제 11 호 BTS Effectiveness: Their Efforts and Performance
Kicker: WORLD (CULTURE)
BTS Effectiveness: Their Efforts and Performance
Eun-Jae Choi, Reporter
Now the name BTS i sfamiliar to people. The reason why they became popular was due to the appropriate timing of the new media era like YouTube. They were able to become world stars without having to directly enter the U.S. Also, the lyrics of BTS's songs, which contain a lot of colorful performances and philosophical social messages, became popular because they were a part that many teenagers could relate to. In the meantime, the song "DNA" achieved the result of Korea's first Billboard No. 1 ranking, showing that it is growing more and more. This popularity of BTS has generated an economic impact of 1.7 trillion won and an annual average production inducement of 4.14 trillion won. In fact, according to the '2021 Global Hallyu Trend', BTS's influence was overwhelmingly among Hallyu contents and ranked No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100 with “Butter”for 10 consecutive* weeks, proving its unique influence in the world. Furthermore, by objectively investigating what BTS might have other than economic effects, we will be able to better understand the culture that represents our country and find new directions.
< BTS Members Photo>
*consecutive : following one after another in a contious series
Economic Effects of BTS
If you look at the economic value of BTS, you can see that it is very powerful. The Culture Industry Research Center of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute analyzed the economic effects of the song "Dynamite" released last year by combining the sales volume of BTS's Big Hit Entertainment, Korea Bank's input and output, Korea Customs Service's export trade statistics, and Google trend search volume*. According to the results, Big Hit Entertainment is estimated to have earned 245.7 billion won in direct income. As a result, the increase in exports of related consumer goods such as cosmetics, food and clothing was estimated at 371.7 billion won. These results show that when BTS awareness increases, related consumer goods also increase at a certain rate. Furthermore, according to the industrial-related effects of direct sales and increased exports of consumer goods, the production-inducing effect is estimated to be 1.23 trillion won, the value-added effect is 480.1 billion won, and the employment-inducing effect is estimated to be 7,928 people. However, the impact of BTS is greater than we think, considering that COVID-19 has limited overseas movement and the lack of offline concerts has excluded the effects of attracting foreign tourists.
*Volume : the amount of it that there is
Promotes Korean Culture
BTS is taking the lead in the globalization of various aspects of Korean culture, gaining huge popularity. Among the BTS members, Jimin increased his interest in Korean culture by painting Hong Gil-dong and traditional uniforms through collaboration with McDonald's, and even sold official T-shirts, drawing great attention from Korean and foreign fans. In addition, amid a lot of controversy over kimchi, he tried to make kimchi with the members on his own entertainment show "Run BTS" to introduce food and explain how to eat it, so that ARMY fans around the world could be aware of Kimchi as a traditional Korean food.
<picture drawn by Jimin's & BTS Making Kimchi>
In addition, BTS's favorite foods, tteokbokki and buldak-bokkeum-myeon, have already become a hot topic among fans around the world, resulting in an increase in tteokbokki sales. Korea's rice-processed food exports surpassed $100 million for the first time, and Samyang Foods, which sells fire noodles, also has a significant impact on the national economy, with sales reaching a record high of 648.5 billion won last year.
< An article about Korean food that became popular thanks to Jimin>
In addition to the fan dance performance presented at the 2018 Melon Music Awards, it seems that it has played a role in promoting constant Korean culture by introducing the unique characteristics of Hangeul through its own song "Christmas Love." As such, one can once again feel the effect of BTS, which has been involved in preserving and globalizing Korean culture in life which has often been neglected or misrepresented.
< BTS's Korean traditional dance at the 2018 Melon Music Awards>
Art Overcoming the Corona Pandemic
One of the reasons why BTS has become so popular around the world is the message of the songs. So far, BTS has made its name known by conveying comfort and emotion to many fans by incorporating social messages or experiences into their lyrics. In the meantime, they delivered a message of hope through the song "Dynamite" during a difficult time due to the coronavirus, which has become the most controversial issue. As a result, the music video recorded 1.2 billion views and achieved the longest chart-in record as a Korean groupin the Billboard 32 weeks. Also, the lyrics reflect American culture by showing the legendary NBA basketball star's name "LeBron" and the homage to Michael Jackson’s"Off the Wall" and "Break of Dawn." Their melodies were also able to make music aimed at foreign fans using disco pop melodies, which were popular in the U.S.
< BTS Song Dynamite>
This is not the only message to overseas fans. The new song "Permission to Dance" also contains a positive message that people around the world who are frustrated by the coronavirus situation do not need to be allowed to dance like the title of the song even if it is hard. Plus, changing the alphabetical arrangement of the actual title "Permission to Dance" can show the meaning of a hidden title that becomes “Stories on Pandemic”. In addition, the choreography using international sign language has received favorable reviews worldwide. It expresses movements that mean 'pleasure', 'dance', and 'peace' through sign language. In fact, many videos of hearing impaired people who follow it cheerfully on social media were uploaded, and there were responses that BTS had a good influence on society, making it a challenge to clearly experience the effects of BTS.
<The sign language scene in the music video of "permission to dance">
Overseas Reaction and Their Position
Among the reactions abroad, the Butter Association of America thanked BTS and it was making the rounds on the Internet. The U.S. Billboard said, "Allan Vierga, the communications manager of the American Butter Association, is very happy that K-pop superstar BTS is spreading his love with the number one hit song 'Butter'." It is a reference to the fact that "Butter," which was released on May 21, has become world-famous, ranking No. 1 on Billboard for seven consecutive weeks. According to the American Butter Association, butter consumption in the U.S. has been increasing little by little over the past decade as the U.S. real BTS announced "Butter," and per capita butter consumption has recently reached the highest level since the 1960s. Therefore, BTS has contributed to driving butter sales and consumption growth, and it is expected to help expand exports as the U.S. butter industry depends on exports in the future, the Association said.
< BTS Song Butter>
In Korea, the effectiveness of BTS can be felt through the fact that it is a special envoy appointment team for the president. Cheong Wa Dae said it has appointed BTS as a special presidential envoy* for future generations and cultures in order to lead global agendas for future generations, including sustainable growth, and expand diplomatic power to meet the nation's elevated status in the international community. At the 75th U.N. General Assembly and other major international conferences in September, BTS said it will also attend various activities to promote international cooperation in solving global challenges such as improving the environment, poverty and inequality and respect for diversity. As such, this appointment as national ambassadors is also part of BTS's power and public diplomacy.
< Korean president, Moon Jae-in and Bangtan Boys are taken together>
*envoy : someone who is sent as a representative from one government
BTS's No. 1 Billboard in the U.S. and K-pop's craze are not just fandom phenomena but also have created industrial effects and national brand values. It is also responsible for removing many barriers by providing social messages and positive influences. As a result of examining Korea's economic effects, BTS has impressed fans in many ways besides economic aspects, and there are growing responses that it should become one of the representative areas of Korea in the pop music industry. As such, BTS is another form of culture that represents Korea's development in line with the global era.
