*In a world filled with dreams and melodies, a group of seven stars aligned to form BTS. Their journey from humble beginnings to becoming the biggest K-pop idols in the world is a testament to the power of dreams, passion, and the unwavering support of their dedicated fanbase, the **Army*-pop, short for Korean popular music, is a form of popular music originating in South Korea as part of South Korean culture. It includes styles and genres from around the world, such as pop, hip hop.

In 2018, K-pop experienced significant growth and became a "power player", marking a 17.9% increase in revenue growth. As of 2019, Korean popular music is ranked at number six among the top ten music markets worldwide according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry's "Global Music Report 2019", with BTS and Blackpink cited as artists leading the market growth.[11] In 2020, K-pop experienced a record-breaking year when it experienced a 44.8% growth and positioned itself as the fastest-growing major market of the year.

BTS ARMY is known as one of the biggest fandoms in the world. However, there might be confusion among many as to exactly how one can join the ever-growing fan base.

The meaning of ARMY holds a special place in the hearts of both fans of BTS and BTS themselves. Getting into the fandom might not be as hard as one thinks it is.

The name "BTS" originally stood for Bulletproof Boy scouts (translated from Korean). The acronym's meaning has been changed to stand for "Beyond the Scene," as they wanted to move on from the original image they portrayed and expand to broader horizons.

"ARMY," or "A.R.M.Y.," is the name given to BTS fans. It is an acronym that stands for "Adorable Representative M.C. for Youth." The fandom was officially established on July 9, 2013, which is considered ARMY Day. This happened around a month after BTS' official debut on June 12, 2013.

Every year, ARMY Day is celebrated by BTS fans all over the world.

With the size of ARMY going day by day, the average BTS-listener might be confused on how to induct themselves into the fandom officially.

Speaking more casually, there are no "requirements" needed to join the BTS ARMY. Anyone can call themselves a member of ARMY so long as they enjoy BTS, regardless of whether or not they've purchased every album or watched every video of theirs.

However, there is an official paid fan club that one can opt for to receive extra BTS goodies and discounts. This is called the ARMY Membership, which was previously available on their Daum fan café. The service is now handled by Wevers, a platform under HYBE Corporation, BTS' parent company.

Under Big Hit Entertainment, BTS made their debut in 2013 with the single album “2 Cool 4 Skool,” and since then, they have achieved unprecedented success both in their home country and on the global stage. The group’s albums, such as “Wings,” “Love Yourself: Tear,” and “Map of the Soul: 7,” have broken records, earning them widespread recognition and prestigious awards.

 Notably, BTS made history as the first Korean ensemble to receive a Gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and to top the Billboard 200 chart with “Love Yourself: Tear.”

Their unparalleled achievements also include becoming the fastest act since the Beatles to have four US number-one albums and securing the top spots on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard Global 200 with their hits like “Dynamite,” “Savage Love,” “Life Goes On,” “Butter,” and “Permission to Dance.”

We start by introducing the members of BTS, each unique with their own talents and personalities. As their paths cross, the chemistry between them ignites, paving the way for their musical success. We also showcase glimpses of early interactions with their fans, who saw their potential and became captivated by their music.

frontman RM (whose real name is Kim Nam Joon), Jungkook (Jeon Jung Kook), V (Kim Tae Hyung), Suga (Min Yoon Gi), Jin (Kim Seok Jin), Jimin (Park Ji Min) and J-Hope (Jung Ho Seok).

Introduction RM, formerly Rap Monster (랩몬스터), is a South Korean rapper, songwriter, and and music producer under Big Hit Entertainment. RM is the main rapper and leader of the worldwide sensation boy group BTS. RM was born on September 12, 1994 with the name Kim Nam-Joon

RM released his first solo mixtape, RM, in 2015, followed by his second mixtape, Mono, in 2018. The latter became the highest-charting album by a Korean soloist in the United States in history when it peaked at number 26 on the Billboard 200. RM made his official solo debut in 2022 with the release of his studio album Indigo, which featured contributions from Erykah Badu and Anderson .Paak. The album peaked at number three on the Billboard 200, becoming the highest-charting album by a Korean soloist of all-time.[A] He has also collaborated with artists such as Wale, Younha, Warren G, Gaeko, Krizz Kaliko, MFBTY, Fall Out Boy, Primary, and Lil Nas X.

