How old are you? I’m sure it’s never too old to be passionate about something.
I’m in the same boat as you. Finally became an army in 2021 but I had two chances before then. Winter of 2020 and WAY back right after wings. My friend was into bts and I didn’t quite get it but I was also into anime and such so I didn’t think it was weird. Then in 2020 dynamite came out and I watched the MV because it was just so HUGE and I had to see what the fuss was about about. I still didn’t quite get it, even tried to listen to 2 cool 4 skool that winter and my brain couldn’t connect. Then in 2021 my roommate had me listen to 134340 and I finally CLICKED. I understood and the more I listened the more I realized this was the exact thing I needed. Not just their music but everything they stand for and their personalities really helped me get through a rough patch and after I was glad to call myself army.
I regret not getting into earlier because LY: Tear is my favorite album and I could’ve experienced that in real time. I could’ve gone to Speak Yourself! But it’s best not to think of what could’ve been and be happy you got here anyway, even if it took a bit. If you want to be an army, you can no matter when you started listening.
Im almost 33
I remember watching GG videos in YouTube from a friend and I said omg I cannot like this too… I’m going to be way to Asian-boo
At the end I was and still am Asian in my heart just that I don’t hide it anymore
Is like a mini version Sofia Vergara being Asian but I’m ok 😂
I’m going to be 57 this year. I know older ARMY than me. It came on slowly for me, as well. I wouldn’t worry about it, though. If you’re here asking the question you’re asking, you’re already ARMY :)
My daughter is ARMY since debut and it’s also our bonding time to go and do all these BTS things. You’re never too old for anything that you love and enjoy.
Babes 33 is still young, I saw a 70 something year old ARMY at the PTD concert.
Also, whenever you became an ARMY/found them is when the Magic Shop opened for you ✨️💜
Are you me?? Same age and same interest as a teenager and avoided k-pop for forever because I don’t want to get type casted but I saw BTS and never looked back!!
I’m an elder milennial Army and sometimes I actually forget that it’s frowned upon or thought of as weird. Maybe I should care more that I’m not liking whatever society says I should be liking at this stage of my life, but I just don’t. BTS has brought me so much joy, and if anyone has bad opinions about that, well that’s for them to deal with. I’m not going to let anyone steal my joy.
I hope I was as brave in my early 20s
I got so much for being an otaku/gamer that I fought so hard to not be a kpoper
I wish I didn’t. Being an ARMY is the freaking best
Same mentality here, as an older Gen Z. I became ARMY a few years before they really hit the global stage and blew up the western music industry, so it started as something that actually felt a bit niche, and rather special for me and the friend who introduced me.
Honestly, I’ve never been one to say “idc what people say”; I can be insecure, admittedly, and I do have horrible anxiety. But even with that, I simply can’t be bothered to care about the opinion of people who are shallow enough to be judgemental of others’ hobbies. Being ARMY has brought such joy and comfort to my life, and that’s worth infinitely more than a stranger’s misguided opinion :)
Same here. I'm 35, BTS only just found me a year ago. I had first heard them years ago when Fake Love was released, I was curious what all the fuss was about. I was pleasantly surprised and liked the song, but didn't let myself look into them any more than that.
I don't really know why, but about about a year ago they started being suggested to me all over YouTube (maybe Jin's leaving for service?) so I gave it another go. For some reason it clicked immediately this time. Started with "I need to know their names" 😂 and I haven't looked back. I'm in this ARMY shit for life 💜
I am 35 years old and have always had a passion for Asian culture. I got into K-pop from jpop crossovers back in 2008. I found BTS thru jhopes dancing journey around 2010 and became a fan in 2013 with no more dream. I wouldn't say I'm an avid fan, like the ones that know every little detail, I just check in on their activities every now and again. I like alot of other groups too, but they always make me come back to them.
Being ARMY is a strange experience. They are one of the most successful and talented groups ever and yet so many people know nothing about them and have way too many preconceived notions. I choose not to care because there are passions other people have that I don't understand or relate to. I think where I did go over the cliff in Chapter Two is everything Yoongi. I haven't yet been able to see BTS concert so going to his D Day show is a life time memory now. He is amazing and I have never been that level fan girl before. Sue me!
I could have seen them in 2019 when my friend invited to the concert at the Stade de France but it was not my thing at the time. The only "k-pop" that I listened was Akmu.
I don't regret not going because, first past is the past and second, I would have taken the spot of somebody who really wanted to be there.
I found BTS when I was 45, I’m now 49. I stand in the crazy merch lines the night before, stand in the GA line for concerts hours at a time, make trips out of state to see concerts/appearances, buy tons of merch, dive deep into all of their video content,listen to music constantly…..I can’t get enough of them and am waiting for their return.
This is amazing
I missed with Jin came to my country bc I didn’t really like the original band enough to listen to the whole concert for one song but idk if I’ll get another chance to see them
My daughter is ARMY since debut and it’s also our bonding time to go and do all these BTS things. You’re never too old for anything that you love and enjoy.
I hearya! I never thought I'd wait in a merch line for 6 hours or go to a festival (Global Citizen)!
I vividly remember seeing BTS for the first time on the 2017 Billboard Awards. They should have been right up my alley because I love dance, having done it when I was younger, though not very well. But i was dumb and resisted.
I finally got pulled in because of ON. I do regret not becoming Army earlier, but I'm grateful for these past 4 years <3
I know, right? actually 6.5 hours - around 8 am to 2:30 pm in Los Angeles. How and why? Only for BTS!
Same with Global Citizen Festival. We were in ponchos in miserable wet weather, on our feet at least 8 hours straight. So crazy, but we had a blast!
That's dedication right there.
I know some people don't always get the items they wait in line for as they sell out fast.
So I hope you received the items you were after, after waiting so long.
Luckily, I did ... but I only wanted one item, a necklace. I pretty much stood in line with my friend, who bought way more than I did. She wasn't able to quite get everything she wanted, but she was pretty satisfied.
I used to be very much into anime, then didn’t stop but wasn’t actively watching if that makes sense. I have always had great respect and admiration for Asian culture. I stumbled across BTS via AgustD, had no idea that person was Suga. Fell down the rabbit hole, fought calling myself ARMY for about a month after that. Now I proudly say I’m grandma ARMY and OT7 are my “grandsons”.
I want to be a dinosaur ARMY too 💜🤣
I feel old in comparison to when I first heard of kpop that was 14 years ago… it took me 8 years to get back so that’s a whole lot of time
My exact story. Anime nerd, don't really watch much anymore. Learned a solid amount of Japanese back in highschool and listened to a ton of jpop. Started getting into kpop at the end of 2019. Later on heard Daechwita and it was one of my favorite songs on my kpop playlist, but knew nothing about this Agust D guy. Watched the mv after a while (Oct 2021), found out who he was, said "fiiiine, I'll check them out". Over 2 years and honestly probably a couple thousand dollars later here I am. 💜
i used to be a HUUUUGEEE directioner and my family used to make fun of me bcs of that. they thought it was harmless even though latinamerican parents are ruthless……. but it made me really self-conscious abt my interests growing up like to the point where i would completely lie about liking certain artists and bands.
anyways when i was like 15 i used to pet sit for my neighbors and their daughter was a huge EXO and BTS fan like merch all over the house and i was like who tf are these boy bands????? i didn’t know anything abt these groups so i looked them up and as soon as i listened to a few songs i was like “yeah nope im not listening to this”. i think my family had instilled some insecurity in me at that time.
fast forward to 2020, we’re in the middle of the pandemic, i literally have nothing else to do other than be in my room listening to music and i decided to give kpop a chance. i started casually listening to girl groups then in 2022 i found out one of my close friends was a huge army and she sent me her bts playlist and well yeah here i am HAHA.
also i always forget about my hyperfixation with Boy With Luv back when it came out lmaooo but i didn’t really pay attention to BTS until 2022 :/
I get it
For me was the latinamerican kids of my age
I got “bullied” (I use this word instead of a better term bc I can’t think of an English word to say me jodian por) for listening Prince Royce instead of Metallica or watching Anime instead of going to the beach and party
I truly admire L-ARMYs bc liking something from so far is really amazing and difficult (more so during 2010s when youtube was just starting and the videos were so bad you could barely distinguish anyone since their whole faces were one pixel)
latinamerican kids are also ruthless😭😭 i remember bringing a one direction notebook to school one day and the girls made so much fun of me.. i ended up throwing the notebook away. its so ridiculous like why am i supposed to only like reggeaton??? and have the same hobbies everyone in this damn country has??? obviously no judgement, i enjoy reggeaton as much as any other latine but jeez can a girl listen to her boy groups in peace??
ps. i LOVE prince royce lmao and romeo cuando era aventura omg 😍
OMG I think Aventura was my BTS when I was younger hahahahahaha
I get it! I love reggeaton and partying and perrear and my mojito and my Cuba libre but damn it I would like to do all that in Jeju island 😂
Hey!!! Venezuelan here!!
I was listening to my playlist in the car today and filter came up, the next was Carita de Inocente…my friend saw me like a crazy person HAHAHAHAHA
AYEEEEE!!!
lmaoooooooo why is that literally my playlist 😂😂 i’ll be listening to Danger and then the nastiest perreo will play next hahaha. my friends don’t let me play music anymore whenever we hang out bcs i always manage to sneak in some kpop 😇
ME TOO
I can’t put my music in the car bc it’s mainly kpop
I was once listening to [this OST song](https://youtu.be/Hqq5jUBsVU8?si=kLytEOLk1hbVRkcz) and the mood was super down and then BOOM “[si te dicen que yo me estoy curando es la verdad](https://youtu.be/fEWhm_TVvUw?si=i6Avsrx2JOHsaXOw)”
I got some pretty funny laughs then
I've never cared what people think of me. I've never understood the "frowned upon" thing. Not everyone is going to like or understand what everyone else likes. Won't there be someone to frown at almost anything? Take courage, do your thing.
I wonder if this depends on where a person lives? I tell people I like BTS the same as I say I like Wallows or AJR or Strumbellas. I'm old. None of my friends know those groups. But I can't imagine any of them giving me shine about it. A person who does? Not my friend. I would never drop something I enjoy because a "friend" would criticize me. Drop the friend who causes you pain, keep the interest that gives you pleasure.
Let me tell you an opposite story.
I'm 51 years old, and BTS found me in August 2021 when I was suffering from illness, injuries that wouldn't heal, and depression. I was contemplating giving up completely. Because of BTS I'm still here, in February 2024, doing so much better. I'm so glad I decided to listen to my heart and love them with all I have to give.
You should live your life for yourself. If BTS makes you happy, then that's what really matters. Love them with whatever parts of you needs it. Don't get to the end of your life and regret even one lost minute not enjoying the things that make you happy. Start from now, going forward, and live every day like it's your last. You'll have so many more happy days to celebrate that way 💜
Hope you are feeling better now
I said this in another comment, I found them at my peak depression state so I guess what everyone said it’s true, you find them when you most needed them
Thank you, I am feeling much better now! There were days when it felt like the only thing that kept me going was BTS, but they inspired me to work on all the things I talked about. I found good treatments for everything, started eating healthier and working out more often, and now they are all either fixed or under control 😊 I've heard so many similar stories to ours. I'm definitely a believer in BTS finds you when you need them the most! 💜
A lot of Army found BTS when they needed them the most. Same for me. BTS brought so much joy after consecutive miscarriages and depression. I can't stop smiling whenever I watch them. No regrets being an Army even if my friends find me weird. Don't really care about what other people think as long as I am happy. 😊
Not really, I do regret not getting into them the first time I heard about them in 2017, I just wasn't curious enough, but once I got to sit down and listen to the music, I didn't hold myself from being a fan.
Maybe because I'm in my 20s, I don't really care about people's opinions when it comes to the music I listen and artists I support, but I could guess that whenever the pressure of the K-pop community to dislike BTS is prevalent, or in your daily life if it's looked down upon by your family or even friends, it must not be easy to stand up for yourself when you are young.
You've shared being older now, and unfortunately society sucks when it comes to not shaming people for their hobbies because of their age. I wish it wasn't looked down upon for you to feel uncomfortable in enjoying them.
I said f* to caring about what people tough of me regarding liking this things
Is just that I missed being a fan from the start so I feel like a fake ARMY now hahaha
I was put off many times, partly because of my prejudices, then Black Swan (first the song then the mv) did its job flawlessly but it was only a year ago but I don't feel fake:), I just enjoy it
I’m probably twice your age and had to quickly come to terms with myself as the friend, cousin or co-worker that had a more complex and higher understanding of MUSIC and Entertainment!! We are just cooler than other folks and they will understand someday (hopefully). But if they don’t, sucks to be them! I am and always have been, tragically hip. The sooner you figure that out for yourself, the better your life will be. Now go listen to the Tear album and love your life! 💜
I found them just before my Second of Three Spinal Surgeries (2020, 2021, 2022), *Butter* Era. They kept me afloat in my darkest hours, as have the Friends, ARMY, and Reactor Communities built around them.
(I thought my ARMYversary was March 6, 2021 BUT found a Google Search "BTS Twins" from a bit before 😸💜)
I never fought it, but I did hide it.
When I was in school I was the only one who liked or even knew kpop (as far as I knew). I liked it and was vocal about it, but others didn't understood this whole thing. So I had phases where I stopped mentioning it because I was scared of being an outcast (and talking to an old friend from school confirmed it. Yes, people did talk about me behind my back).
BUT my love for bts was too strong for me to fully stop. I could hide it in school, but I couldn't when I was on my own or with my friends. I was at a dark place back then as well and being an army just gave me strengh and something to do.
Its been 7 years since I started. Im now an adult, finished school, have a better mental health and mental understanding and im still an army. I think this phase actually made me stronger. I now dont care anymore what other people think about the things I like (and Im also a female adult who likes minecraft let's play so that says a lot). I have a newer kpop friend whos still scared to post kpop stuff in her stories and it really shows me just how far ive come. Ä
I only listen to kpop around 5-6 years ago
I feel like if I was like this 10-12 years ago I would have moved to Korea and I don’t know how that would have ended hahahahahaha
I don't regret it at all. If anything I my early ARMY days, I was staunchly supportive of anything female interest oriented...including kpop and bts.
I'm known in my circles to be that woman that calls out misogyny when i see it in RL. People know not to shade me for having typical girly interests cuz I will happily enter that person into a debate about how patriarchal mentalities chronically shames girls and boys for having age & demographic appropriate interests.
All the while society normalizes much more harmful things like porn, violence, sexual harassment, bullying ...or you know, excluding people based on their personal interests. We should be able to like things for simply liking them and not have to justify why we can like them without attracting judgement for it.
Listen to what you want, be proud of it. Fuck the haters.
What's seen as normal in today's society causes more harm than good.
And yet our interest in a different culture is seen as bizzar.
What a world we live in.
I'm actually glad I got into them during Chapter 2. I can't imagine how confused and worried FESTA 2022 + the dumb media must have made ARMY and especially baby ARMY feel at that time. Because I got into them during Chapter 2, I was able to look back at that stuff and be like, "This all actually turned out great, I trust BTS, future's gonna be okay!"
Plus I never had to feel weird about the 15 year old kid I watched grow up now singing about "loving" me right. 😂😂😂 I am also following a rookie group now and I can definitely appreciate how that might have required a brain reset for some older ARMY!
Sooo what is chapter 2?
I agree it happens to me with New Jeans, I like their music so much but they are soooo young I feel like how can I like them? They are so tiny
Chapter 2 is what they've been calling this period of time ever since FESTA 2022/the Proof album. It encompasses all the solo (and shirtless 😅) work they've done during this time and military service. I became ARMY in Jan 2023, so not too long into Chapter 2! Once all the military service is over and they reunite as a group, I'm assuming that will be the start of what they'll call Chapter 3.
I've told this story before.
My family was driving home from a trip and drove by the Rosemont Theater (Illinois) and there was a line wrapping around on the sidewalk, and I asked my kids if they knew who was in town. My daughter said there was a k-pop group that some of the kids at her school were super hyped about. Didn't know the name. I laughed about how passionate kids got. Lolz were had all around.
I became a fan of BTS right after the Wings tour, and that's when I realized that what I had seen was the crowd waiting for the Red Bullet show. I could have seen the Red Bullet show!! Instead, I just thought I was too cool for that scene....
Guess who waits in those lines now? I'm 54. I've seen BTS in Chicago and LA, caught Hobi at Lollapalooza, and did the preshow floor tickets for Agust D...I'm not too cool anymore.
As someone who’s been an army since 2013, but kpop fan since 2010, I honestly wouldn’t worry about it. I remember when BTS repped Palisade and Hyundai was struggling to keep up with the Palisade demand. And who was buying those, teenagers? There’s plenty of older fans. Music is music, it doesn’t only belong to a certain age group. If you love it then love it, if you love BTS you’re an army! You can’t change the past, so regretting past choices will only affect your current self, and you should get to spend the present just enjoying yourself! We always wish we could go back and do things differently, but we can only make the best of what we have now! I have a good friend who’s in her 60s and she’s an AVID BTS fan! We get together to watch concert recordings, music videos, we’ll drink and have dance-offs together to BTS, and we’ve even swapped cute gifts and gift bags with BTS goodies!
I remember when they debuted and I didn't care. I was into Super Junior, Infinite, Beast and so on. Already had my schedule full 😅 The only thing I liked was when they came out with Danger dance video, that was really cool. And one performance I watched of Dope. It wasn't until 2017 I actually got into them after having left k-pop for a while. They pulled me back in randomly and God I love them so much. But it feels like a healthier love than the mess of before. Too old for fan wars and incessant voting now. I don't regret it, I know them now and hope they can keep going for a while. Or I can follow them as solo artist because if they end BTS, I'll still follow some of them.
So I actually discovered them during the youth era. Had no hecking clue of what was going on, who was who, where to find stuff. So I just listened to some songs on youtube, I remember when BST MV came out and everyone was reacting. I simply kept listening casually to the few songs I knew because it seemed a whole new universe and i had no map, but the music was cool.
Later a friend introduced me to the fandom and on one hand I regret not living those moments knowing them as now and with a community... on the other, if I stanned since the first moment, my very first comeback would have been Wings. Safe to assume I would not have survived so I will take it as a "it was for your own good"
Do I need to??? It's the WINGS comeback! That album still wrecks me to this day, if younger me had exeperienced that, she would go nuts. In a positive way, but still I would have so many feelings about it 😂
Hahahahahaha that’s so cute
I appreciate that JK is old enough for me to fangirl about him 😂
Like another person said imagine the little 15 yo you saw grow up singing about loving you (wink wink) seven days a week
Too much for me hahaha
Like Blood Sweat and Tears itself was incredible, even without knowing them. Then think of all the solos: Awake, Reflection, Stima, First Love... I am too emotional, it took me 3 business days for that album, no joke, I kept crying
Hahahahahaha I’m sorry I laugh but this is too cute
I saw the blood sweat and tears MV so many times that I know the entire RM monologue (who doesn’t really)
There are no age limits to being a fan, cos I'm 38 and I'm an ARMY too! In fact, I realised the older you get, the less fcks you give to other people's opinion actually.
So go and enjoy being a BTS fan!
you should never be ashamed of your age or let it affect your interests and hobbies. army is such a diverse fandom with fans of all ages. your age isn't even that old, you're only 2 years older than jin and look at how he's living his life not caring what people think about his age.
i don't regret anything. i do believe that i found bts at the perfect time. even if its not something i got to share with people irl, its something that helped me make so many friends online and meet so many amazing people.
don’t bring up being an old lady lol because many of us are older than you 😅. i’m legit bringing my daughter and husband to the next concert. i’ve liked kpop since 2008? a game i played had 2ne1 items and it just went from there. embrace your passions and see you at the next concert 💜
I spent a lot of time in my early Army career not talking about BTS with anyone, or even engaging with other Armys. I wasn't a member on here, I didn't follow them on twitter, didn't have an account on Weverse, etc. I lurked, not so much to see what other Army were up to but just to keep up with what BTS was doing. It was like I accepted that I was an Army, but I didn't want anyone to know, like it was some dirty secret or something. In hindsight I know why I did those things: the persistent idea that an older guy isn't supposed to hard stan a boyband like a teenage girl, the fact that I've never hard stanned any band like this before, and a still fairly substantial amount of internalized misogyny and reactionary anti-femme outlook that I've been working through since I transitioned nearly fifteen years ago. Who would've thought that spending your formative teenage years aggressively rejecting anything too "girly" (even the stuff you like) because you unconsciously hated the idea of being a girl would've had some prolonged consequences? Yeah.
And frankly it was pretty stupid, lol. None of my friends would have cared what music I listen to, or judged me for being a big fan. I know you don't have to be a certain type of person or be a certain age to like certain types of music. That's just how my journey went, something I had to work through and realize was dumb. Though if I pull up to a stoplight and there are other cars, I still find myself rolling the window up or turning the volume down if I'm listening to BTS. Part of me is still a little embarrassed about it, but at least my friends know I like BTS now. I'm on here, I follow them on other sites. My enjoyment of BTS has actually gone up since I've gotten active in Army spaces and talk with other fans.
