美国国家公共电台 NPR--In the Philippines, superfans of BTS are not limited to the younger crowd

In the Philippines, superfans of BTS are not limited to the younger crowd

Transcript¹

The Korean pop group BTS is on a bit of a break right now, but their fans are not. Especially one group of fans in the Philippines — all of them of a certain age.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

The South Korean band BTS is on hiatus. But the music and the fandom goes on. NPR's Ashley Westerman takes us to the Philippines, where super fans are not limited to the younger crowd.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "PERMISSION TO DANCE")

UNIDENTIFIED MUSICAL GROUP: (Singing) I want to dance. The music's got me going...

ASHLEY WESTERMAN, BYLINE²: This may sound like a BTS concert, but it's not.

(SCREAMING)

WESTERMAN: Some 40 women have gathered in this small Korean bar in metro³ Manila to celebrate two of the group members' recent birthdays. They call themselves the Titas of BTS. And, yes, I do mean that BTS, the K-Pop global phenomenon.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "BUTTER")

BTS: (Singing) Smooth like butter, like a criminal undercover. Gon'...

DEMAI SUNIO-GRANALI: There is food and drinks for everyone, games and raffle⁴ and, you know, mingling⁵.

WESTERMAN: That's Titas of BTS founder⁶ 38-year-old Demai Sunio-Granali. She started the group in 2020 on Facebook with a handful of friends who love BTS. Since, they've grown into an online community of thousands of titas. But before we go any further, what's a tita?

SUNIO-GRANALI: An direct translation is an auntie, so somebody who is an older woman. Even if you're not a relative, you address someone who is an older female as tita out of respect.

WESTERMAN: Most of the women and men in the group are in their late 30s and above. But they call themselves titas anyway. Sunio-Granali says they all found their way to BTS through different paths, some through family members, others through friends, even their own children.

SUNIO-GRANALI: I'm a pandemic army.

WESTERMAN: Well, yes, BTS calls their fans army.

SUNIO-GRANALI: Since we didn't have to go to the office, we didn't have to go out. So the only way to waste away your time is to watch K-dramas on TV.

WESTERMAN: Korean dramas are a popular first step for many Filipinos who fall into K-Pop, which, as a genre⁷, has gripped the country in near obsession⁸. Sunio-Granali says she fell in love with a song she heard on one of these Korean dramas, which happened to be sung by a member of BTS. This led her to another one of their songs, then another, then another. And soon she realized this group was very different from anything else she'd come across.

SUNIO-GRANALI: I connected with them because of how they express themselves through lyrics⁹, how they told their story, how they describe their struggles.

WESTERMAN: Well-written lyrics are just one part of the full BTS package says fellow tita Jabba Tantay.

JABBA TANTAY: It's not just the entertainment factor. It's not just how great they dance. It's also their personalities¹⁰. It's also their relationship with each other.

WESTERMAN: Tantay says, because the titas are a little bit older, their fandom is just a little bit different.

TANTAY: When you're a teenager, it's a different kind of fangirling, right? It's more of, he's so handsome. He's - you know, he dances so well. There's a different appreciation¹¹. When you're a little bit older, you see other things. Like, we focus more on their relationships with each other. And we focus more on the way that they would convey their messages.

WESTERMAN: Tantay says, for many of their members, there is no other safe space for BTS fans of a certain age. Back at their in-person event, the diverse community these women have created is on full display.

TANTAY: I mean, all of these women are professional. Like, during the daytime, they're all serious women. They hold high-level positions in their companies. And look at them. Look at them now (laughter).

WESTERMAN: But what will they do while BTS, the thing that's brought them all together, is on break? Sunio-Granali says they'll keep the Facebook group running and will support the band until they get back together, hopefully, in 2025. But regardless of what happens to the K-Pop group, the real-world friends they've made along the way are what really matters, she says.

SUNIO-GRANALI: I would consider that the best gift that we have received from being fans of BTS. At the end of the day, you know, we're going to be left with this friendship.

WESTERMAN: Friendships that can only be described as no less than dynamite¹².

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "DYNAMITE")

BTS: (Singing) Light it up like dynamite. Whoa.

WESTERMAN: For NPR News, I'm Ashley Westerman in Manila, Philippines.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "DYNAMITE")

BTS: (Singing) Dyn-na-na-na, na-na-na-na-na, na-na-na - life is dynamite. Shining through the...

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 metro   

n.地铁；adj.大都市的；(METRO)麦德隆(财富500强公司之一总部所在地德国，主要经营零售)

参考例句：

• Can you reach the park by metro?你可以乘地铁到达那个公园吗？
• The metro flood gate system is a disaster prevention equipment.地铁防淹门系统是一种防灾设备。

4 raffle   

n.废物，垃圾，抽奖售卖；v.以抽彩出售

参考例句：

• The money was raised by the sale of raffle tickets.这笔款子是通过出售购物彩券筹集的。
• He won a car in the raffle.他在兑奖售物活动中赢得了一辆汽车。

5 mingling   

adj.混合的

参考例句：

• There was a spring of bitterness mingling with that fountain of sweets. 在这个甜蜜的源泉中间，已经掺和进苦涩的山水了。
• The mingling of inconsequence belongs to us all. 这场矛盾混和物是我们大家所共有的。

6 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

7 genre   

n.(文学、艺术等的)类型，体裁，风格

参考例句：

• My favorite music genre is blues.我最喜欢的音乐种类是布鲁斯音乐。
• Superficially,this Shakespeare's work seems to fit into the same genre.从表面上看， 莎士比亚的这个剧本似乎属于同一类型。

8 obsession   

n.困扰，无法摆脱的思想(或情感)

参考例句：

• I was suffering from obsession that my career would be ended.那时的我陷入了我的事业有可能就此终止的困扰当中。
• She would try to forget her obsession with Christopher.她会努力忘记对克里斯托弗的迷恋。

9 lyrics   

n.歌词

参考例句：

• music and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart 由罗杰斯和哈特作词作曲
• The book contains lyrics and guitar tablatures for over 100 songs. 这本书有100多首歌的歌词和吉他奏法谱。

10 personalities   

n. 诽谤，（对某人容貌、性格等所进行的）人身攻击； 人身攻击；人格, 个性, 名人( personality的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There seemed to be a degree of personalities in her remarks.她话里有些人身攻击的成分。
• Personalities are not in good taste in general conversation.在一般的谈话中诽谤他人是不高尚的。

11 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

12 dynamite   

n./vt.(用)炸药(爆破)

参考例句：

• The workmen detonated the dynamite.工人们把炸药引爆了。
• The philosopher was still political dynamite.那位哲学家仍旧是政治上的爆炸性人物。