‘We have a heavy responsibility’: BTS talks their role in fighting Asian hate

BTS expressed heartfelt emotions about their return to stage for their live concert as well as their sentiments on Asian hate and the challenges facing Asian artists.

“Is this really reality, or is this a dream?”: The K-pop band shared their enthusiasm for their first in-person concert after two years at a global press conference held on Sunday at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, reported The Korean Herald.

After their historic win in the “Artist of the Year” category at last week’s 2021 American Music Awards, BTS went on to celebrate another milestone this week by kicking off their series of live concerts at the SoFi Stadium set to end on Dec. 2.
“This is the first in-person concert that we’re having in two years, so I’m very excited, and I thought yesterday, ‘Is this really reality, or is this a dream?’” band member “Suga” expressed.
“Seeing the stadium filled with all the fans yesterday got me really emotional beyond words,” group leader RM stated. “It’s so touching, and it’s really a pleasure for me. Going back on tour, going back on track and seeing all the fans and people finally in two years really made us feel like this really is the beginning of our new chapter.”

“The invisible walls”: Despite eventually securing AMAs’ biggest award, RM expressed his group’s awareness of the barriers faced as Korean artists under the international spotlight.

“As an artist, we started out in Korea, and limitations of our identity, language, genre and the invisible walls, we felt like they really existed,” RM shared. “But in every moment, we tried to give our best to every show, every performance and every music with all of our hearts. I think those small moments truly made today’s miracle for us.”
Asked about BTS’ positive role in combating Asian hate, RM said: “About Asian hate, we always say this but we have heavy responsibility. As I said before, I wasn’t born or raised abroad. But as an Asian, through the past years and our paths, and our awards, I truly felt the wall, and the wall can’t be always described as words. Sometimes it’s visible, sometimes it’s invisible. So when we talk about Asian hate, our paths are all the awards and our music.”

Jimin also expressed the band’s feelings of powerlessness and sadness during the pandemic: “We worked hard at this, because we wanted to bring healing and consolation to everyone else who were also going through hard times and who are also living through these challenges,” he shared.
“The fact that we received so much love for these songs that we’ve created gave us a lot of energy, and we hope we can pour in this positive energy that we’ve received in doing these concerts,” Jungkook added.

Featured Image via KOREA NOW

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