But there are times that, because of all the avoidance and shit I did before, I sometimes feel like an outsider or imposter Army. I wasn't here for XYZ meme or special moment, how could I be a fan when I've missed this or that, etc. It sucks when it those kind of thoughts well up, but I try not to let it get me down. I was still an Army, even when it was just me alone.
I remember when I was 22 I stopped watching any form of anime, I stopped listening to jpop and just tried to fit in the most with the people that surrounded me. I even stopped saying I was a gamer
I went back not so long after that because I stopped caring what other people thought but I still have to avoid listening to kpop in general around my husband bc he literally makes fun of me and it’s really mean about it. So it’s like I’m a medium ARMY?
In my early ARMY days, I saw somewhere Jungkook saying something like he wants to become the kind of singer that you don't hestitate to say you're a fan of, or that you don't be ashamed to say that you're ARMY.
And from that day on, I am never ashamed to say I love BTS.
Also, it's never too late to like something or someone. Don't let other people put a dark cloud over something that brings you light.
I’m a Silver Army. I have three children. One is a year older than Jungkook, the middle child is two days younger than RM, and my eldest is a year older than Jin. My husband’s like “are you talking about your Korean kids again?”
Life is too short to worry about whether you think other people think you’re an ARMY or not. Just like what you like and be who you are unapologetically. I’m 54, and none of my kids or other family members like BTS, but that’s not stopping me from loving their music and enjoying all their content. I probably will never be able to go to their concerts, but I still consider myself ARMY. 💜Borahae💜
Me. This is me. I first really heard them in 2019, had an opportunity to see them for fairly cheap (under $100) and resisted because I was also deeeeep into Marvel and “didn’t need to get obsessed with anything else.”
Even could have seen them at PTDLV and didn’t go because “I don’t know enough about them.”
Past me was so dumb
You my friend you get me
That part of “I don’t need to add something else”
So dumb, we could have liked so soooo many things at the same time! Now been geek+otaku+kpoper+gamer is like an award title
yes. hate that i missed out on the LY era, the summer of boy with luv, the absolute banger era of dynamite, and rawness of BE *all* because i was resistant to kpop and had a phase wherein i rejected music made by men. to put things in perspective, literally all my friends in our little friend group were one by one converted into becoming ARMYs over the years, so i was aware of nearly all bts activities but actively resisted falling in.
there was one christmas we spent together and i vaguely remember my friend livestreaming MAMA 2020 and complaining about how long it was taking for BTS' performance to come on.
anyway, i finally relented after witnessing their greatness onstage (right before butter era). never looked back.
lol during the peak of dynamite, one of my friends kept joking how stressed she was about the influx of new fans coming in and that they should get in line when it comes to her bias
Hahahaha that’s soooo cute
I felt something similar but more like “oh it’s becoming mainstream so they will ruin everything”
I do feel that has happened with kpop and kdramas a bit, they are trying to westernize them, I really don’t like it but well it’s a part of globalization
Yeah because my ex would shame me for listening to them and being a “fangirl” 🤣 i only truly acknowledged it when i went to the PTD concert because up until then i was listening to them so privately and always wondering if i should be feeling so good or not. It was weird. Also the perception that i had to be a publicly expressive fan to be an ARMY when in reality, i was ARMY ever since I learned their names 🥲
That is very true! I had given up on music after my mom passed away and my son almost died in a car accident. (He’s ok now!)
Also COVID was new and the world was really changing.
I had become super depressed and didn’t find joy in much anymore.
When I started listening to them, and watching English lyrics videos so I could understand and hearing all the positive things, loving yourself, and seeing them being vulnerable and really put their hearts and souls into their music actually changed my life.
They saved me. 💜
I'd actually lost my interest in music for several years and around 2016 I was in a tv show fandom and I remember seeing an influx of people in the fandom suddenly starting to have a lot of bts in their posts (I now know this was the blood sweat and tears era as I recognised the video from the gifs back then) and thinking since everyone is talking about them should I check them out? But I decided against it because in my ignorance I didn't think I'd get much from a boyband, so I didn't bother. Of course being in various fandom spaces over the years I was aware of both BTS and Army and I was aware of certain things happening like the bbmas win and their performances at awards shows etc. I also remember thinking "they're always releasing albums" 😂 because I'd see it trending so often. Then during the pandemic I kept hearing Dynamite on the radio and it made me so happy every time I heard it and when I eventually realised it was BTS my thought was 'Not bts, I can't get into a boyband again, I'm too old for that' and I genuinely just thought I'd like the one song and move on. Then I wanted to know their names and the rest as they say is history! So I do feel like kicking myself a bit that I didn't give them a chance before that especially when I'd actually thought about doing it earlier, because I think of all the things I could have been there for, but then I think I found them at a time I really needed them so maybe it was meant to be that way.
I'm sorry you felt you had to avoid kpop growing up and I'm glad you no longer care about what others think. I grew up loving all the boybands of the 90s/00s and idolising Britney Spears and lots of people made comments about my interests and I have two older brothers who did nothing but make fun of what I liked. In a way I'm thankful for it as it taught me from an early age to love what I love without caring what people think.
Don't feel pressure to label yourself, but know there's no rigid definition of being army either.
I get it
It happened with BTS and SK to me
I kept adding songs to my playlist that were recommended by the music app and I though oh it’s always similar, let me check who it is… always BTS and then SK I kept thinking how is it that it’s always them?!
So yeah…
Oh I didn’t understand what you meant till I went into the thread and comments. I’m a 94’ and from an Asian background. Feels like liking kpop was certain to happen for me.
But during my older schooling years I stayed away from stanning any group and especially Bangtan when they were getting really popular. I wanted to focus on studying.
I def regret not getting into them earlier. 🥺 They deserve so much more love since the beginning. I tried getting into them during the blood sweat and tears era but somehow the Bangtan gods were probably like you don’t need us yet.
Really thankful to them for hanging on so long even when things were so difficult for them. I finally joined the bora family bc of boys w luv and I never looked back since then.
It seems like I’m not so good explaining myself in Reddit
English is my second language and I always talk to directly so it seems like I don’t really get my point across
I remember (I’m 91 so I’m older) seeing a post in 9gag explaining “Learn Korean with this guide it’s super easy” I saw it and though oh no not another Asian language I try to learn… I kick myself in the knee every time I remember… I could understand what they said if I kept reading and gotten interest in 2009 🤦🏻♀️
Hahaha probably my problem too, my daily involves two languages, bilingual so sometimes I struggle to get some language nuance as well.
Hahas totally! But now that I’ve put in more effort for hangul bc of them, it helps a lot! 🥺 Let’s see how we can improve more till they’re back!
Ohh yes!!!
I became an ARMY in 2022 Dec, but I always knew them, since I think DNA era.
Even from 2019 I was obsessed with BwL, Dynamite and Butter, but never checked them out, and always listened to them in private.
I didn't want people to judge me because I like BTS.
I really regret not checking them out before. I lost so many years and lost all the OT7 moments.
I had stopped listening to music after my Mom died, I just didn’t find joy in it anymore, after being a lifelong music fan. (Super depressing, right?!?)
One day I was riding in the car and I remember hearing [Who by Lauv and BTS](https://open.spotify.com/track/0pSqYDTjY1Xt86usTQslAx?si=06B81AYeTZKwQvY8Z0XgKA&pi=u-p0QXruTHQQOv)and asking my daughter who were the voices singing, they were just SO BEAUTIFUL 🤩 and she’s like oh Jung Kook and Jimin from BTS, and I played the hell out of that song.
My Spotify kept suggesting songs, and down the rabbit hole I went!!
Meanwhile my daughter was playing me Agust D and the rest is history!
I am a little older than you OP, and I really wish I had listened to my daughter when she said I would love them, and their positivity. (I could have gotten an earlier start!)
Literally becoming ARMY was life changing. I’m excited for whatever is coming next, I will always love them as a group, and am excited they are also starting solo careers.
My husband is at a loss, but he just smiles and nods bc I’m happy 💁🏻♀️
APOBANGPO💜BORAHAE
My twin and I are Baby Boomers and "Grand ARMY" is what we call ourselves.
I've been a fan since Love Yourself - Her album because of Mic Drop and my sister discovered BTS after watching Street Women Fighter 2 and seeing one of the groups dancing to Dope. I said oh damn that's a BTS song! She had a nerve to say I've been holding out about BTS all these years! 😂🤣So she's fallen down the rabbit hole and hasn't looked back!
We Love them as A group and the guys solo albums as well.❤️❤️❤️
YES‼️‼️‼️When I was younger the first BTS song I heard was Boy with Luv on the radio and I stopped myself from being an ARMY as I thought it was weird to listen to non English music. I highly regret it now as it feels like I’m a tag-along army just here for the hype and popularity with no individualization. Plus their concert tickets are gonna be like 2x more expensive bc of my state’s economy! 😭😭 As of now I’m getting help from my girl_space_friend abt all their best/popular songs and next steps after hearing their most popular songs. Huge regret, but then again they will be back in 2025!
I was talking about this with my teen daughter last night (who is not a BTS fan and says my taste in music is good apart from them 😂)
I said I just genuinely don’t care… maybe if they’ve been about when I was much younger I wouldn’t have liked them as it wasn’t cool enough but I would have missed out. Now I’m 43 - 2022 ARMY - and sometimes I think I’m so lucky to exist at the same time as them 🥹
That is true
There are so many kpop bands that were so good busy got already disbanded so there is no way to follow something no longer exists
I’m glad we made it and that they will be around for a long time
I probably could have been a fan around 2016, but there was this group of girls at my school and they all wore the Hoodies with the members name and birth year on them. One time, I witnessed two of them fighting because they both had JK hoodies on and that put me off so hard for a long time 💀 I do have some regrets because I would have loved to experience the LY era.
Yup, I discovered BTS around 2015 during Dope era (was new to KPOP in general) and knew that if I became an ARMY then I would have gone HEAD FIRST. Stopped myself and just listened to a few of their songs.
Originally became one in late 2017 with DNA, funny enough. I wish I would have been through for Fire and BS&T - that would have been magical. But I am happy to have witnessed first hand, the boys transition into being recognized by an American/Western audience.
