For the past two years, I’ve been battling a constant tug of war with my scumbag brain, which was trying to convince me to finally plunge into the realm of Hallyu, particularly K-pop. I held on for as long as I could, until one drunken night, when a die-hard ARMY friend took over the remote control and started playing BTS videos. One music video led to another… and another… until we ended up playing a full BTS concert in full 4K glory. All eyes were stuck on the screen while we nursed bottle after bottle of room temp beer.

I was impressed. As I watched the crowd swoon over these seven K-pop demigods while waving their purple-colored light sticks in unison, I arrived at a conclusion: BTS is this generation’s BEATLEMANIA.

Allow me to reiterate: I’m not an ARMY. Never was. If anything, I consider myself as a clueless plebeian who knows little to none about their discography—let alone their names. Outside BUTTER and DYNAMITE, I couldn’t name one more song to save my life. But I know enough to defend my assertion– one that can potentially put me to the cross among the elder Titos that I hang out with.

Their Music Is Relatable

Watching the first 2 episodes of their Disney+ docu-series, Monuments, I noticed songs serve as mirror images of their individual struggles, victories, and other life experiences, to which their legion of fans all over the world can relate.

I’m no Lester Bangs, and I intend to pass neither judgment nor high praise, or to analyze every bit and layer of every song. Still, who could deny BTS’ effortless ability to produce a range of dopamine-inducing hooks that can yank my head to bop on command. 

Take Butter, for instance. A seemingly formulaic pop song; a subtle homage to Queen’s Another One Bites The Dust. It’s straightforward. No overproduction here, no unnecessary wall of sound. And yet, it possesses an inherent character that can bring everyone up to their feet. That’s music, period.

But how can we appreciate a song if you don’t know the words? I, myself, can’t explain this either. But the moment the drums start to catch, a jolt of electricity runs through my body. I dance, biting my lips, even. It’s primal; the very embodiment of a universal language; the rhythm that our tribal ancestors followed before the Tower of Babel fell. Heck, I never knew what “Jai guru deva, om” means. Yet, it was one of my favorite lyrics in Across The Universe. Forget about learning the words. Just sit back, enjoy, and let the song serve its purpose. As RM puts it, “The important thing is that music truly transcends languages, nationalities, and races.” 

 They’re Brave Enough To Innovate

I remember this awesome quote from the movie, Almost Famous, where Jimmy Fallon’s Dennis Hope presents the best elevator pitch to the band, Stillwater. “I didn’t invent the rainy day, man. I just own the best umbrella.” In the case of the BangTan Boys, the umbrella in question happens to be their so-called fan-tailored innovations.

The same friend who introduced BTS to me that evening showed the group her entire collection of merch. Her most prized possession: The ARMY bomb—the official BTS light stick that when paired via the BTS official app, becomes integrated to the group’s lighting console during concerts. They’ve gone through lengths to maintain their relevance, ranging from films to partnership with brands. Not very different from the Beatles and their Apple Corps. 

Learning about their military enlistment, it’s impressive how the group has used its ongoing hiatus as leverage for their personal projects. Being in a band myself, I can only imagine how difficult it is to sustain relevance through an extended absence. But not them. Instead of stopping, they ventured out to explore other creative endeavors that further helped the expansion and visibility of the group.

They know their SEI-KATSU-SHA

At first, I really couldn’t seem to rationalize BTS’ appeal. Beyond the looks, the dance moves, and a slew of chart-busting songs, I find it fascinating how financially and emotionally invested my friends, colleagues, cousins, and even titas are when it comes to being an ARMY. One of my cousins gave me a simple answer. “Because once you go down the purple rabbit hole, there’s no turning back.”

BTS’ success is rooted deeply from knowing their SEI-KATSU-SHA by heart. They know how to listen and communicate with their fans. Above all, they know what their fans want. They find a way to connect with them as whole human beings—a way to reflect their many aspects, their many stories, the many rhythms to which the human heart beats. In return, this literal army immerses even further into their communal fandom, standing in the frontline to defend their beloved idols with utmost earnestness.

I get it. Apples from oranges. The Beatles are the Beatles, and BTS is BTS. But with one record-breaking milestone after another, it’s hard to deny the pattern of greatness that runs parallel to the Fab Four’s, decades ago. Someone has to say it: We are in the midst of our generation’s Beatlemania.

​​Pocks Raymundo is a copywriter, comic book writer, and resident food guy/Sinigang connoisseur at IXM. As a budding musician, he’s the drummer of choice by bands who don’t have much of a choice. His lifelong dream is to complete and see his spec screenplays materialize on the big screen.