美籍華裔半導體行業傳奇人物在美中芯片戰中左右為難半導體行業傳奇人物尹志堯離開美國，在中國耕耘18年，他說自己一手打造的公司會躋身芯片製造設備領域的全球強者之列。如今在美國的限制措施之下，這位美國公民的畢生事業陷入了不確定性。
In an age of despair and division, how has a boy band from South Korea become one of the most popular groups in history?
“To continue ignoring the BTS phenomenon was to risk missing something bigger than Beatlemania,” E. Tammy Kim writes, in a captivating piece about her dive into the world of the Korean boy band BTS. Fans, who identify as members of BTS’s ARMY—which stands for “Adorable Representative M.C. for Youth”—are spread across the world, in more than a hundred countries and territories. They’ve created choreography tutorials, written monographs, and fought for change in causes that they perceive as aligning with BTS’s values. In one famous example, fans registered for a Donald Trump rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with no plans to attend, causing an embarrassment for the former President when the turnout was much lower than expected. When Kim asked ARMY members why they were so devoted, they responded, “Because they do so much for us.” Kim combs through nine years’ worth of music and material, talks to fans and experts, and attends the band’s last concert, in Las Vegas, before its recently announced break, in an attempt to answer the simple question: Why is BTS so popular?
—Jessie Li, newsletter editor
Behind the Story |
The writer E. Tammy Kim recently published a piece about how BTS became arguably the most popular band in history. I caught up with Kim to talk about her journey with the group. What was your first introduction to BTS? What made you realize that this was a story you wanted to pursue? I started noticing a few years ago that K-pop fandom was being eclipsed by a more specific BTS ARMY fandom. But I sort of ignored it—thinking of myself as someone who reported on more “respectable” Korean topics—until I realized how silly that was. This is the biggest band in the world! Devoted fans describe BTS as a form of self-care and therapy; they talk about how the band “saved” them, and how they “do so much for us.” How would you describe the special allure of BTS that distinguishes them from other bands, including other Korean boy bands? There’s an intensely felt reciprocity between BTS and its fans. The members produce daily content, and shout-out and interact with fans on a very emotional level, which leads fans, in turn, to want to give back. If you had to devise a mixtape of just three BTS songs or music videos, for a novice listener, what would you pick and why? The music videos for “Black Swan,” “IDOL,” and “ON” are aesthetically thrilling and convey the band’s musical and choreographic range. Read the full interview for an inside look at what it was like to attend the band’s final performance on their “Permission to Dance” tour, and to find out Kim’s favorite member of the band. |
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