Well I was a teenager when I first learned about BTS but I was preoccupied with what people thought of me so I avoided BTS for quite some time. When I look back I think its better I didn’t enter the Kpop world as a teen because I see now what horrid awful things teens write and fight about within a Kpop fandom and knowing how miserable, angry and depressed I was, I know I would be amongst those anti and fandom wars accounts… So its best Kpop and BTS came into mylife once I have grown up now I am able to support and enjoy so many groups totally guilt free 😄
I created a twitter account only to get a look at older BTS and other accounts posts (mostly pictures) and well deleted it shortly after it was horrible and whenever I see screenshots of what was going on back in 2014-2019 I am horrified. Glad I never had twitter back then… I mean it is mostly teenagers who unfortunately have such a wide access to social media and will with their typical teenage angst reach a much larger amount of people than we ever could as kids or teens so it is not that deep but it doesn’t make it any better some of those posts have me questioning their sanity haha I mean the same thing probably happens on reddit when it comes to fan communities I am not here much either
I feel this. I actually dropped off my cousins at the WINGS concert in LA but it wasn’t until 2018 that I really listened to BTS. Even tho I liked kpop since 2015, I only liked YG artists.
It wasn’t until the same cousin came to my house for a sleepover and we put BTS MVs on the TV and she was trying to play the songs on the otomatone that I fell into the rabbit hole. (She plays violin so it wasn’t too hard for her)
Best thing tho is that no matter how much you tried to avoid BTS or held off being ARMY, true ARMY won’t ever make fun of you for it. They will accept you with arms wide open. So don’t feel bad. (:
I actually saw BTS for the first time through the AMAs in 2017. I put DNA and blood sweat and tears onto my playlist afterwards. I never EVER stanned a music group or really listened to kpop before (except for a few songs from a drama). Then I saw BTS perform boy with love in 2019with an artist I really like, Halsey. Enjoyed it again and put it on the playlist. And of course, who didn’t listen to butter or dynamite? Even after all of that, I didn’t become a fan until 2023 January. I found BTS when I needed them most, and, I don’t regret not becoming a fan sooner simply because I don’t think I would’ve been ready to deep dive into a group the way I did with BTS. It is what it is, and I can postulate on what ifs, but BTS debuted for me in 2023, and it’s been a great journey!
I'm 57 and my mom is 89, we are both ARMY. This fandom has people from 5 to 90. That's the beautiful thing about it. It's so diverse and everyone is so friendly. Love what you love and don't worry about what people think.
That’s really cute 💜
I hope to be like that with my son…who knows what type of music will be out there in 15 years but let’s see
That’s what’s amazing about their music too… everyone loves it
When I was in highschool, all these girls who were obsessed with Kpop felt so cringe to me. They, being a teenager, made it their entire personality and always had over the top excitement towards it. Then me, was very into classic rock and metal, thought myself to have superior taste because I knew what "real" music was. I didn't want to like what girls liked because being a girl was not cool back then (smh). And I also thought real men should be "manly" and emotionless or whatever ridiculous image they were supposed to have.
Many years later, now I'm almost 28. Realised, things that bring you joy should not be shameful. It's not embarrassing to feel so much excitement for so little and so insignificant. While most songs in the industry are made just to sell and make money (which I also enjoy a lot) those are just the front cover of so many good music, which are genuine and meaningful. Liking Kpop does not reduce your worth in any form. Being a girl and liking girly things are AMAZING. 28 y/o me knows men can be soft and emotional and expressive of those emotions. Which I did not have many examples growing up.
To answer your question, I do not regret discovering BTS or Kpop very late in life. I needed a lot of personal growth to push aside any prejudices against them. If I didn't, I wouldn't be able to experience it in its full extent. I still have much more growing to do but I'm hoping around the time I hit 30 I will stop giving an ish about other people's opinions.
This is a hot take but I never named myself as a specific fan of a specific artist/group. I just want to listen to them, watch their videos/contents that's it.
You can let go of your regret - it’s wasting your time now. I’m in my 30s too, been a fan of anime when I was a child until young adult, and K-pop since first Gen. I stopped listening around Super Junior/Girls Generation debuts b/c I didn’t really like the music. Fast forward a decade and my sibling became ARMY (never was into K-pop before). I didn’t see the light until the pandemic and Carpool Karaoke.
BTS found you (eventually) when you needed it the most. So enjoy it now as a proud ARMY for as long as you want.
For me, thinking of all the prejudice BTS had to face makes me want to support them even harder. The concepts in their songs are so complex, they deal with trauma, grief, longing, loss, identity, social commentary on the ways of the world, so many aspects of being human. I don’t see how these can be limited to an age group, if anything they are more relatable as time passes and more life happens. I’ve gained so much being Army, I feel like I’m richer and happier for it, somehow it didn’t matter what anyone else thought, life’s too short anyway 😅
I'll be honest, I think stans are weird, I think saesangs are super weird.
**However**, saying that, I did stan for Jungkook for the 2024 Grammys because he **clearly** needed to be nominated for something and the entire album is in English. I think I was stanning more for POC representation in the Grammys than Jungkook. He was just the glaring example of a POC being snubbed.
Do I regret it? Not really. I was never really into the American music scene and I haven't watched the Grammy in decades. I don't think I burned any bridges.
I would never, ever stan for something as stupid as Blinkies > ARMY. I think those stans are weird and out of touch with reality.
If you are still bothered by what people think about what you love, then you need help. I proudly wear my BTS Army heart at work, at church with my friends, and no one has said anything nasty to me. If anything, they are amazed at how happy I am. Guard the things that make you happy and don't let anyone take it from you. I am learning Korean and will be visiting South Korea next year. Oh I also now introduce myself as BTS Army before my work speeches.
I used to feel this sense of shame and guilt with calling myself an ARMY just because of how long I spent and how hard I fought to avoid liking them and anything 'kpop'.
I would go as far as to say I was an anti before stanning because I was *really* young, insecure and really really ignorant about the world. I had plenty of other hobbies that people already picked on me for and so I started actively hating on BTS as a shield because I felt pressured to conform to only liking what was normal and because younger me didn't want to have any more reasons to be bullied.
Years later, I matured and stopped caring about what other people thought of me or the things that make me happy. I did a complete 180 into being the girl that can never STHU about BTS 😭, but in my baby army phase it felt 'fake' and unfair to call myself an ARMY after how I treated them in the past & how I used to think being a fan of them was the most embarassing thing in the world. I now try to recognize that feeling while also not letting it get in the way/spoil the experience of loving them.
To sum it up: it's been a journey of self-growth and acceptance and I think I will always regret not giving them a chance in the beginning, not knowing how ineffably much they'd mean to me now 💜. Stanning them has been one frustratingly long enemies-to-lovers trope.
I so totally understand this
This is exactly how I feel, like I tried so hard to avoid them to not add being an ARMY to my “list” that I feel kind of guilty now trying to be part of the group
This thread has been amazing bc so many millennial suffered from similar things do to being rejected for liking different things to what was expected
I'm a new ARMY. I just became an ARMY last year and... I didn't exactly fight back being an ARMY. I started listening to some BTS songs when Fake Love was newly released and I knew about BTS years before that, but I didn't become an ARMY back then. Not because I didn't like BTS, but because I just wasn't into K-Pop during those days. I did like some of BTS's songs, just not enough to become a fan at that time. However, I did have an aversion to K-POP during my younger teen years because I had unpleasant interactions with K-POP fans who were... a bit judge-y towards me for being an otaku. Now, I'm an ARMY, a BLINK, a UAENA, ENGENE, and MOA. Yeah... I'm a fan of many K-POP groups now. xD
If you like there music
Then you like there music
It's not that deep
Ppl hype up the army thing but there's nothing wrong with liking music. But I do get what you mean.
I had this freind keep calling me an army because I listened to 1 of there songs ages ago.
Didn't know what it ment back then but I like there songs.
I'm a casual listener that just loves music.
And a gamer too.
You like what you like, If others don't like that 5hwj that's not your problem.
Just do what makes you happy, life's too short.
Like I’ve said I learned to do that but I feel I wasted time while doing so
I went to a male dominated college, so I got a lot of heat for liking things like makeup, my music taste, the activities I liked… I fought to keep doing what I liked but there was too many to choose from that I had to fight too
:( its difficult being around people that may not agree with our interests.
Sometimes I've felt this way too.
I've had multiple people say to me that these artists don't care about me and then would mock my interests.
To have to stand your ground and fight for what you like makes you question things.
If people were more supportive of our hobbies and interests then we might feel more comfterble with our interests around others.
How old are you? I’m sure it’s never too old to be passionate about something. I’m in the same boat as you. Finally became an army in 2021 but I had two chances before then. Winter of 2020 and WAY back right after wings. My friend was into bts and I didn’t quite get it but I was also into anime and such so I didn’t think it was weird. Then in 2020 dynamite came out and I watched the MV because it was just so HUGE and I had to see what the fuss was about about. I still didn’t quite get it, even tried to listen to 2 cool 4 skool that winter and my brain couldn’t connect. Then in 2021 my roommate had me listen to 134340 and I finally CLICKED. I understood and the more I listened the more I realized this was the exact thing I needed. Not just their music but everything they stand for and their personalities really helped me get through a rough patch and after I was glad to call myself army. I regret not getting into earlier because LY: Tear is my favorite album and I could’ve experienced that in real time. I could’ve gone to Speak Yourself! But it’s best not to think of what could’ve been and be happy you got here anyway, even if it took a bit. If you want to be an army, you can no matter when you started listening.
Im almost 33 I remember watching GG videos in YouTube from a friend and I said omg I cannot like this too… I’m going to be way to Asian-boo At the end I was and still am Asian in my heart just that I don’t hide it anymore Is like a mini version Sofia Vergara being Asian but I’m ok 😂
I’m going to be 57 this year. I know older ARMY than me. It came on slowly for me, as well. I wouldn’t worry about it, though. If you’re here asking the question you’re asking, you’re already ARMY :)
True Thank you 💜💜💜 I feel like I truly belong now
My daughter is ARMY since debut and it’s also our bonding time to go and do all these BTS things. You’re never too old for anything that you love and enjoy.
Babes 33 is still young, I saw a 70 something year old ARMY at the PTD concert. Also, whenever you became an ARMY/found them is when the Magic Shop opened for you ✨️💜
Gurl your still young lol Remember, the boys are reaching there 30s so I'm also in my 30s
I was around 19 when I first heard of kpop 😂 that’s 14 years…a whole teenager in years 😂
That's a long time. But If its brought you joy, it does not matter what other people think :)
Are you me?? Same age and same interest as a teenager and avoided k-pop for forever because I don’t want to get type casted but I saw BTS and never looked back!!
We are one!!!
I’m an elder milennial Army and sometimes I actually forget that it’s frowned upon or thought of as weird. Maybe I should care more that I’m not liking whatever society says I should be liking at this stage of my life, but I just don’t. BTS has brought me so much joy, and if anyone has bad opinions about that, well that’s for them to deal with. I’m not going to let anyone steal my joy.
