Speaker 1  0:07  
There's a certain all encompassing joy that is unique to being a fan of something, no matter how obscure or niche, finding something that resonates with you, whether that be music, art or sports, and sharing it with others is absolutely exhilarating. And then there's another all encompassing joy that is unique to being a kpop fan.

Speaker 1  0:39  
It takes a certain level of devotion and admiration to completely immerse yourself into a genre of music that's primarily made a language that you don't even understand. And it takes a certain level of skill, talent, dedication training, to have your music transcend global and geographical barriers and connect with millions of people all over the world. But what I think sets Kpop fans apart from a lot of other loyal and dedicated fan bases, is a sense of community that is fostered within itself. My name is Nika and I love Kpop. Today, I wanted to do a deep dive into the different communities that came to be as a result of Kpop and the different ways they've manifested themselves

Speaker 2  1:29  
We both looked at each other and we're like, "oh my god, if this is what BTS feel like and if this is maybe even just a fraction of what BTS feels like, I don't know how BTS does it"

Speaker 3  1:47  
I think 2021 was the year that things really popped off because before that, it was Kpop clubnight and then just random cup sleeves here in the air. Not even frequently, but 2021 I think it was just that energy of BTS finally making something after like the map of the soul tour got cancelled, like permission to dance. The tour coming out everybody just had like an itch to share their love for BTS as did week. 

Unknown Speaker  2:23  
That was Jules Lee. She is a major BTS fan. It is one of the things that brought her and her sister Marissa closer together especially during the pandemic. They actually became armies which is what BTS is fan bases called during the lockdown. The pandemic brought along some lonely and isolating times for everybody but especially for Jules and Marissa, who were dying to share their love of BTS with other army. And so near the end of 2021. Out of pure love and admiration for BTS, and the need to share the love of BTS with others, Marissa and Jules came up with the idea for Bangtan Ball. It was actually during the fifth rewatch of BTS' Permission to Dance L.A. Day 4 show. Their mission statement was simple and sincere: "For ARMYs, by ARMYs"

Speaker 2  3:11  
We weren't really paying attention, we were kind of just talking. And I think it was maybe like dynamite or butter came on. And we were struck. We were dancing on the couch. And we were just bopping along and I think I had said to Jules like, "Oh, I wish we like we're not club people. But I wish we could dance with other ARMY. And then Jules was like, "Well, why don't we just do that? Like we can do that." And literally within the next 15-20 minutes, we were looking at venues and like coming up with all these ideas and it was just a free form brainstorming that then just turned into "okay, we really legitimately need to do this" seems this would be totally amazing. So not anything that we've ever done before. Very not our personality, but I don't know it was it was like BTS just inspired us.

Speaker 4  4:06  
And so on June 30 2022 When summer had just begun and COVID restrictions had just been lifted for good. Jules and Marissa hosted their first BTS dance party at Clinton's in downtown Toronto.

Speaker 3  4:22  
Yeah, I remember we also brought like, just a tiny fan, like house fan, and we put it on stage and Marissa at one point like picked it up and was like aiming it at the crowd because Clintons also is like a venue with pretty low ceilings and because everybody was jumping and dancing. It got so hot in there. So not only were we just tired, it was like hot like a sauna. But it was a good time.

Speaker 4  4:54  
It seems like Kpop really took off in the later half of the 2010s, with groups like BTS embarking on world tours in 2018, and powerhouse quartet Blackpink making their debut. K-pop's impact was felt tremendously.  it is almost unavoidable now. You'll hear New Jeans at the gym and you'll see Jennie from BLACKPINK in her Calvin's and you'll see Jungkook topping the charts with his solo album. It is inescapable, especially in the world of dance, according to professional dancer, Jasmin Yeung,

Speaker 5  5:35  
it's a lower barrier to entry in terms of yeah, sometimes the choreography is so simple, it's just arm movements kind of thing. And so even when you're at home, you're just watching the video, you can kind of learn it and sort of know it. And then once you get your body moving a little bit and start feeling it's like oh, okay, maybe I can dance. Maybe I can try dance class. Maybe from there, I'll like get better and be able to learn it faster kind of thing. And so it, it was really helpful in that sense, because sometimes like, I get it Hip Hop looks so like, everyone just says like, oh, hip hop's too cool. I'm not cool enough for hip hop kind of thing. And Hip Hop and choreography. Just Just that alone is just it's so much more welcoming.

Speaker 4  6:26  
Jasmin is the owner of vibe studios in Markham, Ontario. She'd been dancing there since 2003. And when she took over the studio in 2016, talks of offering KPOP Dance specific classes were already in the air. She says that Kpop has become an introduction into the world of dance, a gateway that was important to her as a dancer growing up, except for Jasmine, instead of Kpop. Her gateway to dance was ABDC-- America's Best Dance Crew. Regardless, she sees herself and a lot of the students that attend vibes Kpop classes. And by learning the choreography of their favorite k pop song, students begin to feel connected to something bigger than themselves.

Speaker 5  7:04  
Especially in my area like and Markham, I feel like we're still, you know, very much not as expressive, in terms of just most of our market is is mostly Asian, female, and they're, I think they're discovering Kpop in a time where they're also trying to figure out themselves and discover themselves and break out of their shells literally like me as a teenager, you can see when they start to take classes, super shy, like super shy in terms of like trying to take a class and, and they're just like, nervous, which is great in my eyes, because it means they took that step, that first step is the most like difficult and hardest thing is to get to the studio. Once you're in there, like our goal as a studio is to really, really create that community kind of feel and, and create a safe and supportive space, especially in our be in our classes. So once they get through that door, our hope is you know, with, with kind of the feeling and an atmosphere that we create, that they'll feel safe enough to explore this new thing that they already know that they love to listen to and to watch and now hopefully that they can dance with it as well.

Speaker 4  8:39  
Jules and Marisa have also created their own sense of community with Bonton ball, the number of friendships that have been formed because of their events. And the amount of people that have been brought together because of Bonton ball is still continuing to grow. Marissa says she kind of feels like what it must feel like to be RM, the leader of BTS

Speaker 4  9:00  
I feel like RM I feel like I don't know I feel like RM as a leader of BTS is so he holds so much like accountability for him and the team members. I also feel a certain amount of that as Bonton ball. And it's not to say that we feel pressure. I think we do what we do because we love it so much. But I do feel now like a sense of Yeah, like responsibility. And also just like a pure joy from it like because Aram will often talk about the what what he does in that manner. Like he feels not an obligation or responsibility. It's his duty but he also just loves it. I really feel like that and I think it's so special. It makes me feel that we are that army is Important.

Speaker 2  10:00  
Yeah, people ask us all the time why we do what we do, because the people that know know that throwing these events is a lot more work than it seems on the surface. And it really is just because we love army so much. And seeing army, being able to connect with other army and like fulfill those dreams of like having that friend group filling that pup is so gratifying. It's just really cool.

Speaker 4  10:34  
I think that at the end of the day, anyone who's a fan of anything can appreciate and cherish the community that it builds over time. It's an incredibly sincere and genuine bond that makes you feel connected to something and someone that's so much bigger than you.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai