BTS IDOL - THE BIGGEST CLAPBACK OF THE CENTURY

Written by Aisha Ayesha

@btsanalysis on IG

@aishaayeshamusic on IG

@ayeshamusic on TWT

Disclaimer: The article below is a personal interpretation.

Original source: https://btsanalysis.wordpress.com/2018/08/25/bts-idol-the-biggest-clap-back-of-the-century/

The highly anticipated IDOL by BTS had been leaving the BTS ARMY in a frenzy for days. Now that it has been released, it is, by far, the biggest clapback of the century.

IDOL had initially been rumoured to talk about the negative traits of being a K-idol in the K-pop industry, with having to keep a certain image and hide their most human flaws. Right from the very beginning of the track, I was personally taken aback due to expectations of some good "tea" to be spilled on the long-standing toxicity of the K-pop industry and society's cookie-cutter standards of what a K-idol is supposed to be or do. To my surprise, the route BTS chose to take is quite different even though the theme still relates closely to what the Internet had anticipated.

In relation to the LOVE YOURSELF concept for their trilogy, BTS decided to take on the theme of (musical) Identity to address past criticism that was thrown at them, ironically, by putting a positive spin on it.

If you are a new ARMY who is unfamiliar with BTS's past, the seven Korean septet had their fair share of criticism with being labeled "Idols”. You might be confused as to why it's seen as an insult since K-pop has been trending internationally these days. Here's why.

Apart from the fact that K-pop used to be a niche back in BTS's debut years, the criticism was mostly sprouted from the rapline's experience as underground rappers during their pre-debut years. RM and Suga used to be part of the underground rapping scene, hence, they often labelled themselves as rappers especially since BTS started out using old-school hip-hop as their base when writing their own music. In Korea, idols were viewed as mass-produced puppet performers rather than artists who produce their own art. See – this isn't necessarily a negative because not everyone aspires to be a songwriter or a producer. In fact, having to have creative input isn't even required because Korean music companies often hire professional producers/songwriters anyway.

Idols were not expected to be artists, even though a minority of fanbases craved it. Because of this, idols are often caged into boxes where their roles are seen as (talented) performers - almost making it seem like idols aren’t “real artists”. Even though Big Hit Entertainment initially intended BTS to be a hip-hop group, they ended up debuting as a K-pop group in order to capture the target audience that brings in the most money. Even so, BTS stuck to their roots with hip-hop (in their music) so they weren’t able to gather much mainstream attention from the masses other than the usual short-term hype most debut groups receive.

Despite their efforts to embrace their musical identities as rappers by bringing authentic, original raps into the “Idol game”, many locally-known K-rappers criticised them for allegedly mislabeling their group as hip-hop/hip-hop influenced, sometimes even as “real” rappers (there is a fairly big distinction between idol rappers and true rappers), in interviews. Putting on “girly” makeup (claimed by a local K-rapper) was said to be unconventional in hip-hop culture, and is rather representative of “idol” culture.

While BTS or Big Hit themselves hadn’t put out an official statement or responded to the criticism in interviews, RM took the chance to address the criticism in his music in 2015. In his three-year-old Soundcloud-released mixtape, you can clearly see his conflicted thoughts on his identity where he feels restricted by the ‘IDOL’ label.

In his cover of Drake’s Too Much, he wrote (in Korean):

“ Everyday like a machine I wake up, automatically put on makeup

That kind of life has grown familiar to me

Since when have I been so satisfied with myself?

Did I, after achieving my dream, indulge in it?

To live “comfortably”, “appropriately”, I swallowed the flames that had welled up to my throat

That’s right I’m quite disgusted with myself as well, the sharp knife has dulled

Forming the wrinkles of my twenty year old self, i was afraid of such changes

If somebody could look inside my head, they’d probably mock me

Smirking at the me who’s lost his path, I can I can hear my old friends laughin’

Hey, but I just wanted to show what I got

All I ever wanted to do was rap, you said I’m a puppet, f*ck I’m not

There’s too many of these countless, infinite thoughts in my head

Now I’ll put myself aside and wait for the endless waves of negativity ”

It’s evident how RM was strongly affected by the criticism as we see him questioning his (musical) identity almost to the point where he feels lost, not knowing what he is – an Idol, or a rapper. Several lines, “That’s right, I’m quite disgusted with myself… I was afraid of such changes… The me who lost his path” portrayed him to be almost rejecting the idea of being an Idol, and that he feels inclined to keep his identity as a rapper – because he was afraid of losing it. RM, and I’m sure the rest of BTS, had struggled with their identity, having forced to be labeled a certain way and be restricted to that one label. Did one label mean losing another? Self-worth is often associated with finding one’s identity, so loving themselves was (and probably, still is) a struggle for BTS.

