The best of BTS on Disney Plus

At the start of their decade-long career, fans of Korean group BTS couldn’t just switch on a Western streaming service like Disney Plus and stream concerts or behind-the-scenes documentaries featuring their favorite musical artists. Not only did Disney Plus not exist in 2013, but the Bangtan Boys didn’t have the resources that allowed them easy industry exposure in Korea, let alone on the other side of the planet, in the world’s biggest music market. Back then, BTS was an underdog group coming out of Big Hit Entertainment, a small music company rather than one of Korea’s “Big Three” music corporations (JYP, SM, and YG) that got most of the mainstream exposure. Because of this, much of BTS’s early fan interaction — especially internationally — came via their own YouTube channel, where they connected with fans via vlogs even before their official “debut” as a group.

Today, BTS is the biggest band in the world — even as they take a break from group activities to focus on solo music and complete their mandatory military service. Big Hit Entertainment grew into a large media organization called HYBE. Although they still distribute a lot of their content through YouTube (the global reach also led HYBE, with its Weverse web platform, to become a media corporation), occasionally other platforms have been involved in distribution agreements. Disney Plus is the biggest deal. It launched in the last quarter of 2019, and it is available to 60 countries.

Last July, HYBE announced a collaboration deal with Disney that would see “five major content titles” from the Korean music company get distribution on the global streaming platform. Disney Plus released four out of five BTS titles less than a full year after the announcement. Whether you’re a BTS fan who has yet to dive fully into BTS’ story or simply a Disney Plus subscriber who is curious about the band that has taken over the world, here is a guide to what you can learn about the K-pop superstars on the streaming platform.

BTS: Permission to Dance on Stage — LA

Image: BIGHIT Music & HYBE

Recommended for: BTS Fans are all BTS.

BTS have been renowned in the K-pop world for their energetic and creative live performances. BTS The Permission to Perform on the Stage LAThe movie gives home viewers a feel of what it’s like to see one of these performances live. The concert movie, directed by Sam Wrench and Jun-Soo Park, was filmed at SoFi Stadium in late November 2022, at the group’s first in-person concert series in over two years.

The Permission to Dance on Stage tour, named after a 2021 track, would run for 11 nights across Inglewood’s SoFi Stadium, Seoul’s Jamsil Olympic Stadium, and Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium. The band’s discography included more than 200 songs, so they had a wide range of options when it came time to select which tracks would appear in the show. Notably, for “PTD on Stage,” BTS prioritized songs that included all seven members rather than interspersing the setlist with solo tracks that would allow the other members to rest. The result is more than two hours of some of the world’s top performers tirelessly doing what they do best.

In the Soop, Friendcation

Image: Disney

Recommended for: BTS Fans who are looking to chill out or pretend that they’re on holiday in Korea.

The Soop, which translates fully to “In the Forest,” is a reality series that sees the members of BTS escape to the Korean countryside to enjoy a period of rest and relaxation. It was also the eighth-most tweeted show worldwide in 2021. Two seasons of the original show were released in both 2020 and 2021. They featured all seven actors. In the Soop, FriendcationThe spin-off is about BTS V, who goes on a trip with his four famous friends. They are actors Park Seo Joon (the MCU upcoming film) Marvels, Itaewon Class), Choi Woo-shik (Train to Busan: ParasitePark Hyung Sik (The HeirsPeakboy is a hip-hop artist.

This group of friends formed in 2016 during production of the K-drama Hwarang: the Poet Warriors YouthIt even has a name. The friends go by “Wooga Squad,” which is short for the phrase “Are we family?” in Korean. It is a short form of the Korean phrase “Are We Family?” Friendship, they go on a four-day trip to Goseong, where they eat steamed buns, go fishing on the ocean, sing karaoke, and watch the latest episode of Choi’s The Summer We Love together. It’s the least plot-driven of the Disney Plus offerings, but that’s kind of the point. These four episodes would be perfect for a rainy, slow weekend.

J-Hope In The Box

Image: Disney

Recommended for:BTS enthusiasts who would like to learn more about the process of creating BTS performances.

Then there was a point J-Hope In The Box, BTS’ rapper and dancer J-Hope remarks to the camera that he devoted the entirety of his 20s to BTS. It’s not a comment made with regret or nostalgia. It’s just a simple statement. You can learn more about it here.. When the members of BTS announced to the world they would be taking a break from group activities in order to rest, undertake mandatory military service, and pursue solo projects, it was framed as necessary for the long-term sustainability of the world’s biggest band. The members of BTS wanted to experiment and grow outside the context of BTS.

The following is a list of the most recent and relevant articles. Jack in the Box, J-Hope’s first solo album, released in July 2022, he did just that in brave and surprising ways. He does it again with J-Hope In The Box, which allows the artist to be the sole main character in the film’s story to a degree that wasn’t really possible during BTS’ first chapter. (It’s fascinating to see the other members appear as supporting characters — as J-Hope’s dear friends and his oldest work colleagues — in J-Hope’s story.) This 85-minute film gives a rare depth of access into J-Hope’s work process and family life; explores the immense preparation that went into preparing for Jack in the BoxIt is the perfect way to recreate his legendary Chicago performance.

The Road to D-Day

Image: Disney

Recommended for: BTS fans who are curious about what goes into BTS’ music-writing process.

If you’ve paid attention to the “hiatus” work of BTS member Suga, then you may have noticed how much of it is about searching for advice on how to sustain a career as an artist across a lifetime. The 30-year-old BTS musician, performer, and producer has now been in the group for 10 years. He has a solo tour coming up and will be doing his mandatory military service afterward. But he seems to have every intention of dedicating himself to music.

You can also find out more about the following: Road to D-Day — a feature-length documentary about the writing of Suga’s most recent album, D-Day — We get to see why the rapper, producer, and musician does what he’s doing, his struggles, and those who inspire him. In one of the doc’s most moving scenes, Suga travels to Japan to meet one of his musical heroes: Ryuichi Sakamoto, the Oscar-winning Japanese composer who passed away in April. (The two collaborated on a track called “Snooze” for D-Day.) While the entire documentary is fascinating, I won’t be forgetting about this moment — which sees two generations of world-changing musicians meet and appreciate music together — anytime soon.

BTS Monuments Beyond the Star

Photo: Lester Cohen/WireImage

Recommended for: BTS fans who want to relive the story of the group’s rise to global superstardom.

Released but not yet available BTS Monuments Beyond the Star is a docu-series that will tell the story of BTS, with “unprecedented access to a vast library of music and footage over the past nine years.” While BTS’ story has been chronicled in many places, there has yet to be an official attempt from Big Hit Entertainment/HYBE to create a docu-series that tells the story of their career. The time could have come. With BTS set to turn 10 in June 2023, this summer would be a perfect time to start releasing this chronicle of their story so far…