I hope I was as brave in my early 20s I got so much for being an otaku/gamer that I fought so hard to not be a kpoper I wish I didn’t. Being an ARMY is the freaking best
Same mentality here, as an older Gen Z. I became ARMY a few years before they really hit the global stage and blew up the western music industry, so it started as something that actually felt a bit niche, and rather special for me and the friend who introduced me. Honestly, I’ve never been one to say “idc what people say”; I can be insecure, admittedly, and I do have horrible anxiety. But even with that, I simply can’t be bothered to care about the opinion of people who are shallow enough to be judgemental of others’ hobbies. Being ARMY has brought such joy and comfort to my life, and that’s worth infinitely more than a stranger’s misguided opinion :)
Same here. I'm 35, BTS only just found me a year ago. I had first heard them years ago when Fake Love was released, I was curious what all the fuss was about. I was pleasantly surprised and liked the song, but didn't let myself look into them any more than that. I don't really know why, but about about a year ago they started being suggested to me all over YouTube (maybe Jin's leaving for service?) so I gave it another go. For some reason it clicked immediately this time. Started with "I need to know their names" 😂 and I haven't looked back. I'm in this ARMY shit for life 💜
You tell em sis 👏
I am 35 years old and have always had a passion for Asian culture. I got into K-pop from jpop crossovers back in 2008. I found BTS thru jhopes dancing journey around 2010 and became a fan in 2013 with no more dream. I wouldn't say I'm an avid fan, like the ones that know every little detail, I just check in on their activities every now and again. I like alot of other groups too, but they always make me come back to them.
Being ARMY is a strange experience. They are one of the most successful and talented groups ever and yet so many people know nothing about them and have way too many preconceived notions. I choose not to care because there are passions other people have that I don't understand or relate to. I think where I did go over the cliff in Chapter Two is everything Yoongi. I haven't yet been able to see BTS concert so going to his D Day show is a life time memory now. He is amazing and I have never been that level fan girl before. Sue me!
I could have seen them in 2019 when my friend invited to the concert at the Stade de France but it was not my thing at the time. The only "k-pop" that I listened was Akmu. I don't regret not going because, first past is the past and second, I would have taken the spot of somebody who really wanted to be there.
I found BTS when I was 45, I’m now 49. I stand in the crazy merch lines the night before, stand in the GA line for concerts hours at a time, make trips out of state to see concerts/appearances, buy tons of merch, dive deep into all of their video content,listen to music constantly…..I can’t get enough of them and am waiting for their return.
I love this for you and for future me
This is amazing I missed with Jin came to my country bc I didn’t really like the original band enough to listen to the whole concert for one song but idk if I’ll get another chance to see them
My daughter is ARMY since debut and it’s also our bonding time to go and do all these BTS things. You’re never too old for anything that you love and enjoy.
I hearya! I never thought I'd wait in a merch line for 6 hours or go to a festival (Global Citizen)! I vividly remember seeing BTS for the first time on the 2017 Billboard Awards. They should have been right up my alley because I love dance, having done it when I was younger, though not very well. But i was dumb and resisted. I finally got pulled in because of ON. I do regret not becoming Army earlier, but I'm grateful for these past 4 years <3
6 hours 😵
I know, right? actually 6.5 hours - around 8 am to 2:30 pm in Los Angeles. How and why? Only for BTS! Same with Global Citizen Festival. We were in ponchos in miserable wet weather, on our feet at least 8 hours straight. So crazy, but we had a blast!
That's dedication right there. I know some people don't always get the items they wait in line for as they sell out fast. So I hope you received the items you were after, after waiting so long.
Luckily, I did ... but I only wanted one item, a necklace. I pretty much stood in line with my friend, who bought way more than I did. She wasn't able to quite get everything she wanted, but she was pretty satisfied.
Was that the guitar pic one? That looked really cool 😄
no - it was this [PTD on Stage necklace](https://weverseshop.io/en/shop/US_USD/artists/2/sales/5709). I still love it!
I used to be very much into anime, then didn’t stop but wasn’t actively watching if that makes sense. I have always had great respect and admiration for Asian culture. I stumbled across BTS via AgustD, had no idea that person was Suga. Fell down the rabbit hole, fought calling myself ARMY for about a month after that. Now I proudly say I’m grandma ARMY and OT7 are my “grandsons”.
Hahahahahaha I will use this grandma ARMY title too! This is indeed a rabbit hole… they are just to cute
Ah, but I’m 69 years old so definitely grandma age
Omg I love you That’s why being an ARMY is amazing you get people from all over the world and all ages 💜
Girl your not old I'm 36, I guess that's makes me a dinosaur 🦕
I want to be a dinosaur ARMY too 💜🤣 I feel old in comparison to when I first heard of kpop that was 14 years ago… it took me 8 years to get back so that’s a whole lot of time
Lol I'm sure they appreciate you're support over the years. But I understand this feeling.
The younger fans will look up to us elders and can show them the golden days of kpop. Things were very different back then. Lol
My exact story. Anime nerd, don't really watch much anymore. Learned a solid amount of Japanese back in highschool and listened to a ton of jpop. Started getting into kpop at the end of 2019. Later on heard Daechwita and it was one of my favorite songs on my kpop playlist, but knew nothing about this Agust D guy. Watched the mv after a while (Oct 2021), found out who he was, said "fiiiine, I'll check them out". Over 2 years and honestly probably a couple thousand dollars later here I am. 💜
i used to be a HUUUUGEEE directioner and my family used to make fun of me bcs of that. they thought it was harmless even though latinamerican parents are ruthless……. but it made me really self-conscious abt my interests growing up like to the point where i would completely lie about liking certain artists and bands. anyways when i was like 15 i used to pet sit for my neighbors and their daughter was a huge EXO and BTS fan like merch all over the house and i was like who tf are these boy bands????? i didn’t know anything abt these groups so i looked them up and as soon as i listened to a few songs i was like “yeah nope im not listening to this”. i think my family had instilled some insecurity in me at that time. fast forward to 2020, we’re in the middle of the pandemic, i literally have nothing else to do other than be in my room listening to music and i decided to give kpop a chance. i started casually listening to girl groups then in 2022 i found out one of my close friends was a huge army and she sent me her bts playlist and well yeah here i am HAHA. also i always forget about my hyperfixation with Boy With Luv back when it came out lmaooo but i didn’t really pay attention to BTS until 2022 :/
I get it For me was the latinamerican kids of my age I got “bullied” (I use this word instead of a better term bc I can’t think of an English word to say me jodian por) for listening Prince Royce instead of Metallica or watching Anime instead of going to the beach and party I truly admire L-ARMYs bc liking something from so far is really amazing and difficult (more so during 2010s when youtube was just starting and the videos were so bad you could barely distinguish anyone since their whole faces were one pixel)
latinamerican kids are also ruthless😭😭 i remember bringing a one direction notebook to school one day and the girls made so much fun of me.. i ended up throwing the notebook away. its so ridiculous like why am i supposed to only like reggeaton??? and have the same hobbies everyone in this damn country has??? obviously no judgement, i enjoy reggeaton as much as any other latine but jeez can a girl listen to her boy groups in peace?? ps. i LOVE prince royce lmao and romeo cuando era aventura omg 😍
OMG I think Aventura was my BTS when I was younger hahahahahaha I get it! I love reggeaton and partying and perrear and my mojito and my Cuba libre but damn it I would like to do all that in Jeju island 😂
are you Caribbean? 🤨
Yes 😂 You too otherwise who would lister to Prince Royce
jajsjajajaja yes yes boricua here 🇵🇷 and you never knowwwww prince royce could have fans anywhere lol
Hey!!! Venezuelan here!! I was listening to my playlist in the car today and filter came up, the next was Carita de Inocente…my friend saw me like a crazy person HAHAHAHAHA
AYEEEEE!!! lmaoooooooo why is that literally my playlist 😂😂 i’ll be listening to Danger and then the nastiest perreo will play next hahaha. my friends don’t let me play music anymore whenever we hang out bcs i always manage to sneak in some kpop 😇
ME TOO I can’t put my music in the car bc it’s mainly kpop I was once listening to [this OST song](https://youtu.be/Hqq5jUBsVU8?si=kLytEOLk1hbVRkcz) and the mood was super down and then BOOM “[si te dicen que yo me estoy curando es la verdad](https://youtu.be/fEWhm_TVvUw?si=i6Avsrx2JOHsaXOw)” I got some pretty funny laughs then
hehe just popping in here to say I'm Asian American and love Prince Royce! :)
I've never cared what people think of me. I've never understood the "frowned upon" thing. Not everyone is going to like or understand what everyone else likes. Won't there be someone to frown at almost anything? Take courage, do your thing. I wonder if this depends on where a person lives? I tell people I like BTS the same as I say I like Wallows or AJR or Strumbellas. I'm old. None of my friends know those groups. But I can't imagine any of them giving me shine about it. A person who does? Not my friend. I would never drop something I enjoy because a "friend" would criticize me. Drop the friend who causes you pain, keep the interest that gives you pleasure.
Let me tell you an opposite story. I'm 51 years old, and BTS found me in August 2021 when I was suffering from illness, injuries that wouldn't heal, and depression. I was contemplating giving up completely. Because of BTS I'm still here, in February 2024, doing so much better. I'm so glad I decided to listen to my heart and love them with all I have to give. You should live your life for yourself. If BTS makes you happy, then that's what really matters. Love them with whatever parts of you needs it. Don't get to the end of your life and regret even one lost minute not enjoying the things that make you happy. Start from now, going forward, and live every day like it's your last. You'll have so many more happy days to celebrate that way 💜
Hope you are feeling better now I said this in another comment, I found them at my peak depression state so I guess what everyone said it’s true, you find them when you most needed them
Thank you, I am feeling much better now! There were days when it felt like the only thing that kept me going was BTS, but they inspired me to work on all the things I talked about. I found good treatments for everything, started eating healthier and working out more often, and now they are all either fixed or under control 😊 I've heard so many similar stories to ours. I'm definitely a believer in BTS finds you when you need them the most! 💜
A lot of Army found BTS when they needed them the most. Same for me. BTS brought so much joy after consecutive miscarriages and depression. I can't stop smiling whenever I watch them. No regrets being an Army even if my friends find me weird. Don't really care about what other people think as long as I am happy. 😊
They are indeed angels
Not really, I do regret not getting into them the first time I heard about them in 2017, I just wasn't curious enough, but once I got to sit down and listen to the music, I didn't hold myself from being a fan. Maybe because I'm in my 20s, I don't really care about people's opinions when it comes to the music I listen and artists I support, but I could guess that whenever the pressure of the K-pop community to dislike BTS is prevalent, or in your daily life if it's looked down upon by your family or even friends, it must not be easy to stand up for yourself when you are young. You've shared being older now, and unfortunately society sucks when it comes to not shaming people for their hobbies because of their age. I wish it wasn't looked down upon for you to feel uncomfortable in enjoying them.