Kim Seok-Jin (Korean: 김석진; born December 4, 1992), known professionally as Jin (진), is a South Korean singer, songwriter.

Jin has co-written and released three solo tracks with BTS: "Awake" in 2016, "Epiphany" in 2018, and "Moon" in 2020, all of which have charted on South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart. In 2019, Jin released his first independent song, the digital track "Tonight". He made his official debut as a solo artist in October 2022, with the release of the single "The Astronaut".

Apart from singing, Jin appeared as a host on multiple South Korean music programs from 2016 to 2018. In 2018, he was awarded the fifth class Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit by the President of South Korea along with his bandmates for his contributions to Korean culture.

Working part-time for a music studio, he began his journey as a composer, performer and rapper as a member of hip-hop group D-Town in 2010. Also known by his stage names Suga and Agust D, Yoongi joined Big Hit Entertainment as a music producer for 3 years before he debuted with the other members of BTS in 2013.

Min Yoon-gi, also known by his stage names Suga and Agust D, is a South Korean rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He was born on March 9, 1993, in Daegu, South Korea 1. Suga debuted as a member of the South Korean boy band BTS in 2013 under Big Hit Entertainment 1. He has released two solo mixtapes, Agusto D in 2016 and D-2 in 2020, and his debut solo album, D-Day, in 2023 1. Suga has songwriting and production credits on over 150 songs, including Suran’s “Wine,” which peaked at number two on the Gaon Music Chart and won Best R&B at the 2017 Melon Music Awards 1. He is also a recipient of the Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit 1.

Jung Ho-seok (Korean: 정호석; born February 18, 1994), better known by his stage name J-Hope (stylized in lower case), is a South Korean rapper, singer-songwriter, dancer, and record producer.

J-Hope released his first solo mixtape, Hope World, in 2018. It was received positively by critics and peaked at number 38 on the US Billboard 200, the highest-charting album by a Korean solo artist at the time. He became the first member of BTS to enter the Billboard Hot 100 as a soloist in 2019, when his single "Chicken Noodle Soup", featuring singer Becky G, debuted at number 81. In 2022, J-Hope released his debut studio album Jack in the Box. In 2023, he released his single "On the Street" with J. Cole.

Jimin, whose real name is Park Ji-min, is a renowned South Korean singer, dancer, and songwriter, born on October 13, 1995. He is best known as a member of the global sensation K-Pop band BTS, where he serves as the main dancer and vocalist.

Jimin has released three solo tracks under BTS' name—"Lie" in 2016, "Serendipity" in 2017, and "Filter" in 2020—all of which have charted on South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart. He released his first credited solo song, the digital track "Promise", which he co-wrote, in 2018 and recorded the duet "With You" with Ha Sung-woon for the soundtrack for the TvN drama Our Blues in 2022. Jimin released his debut solo album, Face in 2023. It debuted at number one in South Korea and Japan, and number two in the United States, while its second single, "Like Crazy", debuted at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, making him the highest-charting Korean solo artist in history on the Billboard 200 and the Hot 100 at the time, and the first to debut atop the latter.[A]

Kim Taehyung, popularly known as ‘V,’ is a singer, songwriter, and dancer from South Korea. Today, he is particularly famous for being one of the main members of the popular K-pop group Bangtan Boys (simply known as BTS). V or Tae, as he is commonly called, enjoys a huge fan base within South Korea and also internationally.

Pre-debut, V was the "secret member" of BTS: fans were unaware of his existence as his agency wished to keep him a surprise. He later stated that the concept made him feel lonely and uneasy at the time as he thought it was because he might be cut from the lineup.

