In mid 2022, BTS announced an upcoming break from group activities. During the Festa dinner where this happened, j-hope explained, “We need time to focus on ourselves, and who we are outside of BTS. So we can come back together even stronger.” He took his own words to heart—releasing Jack in the Box the very next month. He then embarked on a whirlwind of promotions and appearances for the rest of the year, tapping heavily into the performer/entertainer side of j-hope, and put the dancing he’d gotten his start in on the back burner. By the time the year was drawing to a close and he was getting closer to his military enlistment date, he was feeling lost. He was proud of what he’d accomplished, but unsure of who he was anymore, and of what the future was going to bring. In the final few months before enlisting he was yearning to get back to his roots, and ground himself. It was time to rediscover Hoseok, the dancer who existed before BTS. It was time to get back “on the street”.

In the “Intro” to Jack in The Box we learned that j-hope sees himself as the ‘hope’ left at the bottom of Pandora’s Box. He sees it as part of his destiny to combat all the negativity in the world. But in mid 2022, as he was getting ready to release the album, j-hope found himself reflecting on what else its theme meant. Aside from representing ‘hope’, he also felt that he was the doll (the “Jack”)—previously trapped inside the box, making music from inside. But now that the box was opened, he was able to spring free and make a different kind of music—one that allowed him to express his feelings more freely. It was something he’d been working on for years. His image he had cultivated as j-hope of BTS was one of laughter, positivity, and bright music. But as the group announced a break in their activities during that year’s FESTA, so the members could focus on solo efforts for a while, Hobi knew it was his time to step away from that image, and show his fans that there was more to j-hope than meets the eye. He wanted to show us that his ‘hope’ had evolved.

2018 was quite the year for j-hope. Not only did it mark the release of his first mixtape, HOPE WORLD, it also saw BTS negotiate an early (and very beneficial) contract renewal for the group. They had spent the previous year burning their collective candle at both ends, resulting in some very serious burnout amongst the members. The next few years saw monumental growth for BTS—both in artistic achievement and in global popularity. Though the COVID-19 Pandemic forced them to cancel a world tour and pivot all of their plans for 2020 and beyond, the way they used their time and platform during the lockdown to help their fans cope was nothing short of heroic inspiration. They gave us hope—which, after all, was j-hope’s entire mission statement. But the amount of energy he (and the others) gave away during that time was not without a price. The Pandemic caused both frustration and inspiration for j-hope, leading ultimately to the creation of his next solo project, JACK IN THE BOX.

Dance Leader. Rapper. Producer. Songwriter. Sunshine. Mood-maker. Happy Virus. Hob-ah. Jung Hoseok, the most mercurial member of BTS, is known by many names. He’s a man full of contradictions—unpredictable, yet steadfast… unfailingly cheerful, yet focused and deliberate… infinitely cool and swaggy, yet afraid of bugs—the list goes on. He was born on February 18, 1994 in Gwangju, South Korea, where he lived with his parents and older sister where he began studying hip hop and street dance at a young age. His foundation in dance instilled in him both fluidity and discipline and these qualities, plus his natural desire to work hard, helped him to quickly adapt to life at Big Hit Entertainment after joining in 2010. There, with the help of fellow trainees, he honed his voice, learning the fundamentals of rapping and songwriting, and adapted them to his own style. Over the next few weeks, we’ll watch Jung Hoseok become j-hope—continually leading the way and adapting the world around him to fit his own style, and inspiring his fans and fellow BTS members to do the same. From the early days all the way through revisiting his roots through the NEURON dance team, though he’s presented the image of an ever changing chameleon, his message to all of us has never wavered even for a moment: “I’m your hope, you’re my hope. I’m j-hope.”

