BTS Interview for Entertainment Tonight, COMEBACK SHOW D-1 Teaser, DNA Reached 30mil Views + More

[mc1a.livejournal.com]

EXCLUSIVE: BTS Celebrate Their Biggest Album Ever and Reveal What They Love About Themselves



Welcome to BTS' next chapter.

The K-pop boyband shocked the biggest names in music when they beat out artists like Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez for the Top Social Artist award at the Billboard Music Awards in May -- but their success is no surprise.

With 8.4 million Twitter followers and a fan base so dedicated it's referred to as ARMY, BTS is one of the hottest acts in Asia, and soon, the United States.

"There is much more recognition of BTS music than before the BBMAs," V, one of the band's seven members, told ET. "Which means fans have higher expectations than before. We're trying to live up to it and I hope the new album can be the answer to that expectation."

The new album, Love Yourself: Her, dropped on Monday and was even shattering records weeks before its release with over one million pre-orders, according to BTS' label, BigHit Entertainment. By Tuesday, Love Yourself had already topped the iTunes Album charts at No. 1 in a record-breaking 73 countries, the largest debut release for any South Korean artists. And "DNA," the album's lead single, is also blowing up on YouTube with nearly 30 million views since its early Monday release.


ET caught up with V, Rap Monster, Jimin, Jin, Jungkook, Suga and J-Hope on Tuesday, where they opened up about their incredible success, their fifth EP, and what's next.

ET: Love Yourself: Her is already a huge hit around the world. Were you surprised?

Rap Monster: We’re surprised at the huge response when each album is released but it is beyond our expectation and overwhelming this time. Our new songs topped iTunes chart in 73 countries and made its debut at No. 4 on the US iTunes Song chart. "DNA" music video views surpassed 10 million in just 8 hours, which was the fastest for Korean artists ever. We are very grateful to our fans worldwide for appreciating our music and video.

The music video for "DNA" is a little different from your past music videos, and includes some intense choreography -- what does this mean for other music videos off this album? How long did it take to shoot the video?

J-Hope: BTS’ music videos always have intense choreography, but it was even more difficult to learn all the dance moves before the shoot. It may look different compared to previous videos due to complex use of computer graphics and edit styles for "DNA" video, but it took three full days to shoot. Everyone was great in learning the choreography, although there were many different moves we had to perform for the video. Personally, I think Jungkook and Jimin really pulled it off nicely.

You collaborated with The Chainsmoker's Andrew Taggart on the song "Best of Me" after meeting at the BBMAs. What was the collaboration process like? What did you learn from him?

Rap Monster: We first met at the BBMAs last May. [We] were invited to The Chainsmokers’ rehearsal backstage for the award show and we had fun talking about music and many things. The duo sent us several tracks after we returned home from BBMAs and we selected a couple of tracks to work together. "Best of Me" was the best for our new album in many ways so we decided to write lyrics and finish it together. The song came out great and we were all satisfied with the collaborative process. Andrew is awesome; he’s passionate about music and I think there should be more opportunities for us to work again in near future.

Who's your next big dream collaborator?

Jungkook: My biggest dream collaborator would be Justin Bieber because I just love his voice and the way he collaborates with other artists. However, I’d like to give it a try with whoever has the right chemistry with BTS musically. (do I see..progress?)

Suga: I’m pretty much open to anyone who’s unique and has mutual appreciation in the music as BTS. I have some tracks and songs written for future collaboration and I’m happy to work with artists who have the right voice and taste.

The song “Skit: Billboard Music Awards,” features Rap Monster’s speech from the awards show -- what made you choose to incorporate that into your new album?

Rap Monster: It was one of many ideas we had for this album and we all thought that it would mean a lot to BTS and our fans if we have it permanently in the album and cherish that special moment for everyone. We’re facing the second chapter with Love Yourself: Her in terms of music and life and the BBMAs is like a new turning point for BTS in many ways.

Rap Monster already revealed that Barack Obama was an inspiration for "MIC Drop" -- Why? Who else were you inspired by on this album?

Suga: There are so many things that inspire us. For me, it’s people around me. And for RM, it can be books he reads. In general, what fans talk about and think about become a very important source of inspiration to us, because we want to write something that’s real to people, especially those who listen to BTS’ music.

During your live stream on Monday, Rap Monster said that his favorite song is "Ocean," but that song wasn't released with the album. What can you tease about when the song will drop, and what it sounds like?

Rap Monster: It’s one of two hidden tracks you can listen to only on the physical album. "Ocean" has a lot of things I thought about since my debut in BTS four years ago. I have lived through many different dreams, worries and emotions in past years and I wanted to share those moments in the song. Sound-wise, there’s guitar and synth and the song is over five minutes, which is quite long. I hope people like it as one of the surprises I’ve prepared.

You changed up your hair color since we last saw you -- who decides when it's time to change your look?

Jimin and J-Hope: The hair color decision is based on the concept of the new album and the timing is discussed with the whole production timeline. Each member’s opinion counts, so our stylists and creative team propose optional colors for us to choose from. But at the end of the day, they’re professionals and they know what they’re doing and in most cases, the proposed colors turn out to be the best for each member. (those professionals are lying to you)

This new album marks a new chapter in your careers after School, The Most Beautiful Moment in Life and Wings. What do you want fans to know about this new era of BTS?

