BTS made their way to Los Angeles to give fans a special fan experience at the iHeartRadio LIVE with BTS presented by HOT TOPIC. The eccentric group is gearing up to release their new album MAP OF THE SOUL: 7 on February 21st, but before they do they held a Q&A session with their Los Angeles BTS Army.
The event, hosted by 102.7KIIS FM’s Jojo Wright was kicked off with a sweet tribute to retried NBA star Kobe Bryant who tragically passed Sunday (Jan 26th) in Calabasas, California. Although the overwhelming feeling in the City of Angels was sadness, Sunday left much to celebrate with the 62nd annual GRAMMY Awards show. The group performed "Seoul Town Road," alongside Lil Nas X, a remix version of "Old Town Road”. Not only was the performance epic, but it made history as the band is the first Korean act to perform at the GRAMMYs.
“It was amazing,” they marveled when Jojo asked them about their groundbreaking performance. The most trippy part of the night - how tall “Big Nas” was. That would be the New York rapper, not the “Old Town Road” rapper.
When asked about “Make it Right”, their collaboration with Lauv.
“We were friends with Lauv, we just met at him backstage .. he came to see the stage and we just became friends. We also had another collaboration coming this March on his album,” said Kim Nam-joon aka RM.
What was it like working with Lauv…the actual process of writing?
Jimin exclaimed that he felt so honored to work with the “I’m so tired” artist and stated that he is definitely a fan of his. `
Speaking of the fellow artist, Lauv came out making a surprise visit to hang with his recent collaborators on stage. The love was felt throughout the room as Lauv continuously shared his love for the group stating how “Make it Right” is his favorite song on the album.
“When I went and met you guys, I was really really nervous, but you guys are so nice. They’re so nice. You guys are some of the nicest boys on the planet. Formal.”
How about a message to the BTS Army?
Hoseok: "Be proud. You brought us here and made us shine. We'll show you that your efforts were worth it."
People who listen to your music are so diverse. What is it about BTS that brings all ethnicities, all people together?
RM: There will be many kinds of factors. There will be music, it could be choreography. But I think the main reason why is that all 7 members are really cute! Also.. very lovely.
Jimin: Cutie, and sexy, and lovely!
Who is on your collaboration wishlist?
RM: Ariana (Grande), Post Malone, and Brad Pitt.
Jimin: Jojo!
What awards do you hope to win in the future or win more of?
RM: We’ll be really happy if we could be nominated for the next GRAMMYs.
Tell us about SUGA’s interlude?
Suga: *Translated by RM* He just said that he enjoyed working with Halsey and it just naturally happened. He also mentioned that the spelling of the capital “S” is “shy” for “Shy boy Suga.” Sorry, I just added it!
What are you looking forward to the most on the road?
Jimin: I can’t wait to meet you!
Talk to us about Chicken Noodle Soup and tell us about working with Becky G?
J-Hope: When I was young, my first dance class music was Chicken Noodle Soup, Becky’s too. So we spoke different languages, but we communicated through music.
How was it performing on Rocking Eve and bringing in 2020 at New York City Time Square?
RM: Yeah I couldn’t stop thinking about the movie, Home Alone. That’s one of my best movies back in the days. The background and the winter in New York was all I saw on the videos and the movies. It was real… It looked really surreal and still can’t believe that we’ve done that. One thing that we were really surprised by was the ball - it was really dropping!
The group then took some questions from their BTS army via social media
“Wherever you are, wherever we are - BTS Army, it’s the same word, right? It just sound different, but I see the same word when I see BTS and when I see the Army. Please let's not doubt about ourselves and let's follow our dreams as much as we can. thank you,” Kim Namjoon sweetly answered.
Photos by Wes and Alex