filling up the stage with his beautiful dance routines and entrancing the crowd with his vocal range and stability. Next, Lucas appears for his solo song “Bass Go Boom”, another unreleased track.

I have to admit – I’d heard this one online a few months before the show and I absolutely loved it, so despite the fact that it was unreleased many others around me were also singing along with the lyrics. He holds his own well despite his young age and makes his solo performance one to remember. Following this, Baekhyun takes the stage to perform “Betcha” and “UN Village”, two tracks from his first solo mini album ‘City Lights’. He’s renowned for his vocal ability in EXO and through his solo performance at the O2 it’s clear to see why. Not only does he put on a fantastic stage show with dance choreography and crowd interaction, his vocal ability never waivers.

The rest of the group then reconvene on the stage to perform their unreleased track “Dangerous Woman”,  another risky choice as the crowd won’t be able to interact properly because they don’t know the song at all, but it goes down well and the members look like they’re having a lot of fun with it. Another group song follows this one, “2 Fast”, and the crowd are back to being able to sing along and interact with enthusiasm. We’re well into the second half of the show by now and despite that, it feels like no time has passed at all.

Going to gigs like this almost makes you feel like you’ve been transported to a different world; it doesn’t matter what time you’re at work tomorrow morning, or if that project you’ve worked really hard on is due and you’re worried about it because in that moment with all those other people around you none of it matters. Being able to be amongst other people who share the same interests as you is so good for not only your mental health but your general wellbeing; so go to more gigs, it’s good for you.

After the last group song, all of the members part the stage and the arena goes black before the lights jump up again, revealing Taeyong and Ten, ready to perform their NCT U subunit song “Baby Don’t Stop”. This song is one that almost anyone who listens to K-pop will know, and the crowd reaction shows this pretty well, the English lyrics popping up on the screen behind them aren’t really needed as the crowd sings along loudly. The intricate choreography making up for the fact that there are only two of them on stage and they make sure to use the space to their advantage, moving from the main platform to the extended stage towards the middle of the arena and interacting with the fans at the end of it.

The song ends and the lights go dark once more, before the heavy bass and trap beat begins for Mark’s solo stage and unreleased song “Talk About”. The mixture of English and Korean lyrics allows the audience, primary English speakers, to feel involved in the song while also staying true to its roots. Personally, I prefer the more EDM, trap and rap heavy songs that come out of K-pop rather than the more pop orientated songs so I vibe with this track a lot. He comments after the song is finished that he was scared that people wouldn’t like the track much, but the response from the crowd proves otherwise and he feels happy that his audience liked it. Artists and idols, despite their online presence through apps like Twitter and VLive, aren’t your friends, as much as you’d like them to be. You can’t just send them a message singing your praises for them and expect them to read it, so Mark finding happiness in the active crowd response to his song shows that although they can’t read or respond to every fan individually; they still hear what you’re saying.

Mark then departs the stage after a brief back and forth with the audience and once again the room goes dark, quiet murmurs travelling through the arena; those who know what’s coming next are excited, and those who don’t are in for a bit of a shock.

Kai appears on the stage, cap pulled down over the top of his face and a white denim jacket covering his torso as his solo song “Confession” begins to play. If you’ve not been keeping up with SuperM while they’ve been on tour, you should be. Kai’s solo stage has a totally different feel to most of the other songs performed tonight, it’s heavy and sexual, filled with tension and a lot, a lot, of body rolls. “Confession” is another unreleased track but this time the vibe is different, a lot of the audience are familiar with the song and the crowd interaction is a lot better than it has been with some of the other songs. One thing I will say though is that I feel bad for any parents attending with their younger children…

Kai finishes the song and quickly leaves the stage for a quick change before reappearing alongside Taemin, Taeyong and Ten for their sub-unit song “No Manners”, another unreleased track. This song hosts a slow trap beat with a mix of singing vocal and rap aspects, those heavier beats also giving this song a more sensual feel, to which the choreography reflects once more. The crowd goes wild, each of the members taking it in turns to stand elevated on platforms spread over the extended stage and dancing together.

This song differs from the rest of the setlist due to its slower nature, but that doesn’t stop the crowd from dancing and jumping themselves, the pace of the show not slowing down despite the tempo. The track comes to a close, and the members leave the stage for a few minutes. They all return then together, as Taeyong shouts to the crowd “Hey yo guys! Are you guys having fun tonight London?” “With You” starts to play, another unreleased song, and the vibe is much different to the previous track. This song feels more stereotypically ‘K-pop’, more upbeat melody and sounds like something you’d hear over the radio in the summer. The crowd goes wild to this, groups of people dancing together in the stands and laughing, their light-sticks waving in the air.  My heart swells as I look around me and see everyone really enjoying themselves; this concert is taking place just as the Coronavirus is beginning and the uncertainty of what is to come is scary, but right here and now everything is okay.

The song ends and the members all speak one by one, thanking everyone for coming out and promising that they’ll come back again once they’ve released more music. The crowd roars at this statement, a clear indicator that every person in the crowd would come back again when they tour.

The ending ments come to a close, and the members move to the centre of the stage; the lights flash and the heavy intro for the groups most well-known song “Jopping”. This is the one we’ve all been waiting for, and the audience screams louder than they have all night. Everyone around me is jumping and screaming along to the lyrics and I’m doing the same, this is the song that brought me round on SuperM as a group and it’s amazing to finally hear it live. One of the verses of “Jopping” was taken by the community and ran with, Mark’s verse in the middle of the song and as he begins to sing it, the entire crowd is screaming it back at him as loudly as they can. This is one of those concert moments that I don’t think I’ll ever forget, and it will always stand out in my mind when talking to anyone, in the community or not, about my experience seeing SuperM live.

The set comes to a close and the atmosphere is still buzzing, even as we’re all leaving the arena and heading home, friends talking amongst themselves about their experience and what their favourite part was. I would absolutely recommend seeing SuperM live on their next tour, when they’ve had more experience in the industry as a group and have more original songs to perform. It can only go up from here – and it’s already pretty far up there.