BTS Extended Break and Past Struggles

Bangtan Sonyundan, also referred to as BTS or Bangtan boys, has become one of the worlds biggest K-pop acts, but with this comes a great amount of stress and pressure from their fans and company. Always being put in the spotlight can become overwhelming over time. Big Hit Entertainment (BTS’ current agency) recently announced that BTS is finally taking an extended break.

BTS has been working hard to work towards their goal  since their debut, this extended break is a chance for them enjoy ordinary lives as young men in their 20s. This break will allow them to enjoy themselves and spend time with their family and friends. Their break is estimated to be around two months as they have their final concert for “Love Yourself: Speak Yourself” in October. BigHit stated “That if you have a chance encounter with a member, we ask you that you show consideration for their need to rest and enjoy their private time off” (From BigHit Twitter page). BTS might be on break but they still try to update their fans as much as possible through Twitter and their new app Weverse.

BTS hasn’t always been as successful as they are now. When they debuted in 2013 they didn’t receive much attention as their company, Big Hit Entertainment wasn’t very well known and they didn’t get the opportunity to promote them as much as bigger companies could. In their early years, some of the members were criticized and called ugly and fat. This caused many of the members to become insecure and start overworking themselves to reach perfection which led to many of them becoming unhappy. However, BTS still worked hard through all this negativity and never gave up on their dream.

BTS started to gain popularity with their album “The Most Beautiful Moments in Life, Pt. 1” with their hit songs “I Need U” and “Dope”. They won their first Daesang (grand prize) in 2016 after three years of blood, sweat, and tears with their album The Most Beautiful Moments in Life: Young Forever. BTS has been working hard and releasing new content for six years and their hard work has paid off. They have been able to tour the world and have sold out large stadiums such as Wembley, Rose Bowl, and MetLife in 2019. Their album Map of the Soul: Persona sold 3,399,302 copies in the month of May and their music video for “Boy With Luv” broke the record for the most amount of YouTube views in twenty-four hours.

Their success didn’t come without sacrifice as they worked hard through the years to reach their dream. This extended break has proven to be earned by all the years of hard work they put into becoming what they are today.