Outside of his projects with BTS, V appeared in the 2016 television series Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth and contributed the single "It's Definitely You" to its soundtrack. He released his first independent song, the self-composed "Scenery", in 2019. In 2023, V made his official debut as a solo artist with the release of the singles "Love Me Again" and "Rainy Days". His debut solo album Layover was released on September 8, accompanied by a third single, "Slow Dancing."

Jeon Jung-kook (born September 1, 1997) is a South Korean singer, dancer and rapper. He is also better known mononymously as Jungkook. He is known for being a member of the South Korean boy group BTS.

In 2022, Jungkook featured on American singer Charlie Puth's single "Left and Right", which peaked at number 22 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Later that year, he became the first South Korean artist to release an official song for the FIFA World Cup soundtrack with "Dreamers", which he subsequently performed at the 2022 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony. In 2023, Jungkook released his debut solo single "Seven" featuring Latto, which broke numerous chart and streaming records. It debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, the Global 200, and the Global Excl. US charts, making him the first Korean solo artist to do so, and eventually became the fastest song in history to surpass 1 billion streams on Spotify. His follow-up single "3D", featuring Jack Harlow, debuted at number five on both the Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart, making Jungkook the first South Korean solo artist to achieve two consecutive top-five entries on the latter.

In this chapter, we dive deep into BTS's journey, highlighting the challenges they faced in their early years. Despite constant setbacks, they never lost hope and continued to improve their skills. We also emphasize the ups and downs faced by ARMY, the fans who poured their hearts into supporting the boys.

Everyone has a tough time, which initially BTS boys had to go through before becoming worldwide famous.

Every successful person has a heartbreaking story to tell. How they strived, almost gave up, fought, and more? It is very encouraging to listen to such tales and get inspired from.

The famous worldwide boys from the band BTS also had their share of struggles, and it is heartbreaking to hear their story. The boys were on the verge of giving up and had almost lost hope. But they stood together, and today their fight has brought them to the worldwide fame of being one of the finest and greatest known K-pop bands across the globe.

Not every member of the band aspired to become a singer, for example, Jin auditioned because he wanted to make his mother proud; RM had a chance where he could have become a great soloist. Still, he chose the band, as well as Suga, loved music but his family always burnt all his hard work as they wanted him to focus on studies.

The band almost disbanded because they had no enough money to continue. They had no funding, so a few members had to choose between food and transportation and had to work two jobs. Behind their confident appearances, they were continually fighting with self-doubt and depression. But working together, they have achieved unattainable fame. Here is a short clip on the heartbreaking journey of the BTS boys and their struggle.

When the group handed out free concert tickets just to promote Bangtan

**Kim Taehyung once said\,**1- “You know you really love someone, when you don’t hate them for breaking your heart.” – Kim Taehyung

“Purple is the last color of the rainbow. Purple means I will trust and love you for a long time.” –Kim Taehyung

“You can’t just come “Forget what hurt you but never forget what it taught you” –Kim Taehyung

“You can’t just come into someone’s life, make them feel special, and then leave”–Kim Taehyung

“Hard work will never betray you” –Kim Taehyung

“Don’t be trapped in someone else’s dream.” –Kim Taehyung

Namjoon once said, "If you want to love others, I think you should love yourself first.”

“Happiness is not something that you have to achieve. You can still feel happy during the process of achieving something.” - RM

“I think that there’s no need to live your life based on the standards of others.” - RM

“Life is just like fireworks. It's beautiful but it fades away quickly.” - RM

“Popularity is a bubble. It’s a mountain: you can go up really hard but walk down really fast.” -RM

**J Hope once said **

1- “Failure is the mother of success mother. I learned from that passion and sincerity.” – J Hope

2- “You never know the value of what you have until you lose it.” – J Hope

3- “Let’s not push off the things we need to do today for tomorrow” – J Hope

4- “You can’t do this to me. All the things you said are a mask, it hides the truth and rips me apart” – J Hope

5- “A warm smile is the universal language of kindness.”– J Hope