Schoolboys: They're tougher than you think

So I was derping around on tumblr today, and I stumbled upon a group I didn't expect:  BTS.  They're also called the Bangtan Boys or Bulletproof Boy Scouts.

Yeah you read that right.  Bulletproof Boy Scouts.  Oy.

These boys are set to release their debut single "2 COOL 4 SKOOL" (another Oy) on June 12th, which is today!

The video above I'm guessing is their title track, since it's their only music video, and it's called "No More Dream."

Anyway, this group is a part of Big Hit Entertainment, which is a subset of JYP, and their labelmates are 2AM and GLAM.  Their age range is 15-20 years old.  I was a bit shocked to see how young these guys were, but these entertainment companies like to pick 'em young...anyway, as I was looking through their profiles, I noticed that 4 out of the 7 members are labeled as rappers (some also have dancer or visual along with the rapper title, but all of the members dance anyway, and the visual tag is just for promotion sooo....).  Usually, groups have more vocal members than rap members because kpop is very melody heavy, and there's always some catchy hook to sing along with.  I kind of sat there for a minute, and read over the profiles again.  There is only one main vocal in this group, as the other vocals are also labeled dancer/visual/rapper/whatever.  Big Hit is trying to pull off a rap group...with high school boys.

The only other super rap heavy Kpop group I can think of at the moment is B.A.P. (let me know if y'all know more than I do), but they have two lead vocals to pull off the catchy hooks so there is some melody to stick in your head, and they also have some older members so the tough, masculine image is more convincing.  Looking at these guys, no matter how you dress 'em up and how much make up you put on 'em, they still look like babies.  It's hard for me to take them seriously as masculine rappers when most of the group looks like they belong in a classroom tapping beats on their desks with pencils.  That, and the fact that in most of the video, they're rapping in front of a fucking school bus.  Go look at it!  It's a bright yellow school bus.  When was the last time y'all ever saw a school bus in a rap video?  NEVER.  They're also break dancing in some broken down classroom...which definitely reinforces the school boy image.  Like...what?  I'm just confused at the juxtaposition of this group...was this done on purpose?

The song itself is quite catchy.  I'm a rap/hip-hop fan myself, and I like the beat behind it.  Also, DAYUM that maknae (Jung Kook I think) can rap.  

Y'all.  It's BAD when the 15 year old can show up the rest of you.  Step up your game, boys!

Compared to him, the rest of the members are just kind of...blah. The only other member I noticed without looking back at the profiles was some fool named Suga who was rapping about cars, rings, and no big dream, wearing a bandana that was nearly twice the circumference of his head...dude, you're an okay rapper but you look stupid.

The leader of the group, whose stage name is Rap Monster (don't even get me started) doesn't even rap much in this at all...he's just yelling at us repeatedly.  What did I ever do to you, man?

This group certainly has an interesting concept...when you think about it, it's actually a tactful marketing angle.  By marketing these young schoolboys as masculine rappers, I do believe Big Hit is aiming for two target audiences:

1)  The schoolgirls - Y'all are probably saying "well duh, Kaya," but it's still important to point out!  These girls are stuck with their classmates all day, who they probably find boring and unattractive, and when they see these guys, the fantasy of a cool, super hot rapper who could be in your school comes to life.  These guys, if they do become successful, will serve an important market, since the rappers of most Kpop groups are much older than these middle/high school girls, making them seem more out of reach.  BTS's younger age  makes them seem more attainable (even though they really aren't), therefore, Big Hit can expect to make some money off of these girls.  

2)  The noonas - This is always a target market for boy groups, isn't it?  Although instead of using the cute tactic that most boy groups use when looking to snatch some noona cash, they pull the juxtaposition of being masculine with being young.  By rapping in front of a goddamn school bus, these women might think:  "oh how cute!  They're trying to be so tough!" or something along those lines.

If these guys were to debut in the US, they'd be ripped to shreds.  Although in South Korea, this combination may make the bank!  We'll just have to wait and see what happens.  They didn't impress me right off the bat, but they managed to pull enough interest for me to follow their fyeah tumblr blog and wait 'till they pop up on my dashboard again...

Do you like the image BTS is putting forward?  What do you think of the stage name Rap Monster?  Would you rap in front of a school bus?

Let me know!  

Oh!  And since I mentioned tumblr a few times in this post, mine is KayaKiraKira.  I do post jpop and kpop idol photos and gifs as well as anime and food.  If you like that stuff, give me a follow! ;)