From Stage to Soul: BTS’s Arirang Album Through A Fan’s Eyes

I have been a part of the BTS ARMY for about eight years. I had originally joined the fandom when I was about 12-years old and I have surprisingly managed to keep up since then.

The album that came out that year was the “Love Yourself: Answer” album with the song “IDOL” as the title track. This was the first album that I fully participated in helping stream.

When I heard the news that BTS was going to enlist in the South Korean army in Dec. 2022, I cried. It felt like such a long time before I would ever get to hear them ever again. People said that the group would be like how One Direction ended, never actually coming back together after a prolonged break. This was in the middle of my sophomore year.

But now, in spring of my freshman year of college, BTS has finally come out with a whole new album.  

“Arirang” is a 14-track album ranging from fast-paced music to really meditative tracks. This album was meant to make a statement to the world that they are Korean, and they won’t let people turn them into something else. Each member of BTS took part in the production of the album, including how the album is formatted.

I stayed up till almost 1 a.m., listening to the album and watching BTS explain some parts of the production of each song in a live stream.

When I first heard the title track, “SWIM”, I couldn’t help but notice that it was different than the BTS sound that I am used to. This group was known for having explosive tracks full of energy that western cultures would play repeatedly, but this track is slower and, at first, a little harder to decipher. If you compare this song to their more popular songs like “Dynamite”, “Butter”, or “Permission to Dance”, there is a strong difference.

In “Arirang”, there is a different vibe compared to what their other albums were like. This album digs deeper into their mature side by setting a darker tone.

Their last full-length albums were “BE” and “Map of the Soul: 7”. These albums were lighter and popular among western cultures. It was no surprise for me to know that they wanted to set their mature side down. This group is in their early 30s. They are learning more about who they are as people and what BTS is to them.

Overall, I enjoyed this album. It isn’t my favorite, but that doesn’t mean I hated it. All I cared about was that they were back.

I have dug into their lyrics and appreciated their lyrical genius. It took some time to see the translation of their music, but they have a lot to say about who they are, what is to come, and how much they love their fandom.

Bianca Salazar is a Hutchinson freshman studying journalism. She can be contacted on Instagram @bancasalazar_bts.

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