Bumping into BTS
The first bilingual book about BTS and K-Pop
Written in both English and Korean
“In London, on the periphery of fandom, in the midst of the K-pop industry! A story we wanted to tell you about BTS and ourselves.”
Three symbols
“Bumping into BTS” is designed with an interest in three cultural symbols: K-Pop, BTS, and BTS's global fandom ARMY (Adorable Representative MC for Youth). However, what we have chosen to write about here is not the symbols in themselves, but the everyday activities surrounding them.
Three authors
All three authors in this book read cultural studies in their 20s, yet none of them offer here any grandiose theories, or try to subject these symbols to detailed analysis. Instead, what is offered is a collection of private stories and experiences, taken respectively from an editor who happened to fall in love with BTS; a part-time lecturer who happened to teach British students about K-Pop and BTS; and a Korean TV producer who fell into this area of interest purely because she used to work with BTS a long time ago.
These stories may not be what appeals most to non-BTS fans, but if you are okay with that, please join the Bumping into BTS now!
“In many regards, I consider BTS a gift for me. That is because their music and activities have offered me consolation during times of hardship, as when I was anxious about finding a job. Wanting to return the favour in some way, I clicked ‘like’ on almost every single video clip of BTS on YouTube, and now I am making this book. No matter how exaggerated it may sound, I see this as an example of a cycle of gift-giving encouraged by the group’s music.”
— Excerpt From: Chapter One. “Bumping into BTS”