Magic of BTS

The Magic of BTS — and the History of Boy Bands

The Magic of BTS and the new episode of Rolling Stone Music Now examines the unprecedented, boundary-smashing success of South Korean superstars BTS, digging into their new album, Map of the Soul: 7.

UPDATE The premiere of their upcoming concert film, Break the Silence: the Movie. The movie, which chronicles their 2019 Love Yourself: Speak Yourself world tour, hits theaters worldwide on September 10th read more now.

Their history, and their under-examined sociopolitical messages.

From there, the episode delves into the long, colorful history of boy bands, all the way back to Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers and on to the Bay City Rollers, Menudo, New Edition, New Kids on the Block, the Backstreet Boys, ‘NSync, and One Direction.

The Magic of BTS

Jezebel senior writer Maria Sherman, author of the upcoming book Larger Than Life: A History of Boy Bands from NKOTB to BTS, joins Brittany Spanos, Rob Sheffield (who wrote a four-star review of Map of the Soul), and host Brian Hiatt for the discussion.

To hear the entire episode, press play below or download and subscribe on iTunes or Spotify.

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