“Dear ARMY, when do you feel happy in your everyday lives?” - BTS
A majority of the fandom is here to stay, not just because of BTS’s brilliant lyricism, but also because of the reflection of their own stories and their true selves through these lyrics. BTS gave millions of fans around the world a platform to reach out to and share their personal stories. It collectively made a huge percentage of people realize, for the first time, that they are not alone.
Borasaek Vision has embarked on the same journey of reminding ARMYs that they are indeed not alone. Therefore, for our second blog of this series, we bring you some beautiful ARMYs in their 20s who have gifted us with the privilege of sharing heartfelt stories of their ARMY journey.
What is your story?
The first story is by Nivedita Bhatia, who says, “From 2016, I'd been observing my younger sister squealing excitedly every time VH1 would play any BTS song. RM's powerful speech at UNICEF and J-hope's dance in ‘Chicken Noodle Soup’ were the highlights in further years, which made me an admirer, too.
But my ARMY journey began in early 2020. I was continuously facing bad news and hardships. One day, my sister was listening to ‘ON’, and the lyrics caught my attention. The sudden rush of comfort and empowerment made me dive into all of their albums, MVs, and interviews. Their exceptional talent blew my mind. Lyrics about their struggles, youth, growth, not giving up, music — inspired and motivated me. Different genres lift my different moods. Each song speaks volumes.
BTS made me happier and mentally stronger. Moreover, they are beautiful, humble, sincere, and hilarious. It truly feels like I've been gifted seven precious best friends who were there for me when I needed them the most. Their existence is a blessing. I might have been late at joining this fandom but I'll be staying forever. The love and support for them will only be soaring. And it won't be a lie to say that I squeal louder than my sister whenever a BTS song comes up.”
Secondly, we have a story from Khushboo Yadav, who writes: “I heard about BTS in 2015, maybe even heard a song or two here and there, but never really invested time to see what it was. This right here is one of my life’s biggest mistakes for sure. But I take comfort in the famous ARMY saying that they find you when you need them the most, so I am trusting the process. It was late 2019 and early 2020 when I found myself exploring the Korean music scene and that’s when I started listening to BTS. ‘Black Swan’ was the marking of my ARMY journey; I had heard a few songs before it but once I heard ‘Black Swan,’ I knew there was no going back. I had officially stepped into the BTS black hole.
I honestly didn’t think they would become such a huge part of my life, and it still gets me sometimes but I am eternally grateful that I have them and the BTS ARMY. I meet such amazing people because of them and I reconnected with so many of my old friends; it feels unreal. They are definitely one the most humble and hard-working people I have seen in my life and I think, more than loving them, I respect them a lot. Like A LOT. They don’t shy away from taking responsibility for their actions and promise to do better, they talk about their weak/ vulnerable moments with the fans, they spread the message of loving yourself and inspire their fans to do better, be better. I can’t thank them enough for being a pillar of strength in my life. Thank you, BTS for being a source of happiness for so many people and for creating such an amazing fan base. Life is definitely better with you guys in it. BTS and my fellow ARMYs, BORAHAE.”
Last but not least, here is another heart-warming anecdote by Vaishali Handique. “I was away from the Korean scene for a long period of time. A teenager heavily invested in K-pop and K-drama, somewhere everything lost its charm and I couldn't find ways to keep them with me in my newfound college life. I was one in the first crowd of people which was hit by the Korean wave, but I couldn't sustain it longer.
I lost some of my closest friends to various situations in life and at the same time, I was struggling to fit in the society I stepped into.
I heard about the name "BTS" when I was in college. I didn't pay much heed. Also, I was too inconsistent with the type of lifestyle I had, the type of people I would let into my life that, overall, I forgot about the zeal of experiencing new things in life. BTS slowly became famous worldwide. And I got irritated more and more by the amount of hype it received. Everyone around me was playing their songs, dancing to their tunes, making promises of marrying any one of them someday!!
I passed college and I changed places for my master’s degree. During that time, I came to know, accidentally, that one of my school friends was receiving unwanted and unpleasant comments on her love towards BTS! She was my long lost friend. I knew she might have been feeling lonely at that point in her life, but I was in no position to contact her, let alone help her!
So one fine day, I decided to listen to BTS and check it out as to what all this fuss was about! The song that played was "FOR YOU" and I saw the fanchant version of it actually… where BTS was performing in a concert in Tokyo! My heart felt a thump! It was so fantastical at that moment and I felt as if my friend and I were present at that concert and were singing aloud together, forgetting all the prejudices and harsh comments society gives us. I felt a connection immediately.
The next song I listened to was "Butterfly"! And I knew that if not directly, I can support my friend spiritually by sharing the love for the same music. I didn't love BTS because they are the best, I love them because they returned something back to me. I got my friend back in 2020, all because of one text where she asked me a question for the very first time in 6 years, "Vaishali, do you listen to BTS too?"
"Yes," I replied, "I am an ARMY!"
I think she was pleased by the fact that she got something in common with me after such a long time. But I know, I fell in love with BTS only because of her, so that if someday there was hope in my life to be friends with her again, I would choose BTS to do the honors!”
ARMYs – Tell Us Your Story
Liked what you read? Found something comforting and familiar? Then let us hear your story as well. You can share your stories with us through Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or our email borasaekvision@gmail.com.
We await your stories.
DISCLAIMER: We do not own any audio & visual content in this video except for the editing. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO THE RIGHTFUL OWNERS. No copyright infringement intended.
Written by: Ananya
Edited by: Esma
Checked by: Vera
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