“HOME”

BTS’ new album, MAP OF THE SOUL : PERSONA, nabbed over 3 million pre-orders, and the music video for lead single “Boy With Luv” is on track to set world records for its already-impressive view count. Given all this success, one might assume that the group’s seven members are strangers to sadness. The album’s standout track, “HOME,” projects an image of carefree luxury. If you were to latch onto the song’s English lyrics, you’d be forgiven for thinking this is a track about flaunting wealth and reveling in one’s come-up. But despite this talk of “big cars” and “shin[ing] with flashin’ lights,” BTS find themselves unsatisfied. “The more I fill up the emptier I get/The more I’m with people the more I feel alone,” sings Jimin in the pre-chorus. Suddenly, the song’s glossy sheen feels like a facade.

As spokespersons for South Korea at large, BTS are undoubtedly faced with an insurmountable amount of pressure to represent their country with grace. Last year, BTS leader RM released a solo single that hinted at his conflicted feelings about such a position. That song, however, was outwardly melancholic—a huge contrast to the glimmering confidence that “HOME” seems to exude.

In a sense, “HOME” represents their current situation; while the majority of the world will find this to be a cozy R&B song, BTS harbor an unseen pain. They talk about wanting to spend time with a lover and how this person makes them feel rich—at home. By the end of the song, they’re in this lover’s presence, finding comfort at last. While BTS fans have looked to their socially conscious messages for hope and inspiration, the chart-topping K-pop group make clear that they need consolation from others too, that even though they are literally the biggest band in the world right now, they’re still human.