Music is a constant in my life. There are many things I would give up or lose interest in, but I always listen to music. For me, listening to music sends me to another world. It calms me down when I am stressed or angry and is something to vibe to when I’m bored. Recently, I have been listening to BTS (a South Korean band) and I absolutely love it.
I had never considered listening to South Korean music, solely because I couldn’t understand the language. I felt that the language barrier would be a constraint. I wouldn’t understand the music therefore I wouldn’t like it. One day, I was surfing through the music channels on my television and I noticed a music video in a different language. It was by the South Korean band BTS. I was surprised to see a K-Pop song on this channel. I knew BTS was rising to fame slowly, but I didn’t understand why.
So, I decided to give it a try and listen to some songs by BTS and once I started, it was hard for me to stop. I understood that it wasn’t about the language at all. BTS connected with their listeners through their music. When it comes to music, I always gave language importance because I could understand it but, after listening to BTS, I realized music is so much more than understanding it. I connected to their music and felt emotions I have never felt.
Here are some of my favorite BTS songs:
1. Begin
This is a solo song by one of the members in the band- Jung Kook. He is the youngest member in the band and came into the music industry when he was 14 or 15 years old. He sang this song to commemorate and thank his fellow members for taking care of him and making him into the person he is today. This song contains how he feels attached to his members and how much they mean to him. The music and sound of this song is so intense that I could feel his emotions in his voice.
2. Epilogue: Young Forever
This song emphasizes the members’ experience of performing on stage in front of a crowd. The nervousness they feel when they are on stage when all eyes are on them soon goes away as the fans cheer them on. Everything is overwhelming for them, but they are happy that with their performances, they can make their fans happy. That rush of feeling is something they want to hold onto. They want to be young forever.
3. Answer: Love Myself
This song is definitely one of the special ones. It’s right there in the title, love myself. The band members state how loving oneself is harder than loving others as the standards we set are quite high. Even they go through the struggle of loving themselves, just like us. But, with the help of their fans, they are learning to love themselves. And we should do the same, we should love ourselves with their help. Even if I can’t see the good qualities inside me, this song inspires me to find them and love myself.
4. We Are Bulletproof: Eternal
This song was released to celebrate their 7- year anniversary. They showcased their love for their fans by this song. The idea is they are bulletproof with their fans. This is one of the most emotional songs by BTS as the music video took us down a memory lane as they showed flashes of BTS’s previous music videos in an animation. The video also displays BTS’s past struggles prior to their fame and how lonely they had become. This song is dedicated to their fans for being with them through their long journey and hope to still see them in the future. If one wants to see the love and respect they have for their fans, this song is definitely the one to listen to.
5. Life Goes On
This song was released in November 2020 after their world tour had been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They are conveying a message to everyone about how life goes on even though we are in one of the toughest times. This song is a ray of hope and courage for the many people who feel alone and depressed in this pandemic. The slow and soothing music of this song will calm anyone in this chaotic time. This song says what many are feeling right now, the longing of going out and interacting with people. It is definitely one of those that we could relate to in this time.
Each of their songs have a story or a message behind it. I can feel what they want to say by just listening to their songs even though I don’t understand the language. After listening to their songs, I realized the true meaning of music. It’s a good thing if I understand a song but if I don’t, that’s alright too. Music is meant to be felt regardless of the language.