Who is BTS? Well, the answer is really simple. They’re the replacement of One Direction but better. It’s a joke. There’s no need to take out pitchforks. On a serious note though, BTS are seven talented young men from South Korea who happen to be in one band. Another cheesy boy band, you say? I disagree.
As an Asian American, it is still astounding that mainstream media lacks Asian faces, and a lot of that is due to the stereotype about Asian men and women that they have features that are not considered attractive. And when certain features and attributes are deemed attractive by western standards, it is often due to the result of fetishizing those attributes and features. In fact, it is a rare occurrence for people in the West to state that an Asian accent is attractive, yet these are the same people who would most likely get a tattoo in Chinese or Japanese letters because it looks “cool” and “different,” which stands for exotic. One can argue about Psy’s fame, but if one put in more thought and analysis, they would realize that the only reason why Psy rose to fame so quickly is due to the fact that not only was he a meme, his entire image relied on Asian stereotypes which is the unattractive Asian doing weird things.
With BTS, it’s different. These seven young men are desired by millions of women, both young and old, not only in Asia, where most Asian artists thrive, but also in the Americas and Europe. Not only that, little by little, they are getting the attention of all of Hollywood due to the power and influence they hold at a global level. This alone is able to show that Asians can be successful in a cutthroat industry and might actually do even better economically in the mainstream if they were given the chance. This will hopefully open doors for many who are of Asian descent and get pushed to the forefront in the entertainment industry which will in turn double the representation for Asian Americans in the media.