Who Called It?

Kaya diiiiid!

*Ahem*

All Cheekiness aside, anyone remember that post I made about BTS?

If you haven't read it yet, click here!

Now before I continue, I must warn you:  my opinions about the boys have changed since I wrote that post 5 or so months ago.

Anyway, in that post, I made a prediction that the interesting combination of young schoolboys and tough rappers would make the bank (no matter how silly I thought it was personally).

And BOY have they!  These guys have EXPLODED into the Kpop scene, and shortly after releasing their first mini album, they came back with a full album, O!RUL8,2?, in mere months (well, some say it's a mini album, but it's 10 tracks, and that's a full album dammit)!  I honestly don't remember the last time a rookie group came out with their first full album so fast after their debut.

I see you Big Hit, I see you.

The title track off of O!RUL8,2?, "N.O", portrays the same tough image that "No More Dream" had, but much more successfully in my opinion.  "No More Dream" tried a bit too hard, and I think that the guys are more relaxed and confident after a successful debut, so that may have been a contributing factor to their improvement.

I won't explain the entire plot of the video to you, but there is a strong theme of rebellion against conformity and the mundane, and standing up for oneself.  These themes fit with both sides of their image:  young people have tendencies to question everything and rebel when they think it's right.  Rappers have also been known to call out injustices through their lyrics, and use their power as artists to convey their opinions about it to the masses.

One thing that usually bothers me about Kpop rappers is the fact that THEY DON'T WRITE THEIR OWN RAPS.  The core of rap is in the MESSAGE it presents, and if you didn't write the message...why are you the one rapping?  But that's another post entirely.

The good thing about these guys is that members Rap Monster, Suga, and J-Hope write the lyrics for all of their songs, and lend a hand in the composition as well.  Nicely done boys.

BTS is definitely a group to watch, as they write about things that they can relate to.  Instead of all of this lovey dovey crap that most Kpop artists sing about (with no prior experience), these guys take what they know and share their experiences with their audience.  With their main audience being young people, I think it's a message that their audience can relate to as well.  It'll definitely be interesting to see how they grow as songwriters as they go through different chapters of their lives, and we'll see if their fans grow with them.

As for the significance and controversy of the message of this song, I think PAT over at Seoulbeats does a better job of explaining it than I would.  Click here to give it a read!

Overall I'm happy that these guys have improved so much, and that I can actually see what the Kpop industry is luring me in with instead blindly enjoying what is put in front of me.

Did you like BTS when they first debuted?  If not, what do you think of N.O?  Are you impressed by their songwriting abilities?

Let me know what you think!