Rap Monster: We tried many new things for this album and I’d like to label it as "innovative," if I may. There will be new styled songs, new video, and many new things from now on. We want to evolve as artists and develop what we have within ourselves. If we ever slow down or even fail for our trials, it’s OK and we’ll be and stay as BTS. In addition, I’d like people to love themselves and think about what true love is while listening to the new album, because real love calls for courage to appreciate myself as is.

What do each of you love about yourselves?

Jin: I love my face and how it looks, which I appreciate very much.

Jimin: I love my attitude towards work and tendency for perfection.

V: My newly discovered talent to shoot great photos.

You're wrapping up your tour this December. When will you be back performing in the U.S.?

Rap Monster: We do have plans for a world tour in 2018 so we will definitely go back to the U.S. soon and meet our fans as much as we can. If there’s any special opportunity for us any time soon, we’ll make sure to share it with you first.

BTS’s “DNA” Becomes Fastest K-Pop Group MV To Reach 30 Million Views

K-pop boy group BTS continues to break records with their newest title track, “DNA,” by becoming the fastest K-pop group to reach 30 million views on YouTube for their music video. This was achieved in less than 46 hours at approximately 3:40 p.m. KST on September 20.

The record was previously held by BLACKPINK for their song “As If It’s Your Last,” which reached 30 million views in about four days and 11 hours.

Transcript for hidden track Skit: Hesitation & Fear

BTS HIDDEN SKIT Hesitation & Fear pic.twitter.com/xPmohcKWTA

— jess (@rosoidae) September 20, 2017

Source: ET Online, bangtansubs, Soompi, BTS_ARMY_I, rosoidae, Bangtan Subs, JTBC Entertainment

Everything written in italics is my own.
Don't forget the COMEBACK SHOW tomorrow.
We love charity kings.

Edit: Added the Beat1 interview with Namjoon and the transcript for Hesitation & Fear.

Edit2: Added their reaction to DNA and the preview for Let's Eat Dinner Together with Jin and Jungkook bc I didn't want to make another post.

Comments

[lemonadetea.livejournal.com]

Does Jin have a pet bird???? 😮😮

"Personally, I think Jungkook and Jimin really pulled it off nicely"
Lol hobi giving credit exactly where credit is due and nowhere else.

"I’m happy to work with artists who have the right voice and taste"
Suga...I can't tell if this is saying something about cs or not, and if it is, which direction it's going.

Jin and his face again. Sometimes I worry that's the only thing he likes about himself. :(

[ms-minniemaus.livejournal.com]

Idk if Billboard meant to roast TCS with that title article in your notes OP, but lmao, NO FUCKING LIES DETECTED

So, another tour coming soon and idk if I should start praying for a Europe concert.

That interview is quite nice and glad to see Kookie saying something else besides Bieber, it's a progress lmao

And my god 30mil views already? People are on fire streaming. I admit, I'm streaming from time to time too but I guess I'm not thaaat dedicated hihi

[lemonadetea.livejournal.com]

Ohhh that would explain why it appears to have ears!

[mc1a.livejournal.com]

Ah thank you! Completely forgot about this one. Will add it to the post.

<3

[mc1a.livejournal.com]

We all know that's exactly what happened.

[ms-minniemaus.livejournal.com]

Someone must've seen your titles on omona

[ms-minniemaus.livejournal.com]

Wow the skit..LMAO JIMIN HOW TO THINK GRAMMY WAS AN ARTIST that kid.

Real talk now, the last part especially left me speechless, I'm glad I got to read that from them. It must be hard to live in the spotlight and worry that if they show any sign of being humans with flaws may cause them to go down. Wouldn't mind seeing their bad sides, too bc I'm aware they are 100% not perfect but at the same time I think 90% of the fans are not ready to have their illusions shattered and realize not everything is what it seems and that would mean a huge drop in popularity. Not saying they're faking it like they mentioned bc I think they did a pretty good job at balancing their real personas with how an idol should be but idk maybe I want to know them as ordinary people BTS not idol BTS. I'm not making any sense lol bye

[jyusou.livejournal.com]

thank you for the post op, you're doing great work. that note for jimin and hoseok's answer about styling, where is the lie.
and lmao the billboard article, i'm living for this shade.

We tried many new things for this album and I’d like to label it as "innovative," if I may.
i nearly let out the hugest snort he's such a leo lol (i follow the sidereal chart btw, i know in the tropical one he's a virgo). i see he hasn't lost the douchey confidence and the foot-in-mouth syndrome, which he's learned to manage better even tho it still slips out from time to time.

What do each of you love about yourselves?
Jin: I love my face and how it looks, which I appreciate very much.
Jimin: I love my attitude towards work and tendency for perfection.
V: My newly discovered talent to shoot great photos.
one of these is an exaggeration and i think we all know which one it is. i'm kidding, tae's photos are actually not bad at all, compared to the photos some of my friends take and how many friends i've had to teach basic photo composition to in the past. also, jin needs to chill a bit with his image management, that answer was way too predictable.

