CHINESE BTS FANS CELEBRATE ANNIVERSARY

[Anchor Lead]

China has been openly banning the import of Korean pop culture ever since the U.S. stationed its terminal high altitude area defense system in Sangju, Korea. However, Chinese BTS fans have gathered to celebrate the upcoming 8th anniversary of the boy band’s debut. It remains to be seen whether they can spark another wave of Korean pop culture in China.

[Pkg]

When BTS was on a world concert tour, China was not one of the stops. The K-pop band's remarks made after receiving the Van Fleet Award in 2020 caused controversy in China. It’s not surprising that Hallyu or the Korean wave is still a taboo word in that country.

[Soundbite] "BTS, we purple you! (We love you!)"

Ahead of the boy's 8th anniversary of their debut, the largest BTS fan club in China held a special festival, together with the Korea Tourism Organization. Singing along in Korean was a given for these Chinese fans. They know all the dance moves.

[Soundbite] Liu Singyi(BTS Fan) : "I was able to find what I want to do and set my goal because of you, BTS. Thank you."

They even made a map and video featuring all the filming locations of BTS music videos or the shops they visited.

[Soundbite] Chun(BTS Fan) : "I want to go to the comics shop where Tae-hyung and Ji-min went. I didn’t know much about Korea before, but now that I love BTS, I want to know more about the country."

The KTO focused on this point. These fans not only love BTS, but also are interested in anything Korean. So the KTO is getting ready for the post-pandemic influx of Chinese tourists.

[Soundbite] Yu Jin-ho(Head, Beijing Office, KTO) : "BTS fans go to the restaurants and stores that the members visited. So we concluded that targeting the fans for tourism publicity would be more effective."

To mark the 30th anniversary of the two country's diplomatic ties next year, 2021 and 2022 have been designated the Years of Cultural Exchanges between Seoul and Beijing. This could be a good opportunity to start exporting Korean contents to China again. This fan event clearly validated the soaring popularity of BTS in China and also helped assess the possibility of a renewed K-culture boom.