BTS has finally come full circle with IDOL being the answer to their “infinite” thoughts (in regards to them questioning their own identity).

“ You can call me artist.

You can call me Idol

Or any other something you come up with

I don’t care ”

RM legendary introduction is hard slap to haters who boxed them in superfluous labels, restricting them from exploring their fullest potential. Notice how he makes use of paronomasia – “Idol” sounding like “I don’t”. Leave it to RM to drop the mic.

“ I’m proud of it, I’m free

No more irony, for I was always myself ”

With the relief of freedom from labels and ignoring them, J-Hope talks about embracing one’s self (now) without all the restriction (that labels impose).

“ There’s are ten and hundreds of myself in me

I welcome another me today

After all, all of them is me,

I just go at it rather than to sit on it,

Runnin’ man, Runnin’ man, Runnin’ man ”

Sung by Kim Taehyung, this is one of my personal favourite verses in the song. BTS puts emphasis on the fact that there is no single identity. You can have multiple identities, all of which are part of you. There is no need to box yourself into one category and feel forced to play the part. The verse almost indirectly answers RM’s earlier predicament. He discovers that he can be both an idol and an artist at the same time – both of which are part of his identity as Kim Nam Joon. Accepting another label doesn’t mean losing another part of yourself, it’s embracing different parts of yourself that all defines who you are.

BTS’s main chorus line “You can’t stop me lovin’ myself” is a catchy hook that leads into the South African-like reggae beat interweaved with zappy electronic synths which bears similarities to the Blood, Sweat & Tears era. IDOL is almost like a trip down memory lane, if you really pay close attention. The song begins with the usual BTS signature trap beats with a synthesized brass riff that reminds us of Am I Wrong from WINGS. The underlying drone-like bass also accompanies them, giving us a taste of Not Today from the YNWA era, along with the Not Today-esque dance choreography that starts at 3:10.

The vibrant over-the-top visuals throw us back to DNA as BTS sneakily makes an abundance of references to criticism by responding with highly sarcastic comebacks such as the snapchat filters, glasses, etc. With the whistle sound sample played through the verses, we’re reminded of LY: Tear’s Anpanman, and as expected, J-Hope makes an actual superhero reference to Anpanman at 1:47.

Of course, it isn’t BTS without a dash of culture. IDOL uses a range of traditional Korean instruments to create an oriental sound (representative of Korean culture) for the (music) fills. However, it becomes more noticeable during the bridge because of the pentatonic-like eight-note melodic motif, “I’m so fine/suffer where I go, sometimes I find the longest way to go around” that is conventionally used in a lot of asian folk music (but not limited to). There are also a number of Korean culture references such as the Korean lion dance, national animal representation of the tiger, Korean temple, etc.

BTS clapsback at haters with the classiest response:

“ What you keep blabbin about

I do what I do, so mind your own business

You can’t stop me loving myself ”

Instead of insulting others, they uplift themselves (and their fans) by embracing their identities through self-discovery. It is important to them that they focus on self-love/self-worth instead of worrying about what others have to say about them. BTS places emphasis on enjoyment while learning about who they are. The heavy emphatic repetition of the chorus that was intended in the music is truly a sonic representation of “living in the moment”.

Finally – other than revamping and revolutionizing K-pop on a worldwide scale, BTS challenges the K-industry by redefining what it means to be a K-idol. K-idols are insanely talented performers, but that’s NOT all they can be.

It takes a lengthy process to discover one’s self and learn to embrace who we are, but remember, labels are just labels. When it comes to finding yourself, it’s you who defines it.

Whether you love BTS or not, this topic is something everyone can relate to, and IDOL is truly a global anthem.