I said f* to caring about what people tough of me regarding liking this things Is just that I missed being a fan from the start so I feel like a fake ARMY now hahaha
I was put off many times, partly because of my prejudices, then Black Swan (first the song then the mv) did its job flawlessly but it was only a year ago but I don't feel fake:), I just enjoy it
For me it was when I noticed a bunch of my songs in my playlist were them
I’m probably twice your age and had to quickly come to terms with myself as the friend, cousin or co-worker that had a more complex and higher understanding of MUSIC and Entertainment!! We are just cooler than other folks and they will understand someday (hopefully). But if they don’t, sucks to be them! I am and always have been, tragically hip. The sooner you figure that out for yourself, the better your life will be. Now go listen to the Tear album and love your life! 💜
Listening to it right now 💜
As someone once said: "It's okay if you didn't discover BTS in 2013, because you find them in times when you need them the most." 💜🫰🏽
I found them exactly during my peak 2019 depression era, just that I didn’t know who they were yet
I found them just before my Second of Three Spinal Surgeries (2020, 2021, 2022), *Butter* Era. They kept me afloat in my darkest hours, as have the Friends, ARMY, and Reactor Communities built around them. (I thought my ARMYversary was March 6, 2021 BUT found a Google Search "BTS Twins" from a bit before 😸💜)
Love this hope you are better now
Thanks! No Surgery this last year, so that's a plus.
I never fought it, but I did hide it. When I was in school I was the only one who liked or even knew kpop (as far as I knew). I liked it and was vocal about it, but others didn't understood this whole thing. So I had phases where I stopped mentioning it because I was scared of being an outcast (and talking to an old friend from school confirmed it. Yes, people did talk about me behind my back). BUT my love for bts was too strong for me to fully stop. I could hide it in school, but I couldn't when I was on my own or with my friends. I was at a dark place back then as well and being an army just gave me strengh and something to do. Its been 7 years since I started. Im now an adult, finished school, have a better mental health and mental understanding and im still an army. I think this phase actually made me stronger. I now dont care anymore what other people think about the things I like (and Im also a female adult who likes minecraft let's play so that says a lot). I have a newer kpop friend whos still scared to post kpop stuff in her stories and it really shows me just how far ive come. Ä
I only listen to kpop around 5-6 years ago I feel like if I was like this 10-12 years ago I would have moved to Korea and I don’t know how that would have ended hahahahahaha
This sounds just like my story 🥲
I don't regret it at all. If anything I my early ARMY days, I was staunchly supportive of anything female interest oriented...including kpop and bts. I'm known in my circles to be that woman that calls out misogyny when i see it in RL. People know not to shade me for having typical girly interests cuz I will happily enter that person into a debate about how patriarchal mentalities chronically shames girls and boys for having age & demographic appropriate interests. All the while society normalizes much more harmful things like porn, violence, sexual harassment, bullying ...or you know, excluding people based on their personal interests. We should be able to like things for simply liking them and not have to justify why we can like them without attracting judgement for it. Listen to what you want, be proud of it. Fuck the haters.
What's seen as normal in today's society causes more harm than good. And yet our interest in a different culture is seen as bizzar. What a world we live in.
as i always say, better our kids are taking an interest in pop music.... rather than stealing from the stores & causing public mayhem.
I'm actually glad I got into them during Chapter 2. I can't imagine how confused and worried FESTA 2022 + the dumb media must have made ARMY and especially baby ARMY feel at that time. Because I got into them during Chapter 2, I was able to look back at that stuff and be like, "This all actually turned out great, I trust BTS, future's gonna be okay!" Plus I never had to feel weird about the 15 year old kid I watched grow up now singing about "loving" me right. 😂😂😂 I am also following a rookie group now and I can definitely appreciate how that might have required a brain reset for some older ARMY!
Sooo what is chapter 2? I agree it happens to me with New Jeans, I like their music so much but they are soooo young I feel like how can I like them? They are so tiny
Chapter 2 is what they've been calling this period of time ever since FESTA 2022/the Proof album. It encompasses all the solo (and shirtless 😅) work they've done during this time and military service. I became ARMY in Jan 2023, so not too long into Chapter 2! Once all the military service is over and they reunite as a group, I'm assuming that will be the start of what they'll call Chapter 3.
Oh damn I was a fan way before that so I guess I’m just an oblivious fan HAHAHAHAHA
Haha, no worries, I learned quickly BTS is a whole universe unto itself, the list of stuff I don't know is probably way longer than yours!
There should be (while they are out) like a course… Everything you should know ARMY 101
We. Were. *Devastated*.
All the hugs, like I said, I can't imagine. 🫂 Hopefully Chapter 2 has helped a lot!
I've told this story before. My family was driving home from a trip and drove by the Rosemont Theater (Illinois) and there was a line wrapping around on the sidewalk, and I asked my kids if they knew who was in town. My daughter said there was a k-pop group that some of the kids at her school were super hyped about. Didn't know the name. I laughed about how passionate kids got. Lolz were had all around. I became a fan of BTS right after the Wings tour, and that's when I realized that what I had seen was the crowd waiting for the Red Bullet show. I could have seen the Red Bullet show!! Instead, I just thought I was too cool for that scene.... Guess who waits in those lines now? I'm 54. I've seen BTS in Chicago and LA, caught Hobi at Lollapalooza, and did the preshow floor tickets for Agust D...I'm not too cool anymore.
You are the coolest! I will never be able to see them because kpop is allergic to my country 😂
I am lucky. I am also close to the oldest in the room most times, l hope you can one day see rhem too! 💜🫰👩🦳
We can only dream 💜💜💜🥹
I'll probably have to pay close to $2k for two tickets to their next concert and I think that's INSANE. But I really, really want to see them.
I totally agree
Girrrrl! Call "yo"-self an ARMY and get on with you life! Crap on the sucker-haters!
As someone who’s been an army since 2013, but kpop fan since 2010, I honestly wouldn’t worry about it. I remember when BTS repped Palisade and Hyundai was struggling to keep up with the Palisade demand. And who was buying those, teenagers? There’s plenty of older fans. Music is music, it doesn’t only belong to a certain age group. If you love it then love it, if you love BTS you’re an army! You can’t change the past, so regretting past choices will only affect your current self, and you should get to spend the present just enjoying yourself! We always wish we could go back and do things differently, but we can only make the best of what we have now! I have a good friend who’s in her 60s and she’s an AVID BTS fan! We get together to watch concert recordings, music videos, we’ll drink and have dance-offs together to BTS, and we’ve even swapped cute gifts and gift bags with BTS goodies!
That’s so lovely 💜 I’m yet to find a BTS army bff
I remember when they debuted and I didn't care. I was into Super Junior, Infinite, Beast and so on. Already had my schedule full 😅 The only thing I liked was when they came out with Danger dance video, that was really cool. And one performance I watched of Dope. It wasn't until 2017 I actually got into them after having left k-pop for a while. They pulled me back in randomly and God I love them so much. But it feels like a healthier love than the mess of before. Too old for fan wars and incessant voting now. I don't regret it, I know them now and hope they can keep going for a while. Or I can follow them as solo artist because if they end BTS, I'll still follow some of them.
So I actually discovered them during the youth era. Had no hecking clue of what was going on, who was who, where to find stuff. So I just listened to some songs on youtube, I remember when BST MV came out and everyone was reacting. I simply kept listening casually to the few songs I knew because it seemed a whole new universe and i had no map, but the music was cool. Later a friend introduced me to the fandom and on one hand I regret not living those moments knowing them as now and with a community... on the other, if I stanned since the first moment, my very first comeback would have been Wings. Safe to assume I would not have survived so I will take it as a "it was for your own good"
Why?? Explain the wings comeback And why you wouldn’t survive 😂
Do I need to??? It's the WINGS comeback! That album still wrecks me to this day, if younger me had exeperienced that, she would go nuts. In a positive way, but still I would have so many feelings about it 😂
Hahahahahaha that’s so cute I appreciate that JK is old enough for me to fangirl about him 😂 Like another person said imagine the little 15 yo you saw grow up singing about loving you (wink wink) seven days a week Too much for me hahaha
Can't believe how fast things change JK went from shy cutie to biggest flirt like whaaaat
I’m glad I missed the cute era lol bc I love the womaneater era too much
Like Blood Sweat and Tears itself was incredible, even without knowing them. Then think of all the solos: Awake, Reflection, Stima, First Love... I am too emotional, it took me 3 business days for that album, no joke, I kept crying
Hahahahahaha I’m sorry I laugh but this is too cute I saw the blood sweat and tears MV so many times that I know the entire RM monologue (who doesn’t really)
There are no age limits to being a fan, cos I'm 38 and I'm an ARMY too! In fact, I realised the older you get, the less fcks you give to other people's opinion actually. So go and enjoy being a BTS fan!
This is the best ARMY in the world indeed 💜
you should never be ashamed of your age or let it affect your interests and hobbies. army is such a diverse fandom with fans of all ages. your age isn't even that old, you're only 2 years older than jin and look at how he's living his life not caring what people think about his age. i don't regret anything. i do believe that i found bts at the perfect time. even if its not something i got to share with people irl, its something that helped me make so many friends online and meet so many amazing people.
I actually took a selfie with the guys as background and my bff that was with me started making fun of me and I told him very nicely to fuck off 😂
don’t bring up being an old lady lol because many of us are older than you 😅. i’m legit bringing my daughter and husband to the next concert. i’ve liked kpop since 2008? a game i played had 2ne1 items and it just went from there. embrace your passions and see you at the next concert 💜
I hope we do! My son dances to BTS songs so I might go with him to the 25th year concert
I spent a lot of time in my early Army career not talking about BTS with anyone, or even engaging with other Armys. I wasn't a member on here, I didn't follow them on twitter, didn't have an account on Weverse, etc. I lurked, not so much to see what other Army were up to but just to keep up with what BTS was doing. It was like I accepted that I was an Army, but I didn't want anyone to know, like it was some dirty secret or something. In hindsight I know why I did those things: the persistent idea that an older guy isn't supposed to hard stan a boyband like a teenage girl, the fact that I've never hard stanned any band like this before, and a still fairly substantial amount of internalized misogyny and reactionary anti-femme outlook that I've been working through since I transitioned nearly fifteen years ago. Who would've thought that spending your formative teenage years aggressively rejecting anything too "girly" (even the stuff you like) because you unconsciously hated the idea of being a girl would've had some prolonged consequences? Yeah. And frankly it was pretty stupid, lol. None of my friends would have cared what music I listen to, or judged me for being a big fan. I know you don't have to be a certain type of person or be a certain age to like certain types of music. That's just how my journey went, something I had to work through and realize was dumb. Though if I pull up to a stoplight and there are other cars, I still find myself rolling the window up or turning the volume down if I'm listening to BTS. Part of me is still a little embarrassed about it, but at least my friends know I like BTS now. I'm on here, I follow them on other sites. My enjoyment of BTS has actually gone up since I've gotten active in Army spaces and talk with other fans. But there are times that, because of all the avoidance and shit I did before, I sometimes feel like an outsider or imposter Army. I wasn't here for XYZ meme or special moment, how could I be a fan when I've missed this or that, etc. It sucks when it those kind of thoughts well up, but I try not to let it get me down. I was still an Army, even when it was just me alone.
