The Advent of BE
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and various other issues the world is currently facing, seven talented and extremely passionate Korean male artists explored aspects of their music and creativity in the form of a self-produced album. The knowledge that it was to be a self-produced album in itself was enough to make the headlines in both Korean and international music news outlets—as was expected from an album by BTS. "The pandemic unexpectedly put a lot of our original plans to a halt. However, it provided us an opportunity to step back and focus on ourselves as well as our music. We reflected the emotions that we felt during this unprecedented period into this album. We were also able to take a step further by taking roles in overall production, such as concept development, composition, and visual design," Jimin shared in a recent interview with Rolling Stone India.
The hype that BE has received so far from both veteran and new ARMYs around the globe alike has been unlike any BTS album before it. BTS took the reins of BE’s production and creation, making the release more personal both for ARMY and for themselves. The #BEisComing hashtag trended on Twitter, where people shared their excitement through a huge number of tweets. Despite this album being released during the most stressful year, ARMY is bringing their A-game and setting up comeback goals that are grander than ever. The world knew that BE is going to be a huge debut—but just how huge? People’s predictions were more extravagant this time, but with BTS, nothing is impossible.
How High Will BE Fly?
Even before the announcement of BE, ARMY has been talking about surpassing records and achievements that BTS has previously attained during Map of the Soul: 7 and “Dynamite.” Posters and videos of comeback goals have been spread all throughout Twitter. ARMYs even created carrds dedicated to the BE comeback with the purpose of guiding fellow ARMY in achieving and surpassing these goals.
ARMY is aiming for 7 million pre-orders, a million pre-orders for every member, and for their seventh anniversary. There have been massive events this year that have pulled a lot of new ARMYs into the fandom, such as the GRAMMY awards, Class of 2020, “Dynamite” release, and Jimmy Fallon’s BTS Week among others. There has been a huge growth in stream numbers, Twitter likes, and social media followers. This growth shows that making 7 million pre-orders is possible. Map of the Soul: 7 had 4 million pre-orders, so the target for BE is almost double that amount.
Since “Dynamite” was on the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two consecutive weeks, people speculated that “Life Goes On” from BE will land on the top of this chart once again. People also predicted that BE will have a massive sales week. Map of the Soul: 7 debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with nearly 350,000 pure purchases, and given the growth that was previously discussed, BE could top that. When it comes to music video views, the goal is the same as “Dynamite’s,” which was 100 million views in the first 24 hours. Although the goal wasn’t reached, ARMY still did a good job with 67.9 million views in the first 24 hours.
You Never Walk Alone
Comeback week is a busy week for ARMY. Ordering copies of the album here, streaming on different platforms there—it is ARMY’s way of pouring all our love for BTS and showing our appreciation for the boys and their music. ARMY have different ways of showing our support to BTS. There are ARMYs who stream 24/7 on different devices during the first day of the release. Numerous streaming reminders are being shared online. Some even sacrifice their sleep and other duties just to stream non-stop. Some ARMYs, on the other hand, cannot afford to dedicate their time to streaming for a long time; hence, it can make them feel burdened by these things that they cannot do for BTS because of their personal lives. Yet, they still dedicate some of their time to streaming.
Here’s a gentle reminder from us, here at Borasaek Vision Magazine: You never walk alone. Streaming non-stop is great. Streaming at your most convenient time is also great. Buying a physical copy of the album is amazing, and solely listening to digital platforms is also a commendable job. All efforts made to reach the high goals ARMY have set for BE will make a difference. The way you want to help achieve the comeback goals is completely up to you. ARMY is a global fandom, and different ARMYs from various parts of the globe work alongside you in an attempt to surpass the goals set. No matter how big or small your contribution is, as long as you did your best, then BTS will appreciate your efforts.
Life Goes On
In a way, BE acknowledges that even if ARMY doesn’t achieve the comeback goals or BTS doesn’t win all the awards, life still goes on. ARMY will work hand-in-hand to achieve the comeback goals, but we shouldn’t beat ourselves up too hard if we don’t reach it. The most important thing is how we should enjoy the hard work that BTS has poured into this self-produced album. With BE, BTS gave their all into making this album special for everyone. It will bring a sense of comfort to people who need it right now, as well as a reminder that BTS and ARMY will come together again soon. As Big Hit stated, BE contains the most "BTS-esque" music yet, and that "even in the face of this new normality, our life goes on".
This comeback is enormous; we know that. But that’s not the only thing that’s huge—the ARMY fandom and our love for BTS are too. Give all that you can give, and we’ll surely achieve, or even surpass, our comeback goals.
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 Euni
Edited by Vera
Checked by Aury
Comments