“BTS is coming back with an album!” - a sentence that ARMY has been deprived of for the past year is finally a reality. When at the end of the PTD On Stage concert in Las Vegas BTS announced their comeback, ARMY’s music drought finally ended. BTS last released a full-length album in February 2020. Since then, even though they had released singles and collaborations, a full-length album was long overdue. This comeback is different from the previous ones for the boys and the fandom in so many ways, and we are going to explore some of them in this piece.
Firstly, “PROOF” is the first anthology album by BTS. It captures their journey from June 13, 2013 - the day they made their debut - to the present. This three-disk album is a collection of songs from their nine-year-long discography along with three new tracks. When the video for the album release was first screened at the Allegiant Stadium in front of ARMY, the speculations were high that BTS would release content and songs that they have not chosen to do before. This included their demo versions, covers, mixes – basically music that did not make it to the albums. BIGHIT MUSIC went on to confirm the same. Now, what does this amalgamation of unreleased music along with their discography mean for BTS and ARMY?
BTS have been toiling hard since their debut to put out quality music in front of their listeners. So, it is only fair that they get to revamp their discography and present their music to those who are still unaware of them. Many people are still under the impression that BTS is just about their looks and catchy music. This album is an eye-opener with songs such as “Spring Day,” “Blood Sweat & Tears,” and “Fake Love,” among others. This album portrays BTS’ journey from boys to men, along with their music - a journey that all ARMY and the music world should get to witness.
This album, as Suga says in an interview for Spotify, is not just for their and ARMYs’ reminiscing, but also for those who have discovered BTS recently. This album will help them learn about BTS’ history. In the past two years, BTS’ popularity has risen immensely all over the world. From receiving back-to-back GRAMMY nominations to being invited by the current US President to the White House, BTS is gradually becoming a highly influential force in modern society. This is why an artist like Suga, whose music is rooted in his struggles and triumphs, wants people who are discovering BTS to know about the band’s history. Even though BTS have released their most successful singles in the past two years, as a band they stand for much more which they want to prove through “PROOF.”
BTS and ARMY have been known to share an intimate bond. Through “PROOF” BTS wants to show this to the world again. The third CD in the album contains demo versions of tracks that ARMY did not get to listen to when the original versions were released. The tracks on this CD will not be streamed on any other platforms, except for “For Youth” which would be streamed on digital platforms.
K-media has reported that BTS will return to the Korean music shows after giving them a miss for more than two years. They are expected to perform the album’s lead single “Yet to Come (The Most Beautiful Moment)” in popular shows such as Inkigayo and Music Bank. Even though “Dynamite,” “Life Goes On,” “Butter,” and “Permission to Dance” have won on these music shows, BTS has not been present in person. When the pandemic hit, these shows were stalled, and it has taken a lot of time for everything to be back to normal. BTS returning to music shows is great news for K-ARMY, as for the past two years, even though BTS had indulged in a lot of activities overseas, they have not been as active in the Korean media. Not just for K-ARMY, but for all ARMY across the globe, this is good news as we will be able to see the playful and goofy side of BTS in these shows again. On a serious note, this will re-establish BTS’ musical prowess in not just K-pop, but among those who felt BTS has been westernized in their approach in the recent past. It is exciting to see them return to their roots.
This brings us to another complaint that I have come across among my ARMY friends – “BTS only makes English songs now.” It cannot be denied that they released three massive singles in English and have been collaborating with western artists, but we often overlook “BE,” an all-Korean album, or their OSTs for K-dramas, or collaborations such as “That That” by PSY, which was produced and starred in by Suga. BTS bringing back their entire discography which is almost 95% in Korean, is a firm answer that they have not forgotten their roots and that venturing out to another language is just adding more to their rich bank of music.
Lastly, this comeback is also an emotional one as the group is celebrating its ninth anniversary on June 13th. Amidst lots of speculations that are doing the rounds on the group’s future with topics such as military enlistment, we as ARMY can only hope that BTS continues to make good music and fill the world with their messages of joy and hope. They have given us “PROOF” that they are always by our sides and the most beautiful moment is “Yet to Come.”
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Written By: Basabdatta
Edit By: Aury
Checked By: Shelley
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