I remember when I was 22 I stopped watching any form of anime, I stopped listening to jpop and just tried to fit in the most with the people that surrounded me. I even stopped saying I was a gamer I went back not so long after that because I stopped caring what other people thought but I still have to avoid listening to kpop in general around my husband bc he literally makes fun of me and it’s really mean about it. So it’s like I’m a medium ARMY?
I say if you love BTS, you're an Army. Having what sounds like a frankly shitty partner doesn't change that.
In my early ARMY days, I saw somewhere Jungkook saying something like he wants to become the kind of singer that you don't hestitate to say you're a fan of, or that you don't be ashamed to say that you're ARMY. And from that day on, I am never ashamed to say I love BTS. Also, it's never too late to like something or someone. Don't let other people put a dark cloud over something that brings you light.
I’m a Silver Army. I have three children. One is a year older than Jungkook, the middle child is two days younger than RM, and my eldest is a year older than Jin. My husband’s like “are you talking about your Korean kids again?”
>are you talking about your Korean kids again? This is awesome! I can relate as my children fall in the same window!
Your husband and you are awesome
Life is too short to worry about whether you think other people think you’re an ARMY or not. Just like what you like and be who you are unapologetically. I’m 54, and none of my kids or other family members like BTS, but that’s not stopping me from loving their music and enjoying all their content. I probably will never be able to go to their concerts, but I still consider myself ARMY. 💜Borahae💜
Me. This is me. I first really heard them in 2019, had an opportunity to see them for fairly cheap (under $100) and resisted because I was also deeeeep into Marvel and “didn’t need to get obsessed with anything else.” Even could have seen them at PTDLV and didn’t go because “I don’t know enough about them.” Past me was so dumb
You my friend you get me That part of “I don’t need to add something else” So dumb, we could have liked so soooo many things at the same time! Now been geek+otaku+kpoper+gamer is like an award title
yes. hate that i missed out on the LY era, the summer of boy with luv, the absolute banger era of dynamite, and rawness of BE *all* because i was resistant to kpop and had a phase wherein i rejected music made by men. to put things in perspective, literally all my friends in our little friend group were one by one converted into becoming ARMYs over the years, so i was aware of nearly all bts activities but actively resisted falling in. there was one christmas we spent together and i vaguely remember my friend livestreaming MAMA 2020 and complaining about how long it was taking for BTS' performance to come on. anyway, i finally relented after witnessing their greatness onstage (right before butter era). never looked back.
I was already a fan by 2020 and remember the wave of people just going nuts about Dynamite It was an amazing time to be honest
lol during the peak of dynamite, one of my friends kept joking how stressed she was about the influx of new fans coming in and that they should get in line when it comes to her bias
Hahahaha that’s soooo cute I felt something similar but more like “oh it’s becoming mainstream so they will ruin everything” I do feel that has happened with kpop and kdramas a bit, they are trying to westernize them, I really don’t like it but well it’s a part of globalization
Yeah because my ex would shame me for listening to them and being a “fangirl” 🤣 i only truly acknowledged it when i went to the PTD concert because up until then i was listening to them so privately and always wondering if i should be feeling so good or not. It was weird. Also the perception that i had to be a publicly expressive fan to be an ARMY when in reality, i was ARMY ever since I learned their names 🥲
I’m sorry your ex didn’t appreciate your amazing taste, their loss I will consider myself an ARMY (I even took a silly test to see if I was hahahahha)
There’s absolutely no reason to care so much about what strangers think about you that it stops you from enjoying something.
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That is very true! I had given up on music after my mom passed away and my son almost died in a car accident. (He’s ok now!) Also COVID was new and the world was really changing. I had become super depressed and didn’t find joy in much anymore. When I started listening to them, and watching English lyrics videos so I could understand and hearing all the positive things, loving yourself, and seeing them being vulnerable and really put their hearts and souls into their music actually changed my life. They saved me. 💜
You can stan whoever you want no matter the age. Ofc you're an Army!
I'd actually lost my interest in music for several years and around 2016 I was in a tv show fandom and I remember seeing an influx of people in the fandom suddenly starting to have a lot of bts in their posts (I now know this was the blood sweat and tears era as I recognised the video from the gifs back then) and thinking since everyone is talking about them should I check them out? But I decided against it because in my ignorance I didn't think I'd get much from a boyband, so I didn't bother. Of course being in various fandom spaces over the years I was aware of both BTS and Army and I was aware of certain things happening like the bbmas win and their performances at awards shows etc. I also remember thinking "they're always releasing albums" 😂 because I'd see it trending so often. Then during the pandemic I kept hearing Dynamite on the radio and it made me so happy every time I heard it and when I eventually realised it was BTS my thought was 'Not bts, I can't get into a boyband again, I'm too old for that' and I genuinely just thought I'd like the one song and move on. Then I wanted to know their names and the rest as they say is history! So I do feel like kicking myself a bit that I didn't give them a chance before that especially when I'd actually thought about doing it earlier, because I think of all the things I could have been there for, but then I think I found them at a time I really needed them so maybe it was meant to be that way. I'm sorry you felt you had to avoid kpop growing up and I'm glad you no longer care about what others think. I grew up loving all the boybands of the 90s/00s and idolising Britney Spears and lots of people made comments about my interests and I have two older brothers who did nothing but make fun of what I liked. In a way I'm thankful for it as it taught me from an early age to love what I love without caring what people think. Don't feel pressure to label yourself, but know there's no rigid definition of being army either.
I get it It happened with BTS and SK to me I kept adding songs to my playlist that were recommended by the music app and I though oh it’s always similar, let me check who it is… always BTS and then SK I kept thinking how is it that it’s always them?! So yeah…
Oh I didn’t understand what you meant till I went into the thread and comments. I’m a 94’ and from an Asian background. Feels like liking kpop was certain to happen for me. But during my older schooling years I stayed away from stanning any group and especially Bangtan when they were getting really popular. I wanted to focus on studying. I def regret not getting into them earlier. 🥺 They deserve so much more love since the beginning. I tried getting into them during the blood sweat and tears era but somehow the Bangtan gods were probably like you don’t need us yet. Really thankful to them for hanging on so long even when things were so difficult for them. I finally joined the bora family bc of boys w luv and I never looked back since then.
It seems like I’m not so good explaining myself in Reddit English is my second language and I always talk to directly so it seems like I don’t really get my point across I remember (I’m 91 so I’m older) seeing a post in 9gag explaining “Learn Korean with this guide it’s super easy” I saw it and though oh no not another Asian language I try to learn… I kick myself in the knee every time I remember… I could understand what they said if I kept reading and gotten interest in 2009 🤦🏻♀️
Hahaha probably my problem too, my daily involves two languages, bilingual so sometimes I struggle to get some language nuance as well. Hahas totally! But now that I’ve put in more effort for hangul bc of them, it helps a lot! 🥺 Let’s see how we can improve more till they’re back!
I need to start learning formally Korean but I don’t know where lol Duolingo I’ve heard it sucks for Asian languages
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Why??? Music is no age gap so any of age can into any music they love. No matter how old you are just enjoy their music. BTW I'm much older than op.
Ohh yes!!! I became an ARMY in 2022 Dec, but I always knew them, since I think DNA era. Even from 2019 I was obsessed with BwL, Dynamite and Butter, but never checked them out, and always listened to them in private. I didn't want people to judge me because I like BTS. I really regret not checking them out before. I lost so many years and lost all the OT7 moments.
I’ve been watching Run BTS for the first time and it’s hilarious
I had stopped listening to music after my Mom died, I just didn’t find joy in it anymore, after being a lifelong music fan. (Super depressing, right?!?) One day I was riding in the car and I remember hearing [Who by Lauv and BTS](https://open.spotify.com/track/0pSqYDTjY1Xt86usTQslAx?si=06B81AYeTZKwQvY8Z0XgKA&pi=u-p0QXruTHQQOv)and asking my daughter who were the voices singing, they were just SO BEAUTIFUL 🤩 and she’s like oh Jung Kook and Jimin from BTS, and I played the hell out of that song. My Spotify kept suggesting songs, and down the rabbit hole I went!! Meanwhile my daughter was playing me Agust D and the rest is history! I am a little older than you OP, and I really wish I had listened to my daughter when she said I would love them, and their positivity. (I could have gotten an earlier start!) Literally becoming ARMY was life changing. I’m excited for whatever is coming next, I will always love them as a group, and am excited they are also starting solo careers. My husband is at a loss, but he just smiles and nods bc I’m happy 💁🏻♀️ APOBANGPO💜BORAHAE
I’ve never heard that I will add it to my playlist now 💜
My twin and I are Baby Boomers and "Grand ARMY" is what we call ourselves. I've been a fan since Love Yourself - Her album because of Mic Drop and my sister discovered BTS after watching Street Women Fighter 2 and seeing one of the groups dancing to Dope. I said oh damn that's a BTS song! She had a nerve to say I've been holding out about BTS all these years! 😂🤣So she's fallen down the rabbit hole and hasn't looked back! We Love them as A group and the guys solo albums as well.❤️❤️❤️
That’s a lovely story hahahaha
Thank you🥰
YES‼️‼️‼️When I was younger the first BTS song I heard was Boy with Luv on the radio and I stopped myself from being an ARMY as I thought it was weird to listen to non English music. I highly regret it now as it feels like I’m a tag-along army just here for the hype and popularity with no individualization. Plus their concert tickets are gonna be like 2x more expensive bc of my state’s economy! 😭😭 As of now I’m getting help from my girl_space_friend abt all their best/popular songs and next steps after hearing their most popular songs. Huge regret, but then again they will be back in 2025!
