VOA慢速英语2018--BTS: K-Pop in America

 

In English, the full name of BTS, the hugely popular Korean pop group, means “Bulletproof Boy Scouts¹.” And the group calls its growing base of love-struck fans its “army.”

If the past week of record-breaking moments is any sign, BTS may just be leading the most powerful army from the Korean peninsula².

The South Korean boy band on Monday reached the number-one position on the Billboard³ Top 200 music list, with the album “Love Yourself: Tear.” It became the first K-pop group in history to top the U.S. music list.

“Love Yourself: Tear” is also the first mostly foreign-language album to reach the top of the list in 12 years.

On Wednesday, their single “Fake Love” was among the top 10 songs in Billboard’s Hot 100 list, making BTS the first K-pop group to debut⁴ a song in the top 10.

The group performed “Fake Love” last week at the Billboard Music Awards, where BTS took home the award for Top Social Artist -- for the second straight year.

BTS, also known as the Bangtan Boys, was formed in 2013. Its seven members -- Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V and Jungkook -- are all in their 20s. They each have their own hairstyles, clothing choices -- and their own fans.

The reaction the band members receive on the road from mostly female⁵ fans has been compared to “Beatlemania” in the early 1960s. That was when the English rock band “The Beatles” became known around the world.

The BTS “army” has never been stronger.

K-pop in America

Of course, BTS is not the first or only K-pop group to see success in the United States.

In 2009, the girl group Wonder Girls was the first K-pop act to make the Billboard Hot 100.

The music genre⁶ started gaining wider popularity⁷ in America in 2012. That February, the girl group Girls’ Generation appeared on the popular late-night television program “The David Letterman Show.” K-pop had made its prime⁸ time American television debut.

Then came Gangnam Style.

The 2012 international megahit by Korean rapper Psy reached as high as number three on the Billboard Hot 100 list.

Psy even performed during Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin Eve in New York City to ring in 2013. He was the first K-pop act to do so.

The second? BTS, on December 31, 2017.

Today, the Gangnam Style music video has been viewed over 3 billion times on YouTube.

Other K-pop groups have also made their mark in the United States. Exo, G-Dragon, 2NE1 and BoA all have made it on the Billboard Top 200 albums list.

But none have seen success quite like BTS.

Their success matters to South Korea. They are now among the leaders of Hallyu, or “Korean Wave.” The term, which is Chinese, refers to the fast rise in popularity of Korean culture around the world, from television shows to movies to music and food.

Popular culture is a key part of South Korea’s “soft power” efforts. Former President Park Geun-hye listed developing Korea’s cultural industry among her main goals.

After BTS reached Billboard’s number-one spot, South Korean President Moon Jae-In wrote about BTS on social media.

“Their melody⁹ and lyrics¹⁰ transcend¹¹ regional borders, language, culture and institutions,” the president wrote on Facebook. “Thank you to BTS for spreading joy across Korea and the world with your great performances.”

I’m Jonathan Evans.

Words in This Story

peninsula - n. a piece of land that is almost entirely¹² surrounded by water and is attached to a larger land area

debut - n. the first time a musician, actor, group ... does something in public

megahit - n. something (such as a song) that is extremely successful

melody - n. a series of musical notes

lyrics - n. the words of a song

transcend - v. rise above or go beyond the limits

1 scouts   

侦察员[机，舰]( scout的名词复数 )； 童子军； 搜索； 童子军成员

参考例句：

• to join the Scouts 参加童子军
• The scouts paired off and began to patrol the area. 巡逻人员两个一组，然后开始巡逻这个地区。

2 peninsula   

n.半岛

参考例句：

• Dalian is in the south of the Liaodong Peninsula.大连位于辽东半岛南部。
• Korean peninsula lies to the west of Japan.朝鲜半岛在日本以西。

3 billboard   

n.布告板，揭示栏，广告牌

参考例句：

• He ploughed his energies into his father's billboard business.他把精力投入到父亲的广告牌业务中。
• Billboard spreads will be simpler and more eye-catching.广告牌广告会比较简单且更引人注目。

4 debut   

n.首次演出，初次露面

参考例句：

• That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里，他初次在百老汇登台，扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
• The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。

5 female   

adj.雌的，女(性)的；n.雌性的动物，女子

参考例句：

• We only employ female workers.我们只雇用女工。
• The animal in the picture was a female elephant.照片上的动物是头母象。

6 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。

7 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

8 prime   

adj.首要的，主要的；最好的，第一流的

参考例句：

• The prime minister spoke of the general insecurity in the country.总理谈到了全国普遍存在的不安全。
• He met with the Prime Minister of Japan for an hour.他和日本首相会见了一个小时。

9 melody   

n.旋律，曲调，悦耳的音乐

参考例句：

• She struck up a folk melody on the piano.她开始用钢琴演奏那首民歌。
• After she wrote the melody,she asked us for criticisms.她做好曲之后，请我们提意见。

10 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。

11 transcend   

vt.超出，超越(理性等)的范围

参考例句：

• We can't transcend the limitations of the ego.我们无法超越自我的局限性。
• Everyone knows that the speed of airplanes transcend that of ships.人人都知道飞机的速度快于轮船的速度。

12 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。