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

i was really struck by the translation of skit: hesitation and fear. they just keep going up - i would also be afraid to crash at some point. and i also like that in the end they kind of touched upon wanting to be good people and presenting a good image and the lines between real and fake in that presentation.

[jyusou.livejournal.com]

idk if that's what he really thinks about himself but what it does show is that he's overly confident and overly estimating the "innovation" of the music that's put out here like i nearly cackled. man if he was a coworker where i work he'd be roasted to hell and back lolol.

as for bringing them back down to earth, i don't think you'll have to do it for the whole group...just rapmon and tae is enough.

[izumichan31.livejournal.com]

I don't get what's so bad about what he said like its only part of one quote where literally continues to say that they want to keep evolving and developing as artist. And that its fine if they fail to make the mark. He obviously knows that not everything they do is going to be great or even good.

Her is not playing around

[mc1a.livejournal.com]

👑[Data] BTS 'LOVE YOURSELF 承 HER' surpassed 620,000 copies on Hanteo.

— KAS (@kpopalbumsales) September 20, 2017 (https://twitter.com/kpopalbumsales/status/910432608567169024)

[jyusou.livejournal.com]

that's not my point tho. what turned me off was him saying that what they did on this album was "innovative". it's eyeroll-inducing to say the least, especially when the stylistics of the music itself is hardly innovative. rapmon has the tendency to slip and say things in a way that makes him come off as douchey and overly confident/important. this case is no different. i don't think he's a bad person; i actually find him well-intentioned and more honest with himself than a lot of people. it's just that this trait of his causes me to have an immediate negative reaction lol.

[lemonadetea.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't go as far as wishing bad reviews on them, but I might've suffered a little bit of an eyeroll at "innovative." I've been hoping connotations got lost in translation.

I like him and all, but that's the sort of conceit I've come to expect when people hype up a guy's smarts. It's had me wary about him from the start.

[izumichan31.livejournal.com]

But isn't it a matter of perspective though? Because with all that context, he could very well just mean 'innovative' in terms if BTS and their music compared to what they've previously done not everyone else.

The defintion of innovate is make changes in something established, especially by introducing new methods, ideas, or products... Which for them is what they did...

[jyusou.livejournal.com]

i do think rapmon has the passion, the musical skills (production, composition, writing etc.), and to some extent a vision for the group which would lend him clout in his leadership position. if there's anyone else who i think has equal credibility in all three areas that could comment on the group's direction, it would be yoongi.

and while i honestly don't know what each member feels about his leadership/where he thinks the group should head, i do think think that if we had the chance to pry, chances are we'd see a mixed bag. like, i could see yoongi or hoseok having more of an opinion/say about where they're headed, in comparison to jeongguk or jimin who i see as having a more "operational" mindset, and not really a vision that could be used to bounce ideas as to where they should head going forward.

[lemonadetea.livejournal.com]

I don't even know how much it's an idol thing and not just a cisguy thing, but I obviously have major hangups about men so I'm gonna just not go any farther there.

He's just such a cutie! He gets so enthusiastic about things and I want to squish him. And Jimin likes him, so he can't be a bad guy, right? >.< So I end up liking him, but then he says this stuff.

But also i don't know how much he wants Western success? Iirc he said in some bbma-period interview that BTS wants to focus on Korea.

[jyusou.livejournal.com]

was this what you understood when you first read that phrase? because i can tell you right off the bat that that's not how i understood it. innovation is a very loaded word and it is not a word i would use to describe what's been done here, especially if we're talking in the context of the end product, which is what i understood from reading the article. now, if they were talking about the technical aspect during production/recording then okay, i'd give them some leeway. but from what i read it doesn't seem like it, so no.

[izumichan31.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that's how I understood it reading that whole section and considering the question was asking about this album/era compared to their previous ones..

RE: Comeback Show Tomorrow

[mc1a.livejournal.com]

From the fan accounts I'm seeing, there's a red alert for Jimin and Taehyung stans.

Let me just say, it was nice meeting you all.

[otraera.livejournal.com]

The Ebro interview was better than what I expected


Also they're gonna be in ny soon??

Re: Her is not playing around

[donaldjdrumpf.livejournal.com]

Amazing! Breaks the one week sales record in just TWO days lollllll. Daesangs here we come!

[garnetstar38.livejournal.com]

OMG, I've had to bite my tongue on sooo many posts this BTS era.

That skit was something else. Glad they included it. I thought it seemed so genuine and unguarded but they were being tapped! Do they just go into these things just shooting the shit or is there structure. Was this a wire tap? Thanks Obama.

The Beats 1 interview was so short. LOL at Rap Monster trying to explain where his name came from. I screamed. He handeled that pretty well all things considered.

[gdithero.livejournal.com]

What do each of you love about yourselves?

Jin: I love my face and how it looks, which I appreciate very much.

#confidencegoals

[happydirections.livejournal.com]

namjoon is like the guy who is stuck with the IM name he made back when he was like 12 lmao. we all know he's embarassed by the name rap monster. he has been saying it for well over a year now that he'd rather be reffered to as RM.