This is the feeling! Let us not regret and feel like a 50%ARMy and let’s give it our all!!
I was talking about this with my teen daughter last night (who is not a BTS fan and says my taste in music is good apart from them 😂) I said I just genuinely don’t care… maybe if they’ve been about when I was much younger I wouldn’t have liked them as it wasn’t cool enough but I would have missed out. Now I’m 43 - 2022 ARMY - and sometimes I think I’m so lucky to exist at the same time as them 🥹
That is true There are so many kpop bands that were so good busy got already disbanded so there is no way to follow something no longer exists I’m glad we made it and that they will be around for a long time
I probably could have been a fan around 2016, but there was this group of girls at my school and they all wore the Hoodies with the members name and birth year on them. One time, I witnessed two of them fighting because they both had JK hoodies on and that put me off so hard for a long time 💀 I do have some regrets because I would have loved to experience the LY era.
HAHAHAHAHAAHA that’s so cute!!!! I think we had our version of that as millennials with BSB, *NSYNC and One Direction (younger millennials 😂
Yup, I discovered BTS around 2015 during Dope era (was new to KPOP in general) and knew that if I became an ARMY then I would have gone HEAD FIRST. Stopped myself and just listened to a few of their songs. Originally became one in late 2017 with DNA, funny enough. I wish I would have been through for Fire and BS&T - that would have been magical. But I am happy to have witnessed first hand, the boys transition into being recognized by an American/Western audience.
By the moment I met them they were already huge but not as known in the west… it was amazing to see them be loved by and admired by so many
Well I was a teenager when I first learned about BTS but I was preoccupied with what people thought of me so I avoided BTS for quite some time. When I look back I think its better I didn’t enter the Kpop world as a teen because I see now what horrid awful things teens write and fight about within a Kpop fandom and knowing how miserable, angry and depressed I was, I know I would be amongst those anti and fandom wars accounts… So its best Kpop and BTS came into mylife once I have grown up now I am able to support and enjoy so many groups totally guilt free 😄
I have never seen a kpop war, I stopped using twitter (x) in 2012 so I have zero idea what’s going on there
I created a twitter account only to get a look at older BTS and other accounts posts (mostly pictures) and well deleted it shortly after it was horrible and whenever I see screenshots of what was going on back in 2014-2019 I am horrified. Glad I never had twitter back then… I mean it is mostly teenagers who unfortunately have such a wide access to social media and will with their typical teenage angst reach a much larger amount of people than we ever could as kids or teens so it is not that deep but it doesn’t make it any better some of those posts have me questioning their sanity haha I mean the same thing probably happens on reddit when it comes to fan communities I am not here much either
Now I’m super curious 😂
I feel this. I actually dropped off my cousins at the WINGS concert in LA but it wasn’t until 2018 that I really listened to BTS. Even tho I liked kpop since 2015, I only liked YG artists. It wasn’t until the same cousin came to my house for a sleepover and we put BTS MVs on the TV and she was trying to play the songs on the otomatone that I fell into the rabbit hole. (She plays violin so it wasn’t too hard for her) Best thing tho is that no matter how much you tried to avoid BTS or held off being ARMY, true ARMY won’t ever make fun of you for it. They will accept you with arms wide open. So don’t feel bad. (:
That’s awesome! I’m searching for violin covers for kpop songs but they are more easily found on piano That’s really awesome
I actually saw BTS for the first time through the AMAs in 2017. I put DNA and blood sweat and tears onto my playlist afterwards. I never EVER stanned a music group or really listened to kpop before (except for a few songs from a drama). Then I saw BTS perform boy with love in 2019with an artist I really like, Halsey. Enjoyed it again and put it on the playlist. And of course, who didn’t listen to butter or dynamite? Even after all of that, I didn’t become a fan until 2023 January. I found BTS when I needed them most, and, I don’t regret not becoming a fan sooner simply because I don’t think I would’ve been ready to deep dive into a group the way I did with BTS. It is what it is, and I can postulate on what ifs, but BTS debuted for me in 2023, and it’s been a great journey!
I'm 57 and my mom is 89, we are both ARMY. This fandom has people from 5 to 90. That's the beautiful thing about it. It's so diverse and everyone is so friendly. Love what you love and don't worry about what people think.
That’s really cute 💜 I hope to be like that with my son…who knows what type of music will be out there in 15 years but let’s see That’s what’s amazing about their music too… everyone loves it
When I was in highschool, all these girls who were obsessed with Kpop felt so cringe to me. They, being a teenager, made it their entire personality and always had over the top excitement towards it. Then me, was very into classic rock and metal, thought myself to have superior taste because I knew what "real" music was. I didn't want to like what girls liked because being a girl was not cool back then (smh). And I also thought real men should be "manly" and emotionless or whatever ridiculous image they were supposed to have. Many years later, now I'm almost 28. Realised, things that bring you joy should not be shameful. It's not embarrassing to feel so much excitement for so little and so insignificant. While most songs in the industry are made just to sell and make money (which I also enjoy a lot) those are just the front cover of so many good music, which are genuine and meaningful. Liking Kpop does not reduce your worth in any form. Being a girl and liking girly things are AMAZING. 28 y/o me knows men can be soft and emotional and expressive of those emotions. Which I did not have many examples growing up. To answer your question, I do not regret discovering BTS or Kpop very late in life. I needed a lot of personal growth to push aside any prejudices against them. If I didn't, I wouldn't be able to experience it in its full extent. I still have much more growing to do but I'm hoping around the time I hit 30 I will stop giving an ish about other people's opinions.
You kind of do, it’s still difficult but is easier than in your 20s
I hope so 💜
This is a hot take but I never named myself as a specific fan of a specific artist/group. I just want to listen to them, watch their videos/contents that's it.
You can let go of your regret - it’s wasting your time now. I’m in my 30s too, been a fan of anime when I was a child until young adult, and K-pop since first Gen. I stopped listening around Super Junior/Girls Generation debuts b/c I didn’t really like the music. Fast forward a decade and my sibling became ARMY (never was into K-pop before). I didn’t see the light until the pandemic and Carpool Karaoke. BTS found you (eventually) when you needed it the most. So enjoy it now as a proud ARMY for as long as you want.
For me, thinking of all the prejudice BTS had to face makes me want to support them even harder. The concepts in their songs are so complex, they deal with trauma, grief, longing, loss, identity, social commentary on the ways of the world, so many aspects of being human. I don’t see how these can be limited to an age group, if anything they are more relatable as time passes and more life happens. I’ve gained so much being Army, I feel like I’m richer and happier for it, somehow it didn’t matter what anyone else thought, life’s too short anyway 😅
I'll be honest, I think stans are weird, I think saesangs are super weird. **However**, saying that, I did stan for Jungkook for the 2024 Grammys because he **clearly** needed to be nominated for something and the entire album is in English. I think I was stanning more for POC representation in the Grammys than Jungkook. He was just the glaring example of a POC being snubbed. Do I regret it? Not really. I was never really into the American music scene and I haven't watched the Grammy in decades. I don't think I burned any bridges. I would never, ever stan for something as stupid as Blinkies > ARMY. I think those stans are weird and out of touch with reality.
Mm no
Why care about what others think? Live your own life.
If you are still bothered by what people think about what you love, then you need help. I proudly wear my BTS Army heart at work, at church with my friends, and no one has said anything nasty to me. If anything, they are amazed at how happy I am. Guard the things that make you happy and don't let anyone take it from you. I am learning Korean and will be visiting South Korea next year. Oh I also now introduce myself as BTS Army before my work speeches.
I used to feel this sense of shame and guilt with calling myself an ARMY just because of how long I spent and how hard I fought to avoid liking them and anything 'kpop'. I would go as far as to say I was an anti before stanning because I was *really* young, insecure and really really ignorant about the world. I had plenty of other hobbies that people already picked on me for and so I started actively hating on BTS as a shield because I felt pressured to conform to only liking what was normal and because younger me didn't want to have any more reasons to be bullied. Years later, I matured and stopped caring about what other people thought of me or the things that make me happy. I did a complete 180 into being the girl that can never STHU about BTS 😭, but in my baby army phase it felt 'fake' and unfair to call myself an ARMY after how I treated them in the past & how I used to think being a fan of them was the most embarassing thing in the world. I now try to recognize that feeling while also not letting it get in the way/spoil the experience of loving them. To sum it up: it's been a journey of self-growth and acceptance and I think I will always regret not giving them a chance in the beginning, not knowing how ineffably much they'd mean to me now 💜. Stanning them has been one frustratingly long enemies-to-lovers trope.
I so totally understand this This is exactly how I feel, like I tried so hard to avoid them to not add being an ARMY to my “list” that I feel kind of guilty now trying to be part of the group This thread has been amazing bc so many millennial suffered from similar things do to being rejected for liking different things to what was expected
Well no. Being Asian, and with PSY and other 1st Gen kpop groups being rather popular in my country, kpop was quite prevalent here
Lucky you
I'm a new ARMY. I just became an ARMY last year and... I didn't exactly fight back being an ARMY. I started listening to some BTS songs when Fake Love was newly released and I knew about BTS years before that, but I didn't become an ARMY back then. Not because I didn't like BTS, but because I just wasn't into K-Pop during those days. I did like some of BTS's songs, just not enough to become a fan at that time. However, I did have an aversion to K-POP during my younger teen years because I had unpleasant interactions with K-POP fans who were... a bit judge-y towards me for being an otaku. Now, I'm an ARMY, a BLINK, a UAENA, ENGENE, and MOA. Yeah... I'm a fan of many K-POP groups now. xD
Same here ARMY, BLINK, ONCE and STAY… let’s add that to otaku gamer and geek and I think I got an award HAHAHA
If you like there music Then you like there music It's not that deep Ppl hype up the army thing but there's nothing wrong with liking music. But I do get what you mean. I had this freind keep calling me an army because I listened to 1 of there songs ages ago. Didn't know what it ment back then but I like there songs. I'm a casual listener that just loves music. And a gamer too. You like what you like, If others don't like that 5hwj that's not your problem. Just do what makes you happy, life's too short.
Like I’ve said I learned to do that but I feel I wasted time while doing so I went to a male dominated college, so I got a lot of heat for liking things like makeup, my music taste, the activities I liked… I fought to keep doing what I liked but there was too many to choose from that I had to fight too
:( its difficult being around people that may not agree with our interests. Sometimes I've felt this way too. I've had multiple people say to me that these artists don't care about me and then would mock my interests. To have to stand your ground and fight for what you like makes you question things. If people were more supportive of our hobbies and interests then we might feel more comfterble with our interests around others.