Resources

This is a Highlights & On-site Interviews presented by Mikrokosmos Vilage which is a channel created to connect BTS ARMYs around the world.

Dr. Youngdae Kim is a music critic and author, holding a Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology from the University of Washington, Seattle. Born and raised in South Korea, he lived in the US from 2007 to 2020 where he studied music while observing and documenting the evolution of global K-pop over a decade. Kim has contributed his critical articles to both Korean and American media, including Vulture, MTV, and the Hankyoreh, and appeared on numerous TV/radio shows, podcasts, and public/academic lectures globally. He is the author of multiple books, including BTS The Review: The Comprehensive Look at the Music of BTS (2019) and Idols as Artists in the K-pop Era (2021).

Dr. Colette Balmain is a senior Lecturer in Media and Communication at Kingston University. She specializes in East Asian cinema and cultures and has written numerous articles and reviews focussing in on identity politics, aesthetics, and ideology. Her first book was Introduction to Japanese horror film (EUP: 2008) and she is currently working on an edited collection on BTS as well as a monograph with a working title, Beyond the symbolic: performativity, authenticity, emotionality as feminist masculinity in BTS. She also writes for London Korean Links, View of the Arts, easternKicks.com and Asian Movie Pulse.

Dr. Jeeheng Lee is currently teaching film & cultural studies at Chung-Ang University and also a member of the Video Subcommittee for the Korea Media Rating Board(KMRB). Her recent publication is BTS and ARMY Culture(2019) & Femidology(2022).

Dr. Byongjin Ahn is Professor in the Global Academy for Future Civilizations at Kyung Hee University in Seoul, Korea. He is formerly rector at Global Academy for Future Civilizations. He is currently co-representative at People for Earth. He is also an op-ed columnist for Joongang Daily Newspaper and guest commentator for the Korean Broadcasting System(KBS).