We Gon' Get It K-Pop It: BTOB

My first introduction to BTOB (short for Born to Beat) was through the music competition show Kingdom:Legendary War. I'll probably being mentioning it plenty, because it vastly expanded my K-pop world. Only four of the group members participated: Seo Eunk Wang, Peniel Shin, Lee Min Hyuk and Lee Chang Sub. The other two members of the group, Im Hyun Sik and Yook Sun Jae (who we will revisit in another K-dramarama) were not able to participate as they were completing their military service. For those not familiar, military service is compulsory for South Korean men (not women, yet) beginning at age 18 but can be delayed up to age 28.

Image via Mare Claire Korea

They previously had a 7th member, Jung Il Hoon, who left the group in December 2020 after an arrest for purchasing and using marijuana. He was sentenced in June 2021 to two years in prison. Which is so, so stupid, but that's a separate rant.

I don't want to spend this whole post getting into every nitty, gritty biographical detail. I'm also terrible at in depth reviews. I'm much better with how things made me feel, so that's something to get used to. If you're here for deep, musical criticism, you are definitely in the wrong place.

The group made their debut in 2012 and are especially well known for their ballads and fantastic harmonies. Prepare for their more emotional songs to really make you feel feelings.

I also really enjoy their more upbeat songs like Wow or their most recent single Outsider. Their music videos are always beautifully done and they clearly put a great deal of work and passion into their live performances, because all of the ones that I have seen are excellent and they seem like they are genuinely having a good time.

It also doesn't hurt anything that they are almost obscenely good looking and since they are in their late 20s to early 30s, I feel like way less of a creep than usual for crushing on them. I have a special soft spot for Peniel as a fellow Midwesterner (he's from Chicago), but it's impossible to pick a favorite. Ok. Maybe it's Min Hyuk. Or Eunk Wang.

If you really feel like getting all up in your feelings, then a BTOB ballad is for you. If you want to ogle attractive guys, BTOB is also for you.

Fandoms in K-pop are a whole animal of their own... I won't even begin to get into them much just yet, simply because I'm still figuring it out. However, if you're interested, BTOB's fandom is called Melody.

*Important note: I know the whole 'we gon' get it pop it' thing is from iKon's RHYTHM TA. But it's the best thing I could come up with to make my silly pun work.