Protected: Perception of soft masculinity amongst young Bruneian men: a qualitative study of Malay K-pop fanboys
Protected: Casi Cielo: by fans for fans
Protected: Be The Seed
Exploring the Map of the Soul: Reflection and BTS
Jasmine @JJGotTheJams
BTS have inspired millions to examine Jung’s theories, some of the more notable discussions include examinations of the Ego, The Persona and the Shadow; but how do BTS go about disseminating their reflections on Jung’s theories? In some instances BTS use recurring images and symbols. In this video essay Jasmine explores how BTS use reflections, portraiture and mirror imagery to confront ideas of their own Egos, Personas and Shadows and, in some cases, the very audience that watches them.
Jasmine introduces a new framework to look at BTS through how they use reflections in storytelling. She employs three main paradigms to various reflections in BTS related media and examines what these modes of expression attempt to portray to the audience.
Supplementary blog post and additional reading here
About the Author
Jasmine comes from a film and visual cultures background. She shares her thoughts and ideas on her YouTube channel; JJ Got The Jams.
BTS x UNICEF “Love Myself” Campaign: same message, different interpretation from K-pop fandoms
Mathieu Berbiguier

Abstract
September 14, 2018, marked a milestone in the history of K-pop when RM, the leader of BTS, delivered a powerful speech in front of the UN General Assembly. As a representative of “Love Myself,” a campaign launched in partnership with the UNICEF, but also as a continuation of the message BTS conveyed through their “Love Yourself” trilogy, RM encouraged his auditors to “speak [them]selves (…) no matter who [they] are, where [they’re] from, [their] skin color, gender identity.” The fact that RM mentioned gender identity, even briefly, was quite inspirational for a lot of ARMYs. They kept relaying this sentence through social media, making BTS appear as advocates of LGBTQ+ human rights. Interestingly, this kind of reaction was mainly from fans outside of Korea. This shows a fundamental paradox present in K-pop and K-pop fandoms: an entity of Korean popular culture elaborated in a heteronormative and conservative society that challenges gender dynamics at a worldwide scale. This paper aims at looking in depth through this paradox by using research methods and concepts from three different fields of study – Korean Cultural Studies, Gender Studies, and Digital Humanities. By crossing data from on-site interviews of fans and a data science-based analysis of tweets from ARMYs, this paper will focus on two interrelated questions: (1) What are the innovative industrial techniques and characteristics of BTS differing from other K-pop idols that enables them to interject in gender social activism? (2) How have differences between BTS’s domestic versus international fandom cultures enabled this gender activism?
About the Author
Mathieu Berbiguier is a third-year Ph. D. student in Asian Languages & Cultures (Korean Cultural Studies major). He recently started two concentrations in Gender Studies and Digital Humanities. Mathieu received an MA from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (Seoul, South Korea), and a BA from University Paris Diderot (France) – both in Korean Studies. Before moving to LA, he lived for five years in Seoul. His research interests revolve around Korean Popular Culture and its expansion around the world with a particular focus on the relationship between K-pop fandoms.
Giving Back, One ARMY at a Time
One In An Army

Introduction
Two years ago, our founder took to Twitter to see if any ARMY would be interested in working on a campaign for #EndViolence, #LoveMyself, or a Syrian relief project. The tweet caught the interest of the fandom, and a group of volunteers came together to turn One In An ARMY from an idea to reality. Since our inception, the goal of OIAA has been to focus on what we can do to help or overcome an issue. We aim to spread positivity and motivate ARMY to come together and use their influence for global good.
Our team is comprised of volunteers within the age range of 19-42, hailing from many different parts of the world.
Purpose
The purpose of our platform is to harness the power of ARMY’s influence and channel it into social good. There are a large number of organizations around the world that are working on ground to support people affected by social, political, economic, or natural mishappenings. These organizations, though small, are pivotal in helping people provide support to those in need.
Believing that even $1 can be helpful and contribute to the larger pool of support, OIAA wants to bring ARMY together and create a substantial change in people’s lives through smaller and doable efforts. Each time a new ARMY joins the chain, the impact gets bigger. This is the reason we like to focus on microdonations.
The PPT shared will help the audience understand our vision, approach, our process (Research, Creative, SNS, Outreach) and the campaigns we have run till now. We have also included a campaign example to showcase how the collective efforts of different teams bring a charity project to life.
This PPT will also highlight the impact ARMY have been making through independent charities.
Background
It’s been two years since we launched our first project. OIAA, through internal discussion or with the help of ARMY, selects a cause for a particular month and then shortlists the organization that we will support through our monthly campaign. For members’ birthday, the approach may vary but the cause is selected through ARMY voting. Here are the list of organizations we have worked with till now:
2018:
- Medical Teams International
- SyriaCare
- Love Myself Campaign
- Thirst Relief
- Korean Kids and Orphanage Outreach Mission (KKOOM)
- Gili Eco Trust
- MindLeaps International
- Cuatro Por Venezuela
- Purple Community Fund
2019:
- Children’s Healing Art Project
- Transforming Faces
- Playing for Change Foundation
- International Railroad for Queer Refugees
- Pets for the Elderly
- Helen Bamber Foundation
- Hug It Forward
- Za’atar NGO
- Pazapa Centre for Children With Disabilities
- Animal Aid Unlimited
2020:
- 100Cameras
- Outside Looking In
- Key Changes
Covid Relief Campaign
- Medical Teams International
- Thirst Relief
- Korean Kids Orphanage and Outreach Mission
- MindLeaps
- Cuatro Por Venezuela
- Purple Community Fund
- Children’s Healing Art Project
- Playing for Change
- 100Cameras
BTS Anniversary Campaign
- The Global FoodBanking Network
ARMY Anniversary Campaign
- Clowns Without Borders
Special Projects
- City Harvest (Citifield project)
- Magic Breakfast (James Corden project)
- Food Bank 4 NYC (Jimmy Fallon project)
- CDC Foundation (James Corden project)
- Freerice (World Food Programme project)
- ShareTheMeal (WFP Project)
- OneTreePlanted (We Purple Earth project)
Objectives
OIAA serves as a mediator between the organizations we select and ARMY to provide the former with a medium, to reach out to our action-driven fanbase, and the latter with a platform, where ARMY can access all the information about the organization, its history, and the ways to contribute.
The platform-centric approach allows us to maintain transparency with the money going directly to the organization and no part of it being handled by us.
We consider research and awareness as important objectives but to make sure that we are measuring the efforts that ARMY put through their participation, we focus on tangible impact. Tangible impact is therefore the core criteria behind our vetting process.
Another objective that OIAA aims to fulfill is to highlight ARMY’s initiatives. We have campaigns like AnpanARMY Day where we ask ARMY to share the act of kindness which they or their fellow ARMYs might have participated in. As much data as we are able to gather from ARMY through forms is reflected on our ARMY Map, that shows the work of our beautiful fandom in different parts of the world.
This PPT will highlight ARMY’s contribution beyond the monetary donations and their participation in OIAA campaigns.
Participants
The participants in the creation of the presentation are the volunteers from OIAA.
Results
As per the data collected from ARMY, the fandom recorded participation in 707 projects. Till August 1, 2020, ARMY have donated a total of $3,546,978. This figure includes donations via independent charity projects and through OIAA campaigns.
As mentioned earlier, ARMY don’t only help with monetary donations. We have a form that allows ARMY to share the details of the projects they run and that can also include donating physical supplies, blood, hair, food, and several other items. Here is the summary for 2018, 2019, and 2020 (so far):
For 2020, we are yet to update the number of projects we run for the side activities and donations that ARMY give, excluding monetary donations. We will soon share the complete report.
Conclusion
Every contribution matters. We are very well aware that not everyone can provide monetary donation and hence, we have projects using apps like Freerice and Ecosia where ARMY play games and help contribute essential items to the people who need them. We hope that when ARMY see the PPT and the reports that we have shared, they will understand the massive impact they have helped create. We want to just reiterate what Namjoon once said, teamwork makes the dream work. You are One in an ARMY and collectively we are ARMY, the force that can bring a positive change in the world.
Future
OIAA strives to reach every country and provide support in whichever way we can. We want to use our platform to motivate ARMY, who are looking for opportunities, to work with the non-profit organizations we have launched campaigns for, or any non-profit organization for that matter. Eventually, we want to work with ARMY to create a purple net of positivity.
ARMY Events with BTSPurpleLights
BTSPurpleLights
Hello, ARMY!
Thank you for joining us for our text presentation on the benefits of ARMY events. We understand that this year has been challenging and many of us have had to adjust our plans given our current situations. In difficult times, it can be comforting to look back on happy memories and think of the things that bring joy to our lives. For the BTSPurpleLights team, hosting meetups, events, and projects for BTS ARMY in support of our boys has always been something we’ve enjoyed. Creating this presentation about the benefits of coming together as an ARMY team for special events brought back wonderful memories and excitement for the future. We hope that you will enjoy this presentation and find it useful to you as well in creating more happy memories and working with ARMY to support OT7 BTS.
Purple Always,
Lexi, Jenny, Oli & Kayla
@BTSPurpleLights Planning Committee
Song: BTS Mashup by Goalsounds. Original songs by BTS, BigHit Entertainment.
No copyright infringement intended. All rights to rightful owners.
Song used for illustrative purposes. BTSPurpleLights does not claim copyrights to the song used in this presentation.
Photos by: Lexi H. & Oli_5 from BTSPurpleLights events (and our former fanbase events)
About the Authors
- Lexi H. – BTSPurpleLights Director
- Oli_5 – Social Media & Video team, Planning Committee
- Jenny Everhart – Planning Committee
- Kayla – Planning Committee
- @BTSPurpleLights Information Team
BTS Inspired Handmade Soap!
Dawn Baker
Hello! My name is Dawn Baker and I am the owner, creator and soap goddess of Craft of The Raven. I love making beautiful artisan soaps that are wonderful for your skin, but also look gorgeous! Once I discovered BTS, the creative gears wouldn’t stop turning and I just had to get my ideas out.
I made my first BTS inspired soap BOY WITH LUV and I fell in love with it. I was so proud and wanted to share with ARMY. So far I’ve done 10 soaps with more coming in the future!
About the Author
Dawn Baker, Craft Of The Raven soaps. Just a working mom who loves to sing, dance and make soap. Who fell in love with her art and THEN discovered BTS, which in turn made her art even MORE fun.