BTS to be studied

The first large international conference was held targeting BTS for academic research.

On April 4-5, the conference was held at Kingston University, outside London, UK under the name ‘BTS (A Global Interdisciplinary Conference Project)’. Researchers from around the world who loved BTS gathered together to analyze and exchange the ‘BTS phenomenon’.

According to Collette Balmain, Professor of Film and Media at Kingston University, the event led to more than 140 presenters at the conference.

Professor Balmain sent out papers to the academic community and social media in early August last year, with more than 200 abstracts.

Participants voluntarily gathered from more than 30 countries covered various fields such as cultural studies, psychology, anthropology, art theory, media studies, philosophy, literature, linguistics, politics, international relations, and pedagogy. Age ranges ranged from undergraduates to university professors.

They not only analyzed the contents of BTS music and video from various academic perspectives, but also looked into BTS phenomena with various prisms such as fandom culture, marketing, public diplomacy, and gender.

Original announcements include an Anglican priest who religiously highlighted the phenomenon of BTS, interpretation of BTS messages through old age thoughts, and what BTS means to Muslims.

Professor Lee Ji-young said in a keynote speech on the 4th that “BTS and Ami are like seismographs that can detect the longing of people and the subtle vibrations of the changing world.” It’s probably coincidental with the direction of “.”

“The BTS phenomenon is unprecedented in terms of the global influence of groups that don’t sing in English,” Balmain said.

Attendees were friends with them regardless of their career, social status, nationality, or field, and had a deep exchange not only academically but also emotionally.

According to Yonhap News, Professor Lee Ji-young said, “As I shared the jokes and emotions that Ami shared, it was like an old friend without saying a few words. I didn’t think I was a prominent professor.”

Professor Lee Ji-young also described the enthusiasm of the scene, “Everyone tried to listen to one more presentation by reducing the time to sleep.”

He also said that creative collaboration will be possible in the future. “I saw the possibility of interdisciplinary convergence research at this conference, where scholars from various universities around the world gathered together on a topic.”

Subsequent movements are also promoted. Balmain and others are preparing to publish a scholarly book covering the topics covered in the conference.

The conference also announced the launch of an online academic journal covering BTS and Army. It will start receiving papers in March and release the first issue in autumn.