From the moment he decided he wanted to be a Rapper, Min Yoongi began fighting to prove himself—whether it was to his parents, fellow musicians, or even himself—he was determined to make his mark on the world and show everyone exactly what he was capable of. He faced opposition time and time again, and over the years, SUGA poured his feelings of anger and frustration into writing his music—both in BTS and on his solo albums. By the time Yoongi was well into the creation process for D-DAY, he had learned from all the obstacles placed in his path, and turned them into lessons for moving forward toward the future. His determination became no longer driven by pride and anger, but rather by acceptance, gratitude, and love. At the outset, D-DAY, much like Yoongi’s previously released solos, comes in fast and hard, hurtling us down a familiar path. But as the album progresses, it becomes increasingly obvious that Yoongi, while creating it, not only found his dreams again, but that he wanted to help others do the same.

“You become an adult the moment you stop dreaming.” We know that SUGA had to grow up quicker than the other members of BTS. Given that his parents didn’t support his choice to pursue a music career, he was largely providing for himself before he had even left Daegu to come to Seoul—before he was even out of high school. This is a mindset that never really left SUGA, even long after BTS debuted and started to become successful. By the time the Pandemic hit and he released D-2 in 2020, SUGA (both in his solo music and with BTS) had done what he needed to do to get where he suddenly found himself—reaching new heights of fame and celebrity. And he found himself no longer dreaming. In 2021 he began working on his next solo project. His youth was behind him, how would he navigate creativity in his thirties? He realized he’d need to leave the past behind, but how? How could he acknowledge the loss of his youthful outlook, and still embrace himself with grace and acceptance in the now? The answer was simple enough—he would need to take a long look in the mirror at his scars, and then say… “D-Day’s coming, it’s a fucking good day…”

The four years between 2016 and 2020 were full of huge successes and massive change for BTS. They began making a name for themselves outside of South Korea—winning at American award shows and climbing the Billboard charts. Their schedule was brutal, constant recording and travel around the globe with little to no rest was fruitful for their career, but at what cost? Burnout became the elephant in the room, and, in 2018, the members of BTS almost called it quits. They worked it out—along with a delicate contract renegotiation—and came out stronger on the other side. Throughout it all, SUGA continued to write music, recording the ways in which he felt himself changing alongside the group. On May 22, 2020, AGUST D dropped D-2, his second mixtape. The main theme of the album is feeling stuck while trying to explore one’s own humanity. Though it was written before, it felt relevant to present times, as the entire world was experiencing its own sense of arrested development in the face of a global pandemic.

Have you ever met someone who you felt seemed particularly meant to live the life they were living? When we talk about our “seven normal boys from Korea” we often throw around words like “fate” and “destiny”, because it truly feels like there was some sort of grand cosmic plan to bring them together into one group. But there is, perhaps, one member of BTS who seems more intrinsically bound to the creation of music than any of the others. One whose origins were ill-suited to provide support for seeking a career in entertainment, but whose determination and drive also made it impossible for him to pursue anything else. And with a name that literally translates to “gloss” or “shine”, he was clearly pre-destined for greatness. Over the next few weeks, we’ll explore the rise of Min Yoongi… from “Gloss” of D-Town to SUGA of BTS to solo rapper AGUST D. We’ll see how a fierce determination to prove his worth led him to make unlikely choices that could have blown up in his face, but ultimately instead helped him discover his dreams, and face his demons.

Is there anything better than celebrating the holiday season with our loved ones? I know I look forward to rewatching FM 06.13’s holiday specials each year, listening to Jung Kook sing, “O, Holy Night”, as well as seeing him and Jimin do their karaoke version of V’s “Winter Bear”. Also, who doesn’t love the “Please Santa” episode of “Run BTS!”? They’re all so cute in their Santa hats… Oh. Did you think I meant, like, your actual friends and family? This is awkward. No, I definitely meant BTS. And ARMY, of course. Who better to shake some tinsel and deck the halls with? Join us this week as we do something a little bit different. In order to bring 2024 to a close, we decided to compile and share everything BTS and its members have done over the years to celebrate the holiday season with us. From their very early collaborations with other Big Hit artists, to the current benevolent stranglehold Kim Taehyung has on the holiday season, BTS is always there for us this time of year, giving us all the things “merry and bright”.