Book Review of BTS, Art Revolution
Photo credit: Courtney Lazore
Dr. Jiyoung Lee’s book BTS, Art Revolution: BTS Meets Deleuze is an important work for BTS, ARMY, and global pop culture in general. The book highlights how BTS has successfully shaken up our expectations of what pop groups can do and discusses how they operate horizontally, in tandem with their fandom rather than above or outside it. Lee moves through a brief analysis of BTS’s socio-critical lyrics and how they have attained success through their music but also through their sincerity. She connects Deleuze’s idea of a rhizomatic system to the BTS phenomenon (think of a web, where each point has the ability to connect to any other point, with no defined center), which stands in opposition to the societal norm of vertical hierarchy. Lee argues that this destruction of the normal hierarchy in itself is cause for hope, that the “BTS-ARMY multiplicity is a symptom of the people’s political unconscious about the direction in which the world must move towards following deterritorialization from neoliberal oppression.”
Of particular interest to me was the section in Chapter 1 of Part 1 which discusses how BTS’s destruction of societal norms can be read as a form of patricide. Rather than dealing directly with the theme of patricide, their work deals more broadly with patricide at a social level as they encourage youths to fight back against what is unjust.
Lee also introduces her idea of the “network image” and uses it to describe how BTS’s art operates. BTS’s music videos, additional videos (which Lee calls “online installation videos”), and their albums all work together to create their narrative — each is a part of the whole and refers to other works in BTS’s canon. This unique structure requires more active participation from viewers. Lee uses her concept of the network image to explain how BTS’s videos exist within a network of other creations. They exist alongside BTS’s other works, but they also exist alongside works created by fans (analysis videos, reaction videos, etc). This breaks down the traditional barrier between artist and audience. Creations within this network also have “sharing value,” as seen by our ability to share and interact with content and content creators on social media via mobile technology.
Lee’s assertion of both the network image idea and BTS as rhizomatic revolution are intriguing and deserve contemplation. Though the subject matter is somewhat heavy, the book follows a logical structure and communicates its ideas clearly. To help make the book even more accessible, one of the more theoretical chapters was moved to the appendix, and readers can choose whether to pursue this more in-depth section. Do not let the subject material dissuade you from picking up this book. Even if you have no background in philosophy, it’s worth the read.
Lee’s book is certainly one that any fan of BTS can enjoy. It provides something for more casual fans, die-hard fans, and those who are simply interested in art, philosophy, or music in general. The subject matter would be harder for younger readers, but it’s definitely a great way to satisfy your intellectual curiosity. I did notice some mistakes and typos in the text (it’s very hard to turn off my “editor brain”), but these are minor and don’t take away from the overall smoothness of the translation.
BTS deserves to be taken seriously. BTS and ARMY deserve better than clickbait articles and poorly written “fan guides” published as books. This book is a step in the right direction. There are very few serious books written about BTS, but this is something we can change. It’s even better when we get good writing from actual fans. I appreciate the effort and thought that went into this book, and I hope that many fans will take the time to read and discuss.