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K-Pop and the Shift
This shift. This feeling. What is it? Life is changing. This is just one story of my shift. How following my passions has become my freedom. I’ve found a way to experience life up close by getting real with myself and finding courage.
I’ve learned that traveling taps into this courage and brings me to my passions. It’s a huge part of leaning into my life changing shift. It’s such a super sweet twenty-something vibe (see the That’s Adventure portion of this blog for more). Bring in BTS, and it gets even sweeter.
During 2020, I embraced the power of BTS. Yes, a K-Pop group, but one who has changed the global culture of music. I’m now a member of the BTS Army. I can hear some of you saying “Really, Callie? Ugh… It’s K-Pop”. I know, right? I was that alt rock emo kid that loved the dark despair, so loving K-Pop is a shift all by itself. Still love emo music, everyone. Let’s not shift this too far…
But I believe K-Pop is more than just bubble gum. BTS has a message of loving who we are and having the courage to follow our dreams. I needed that message in 2020. It’s now part of the shift I’m in and the vibe I hear and feel on my journey. I’m connecting with myself through my passions – dance, music, and seeing the world in concert.
A huge part of my strange shift is not being afraid to just do what I want. Not in a “screw you” grunge rock kind of way (although that can work, too 🙂), but in a “this is my one and only life” kind of way. In order to live this one and only life, I have to force myself to push my anxiety aside.
In October of 2021 after BTS announced that they would play four shows in Los Angeles, I knew I wanted to be there. During a time of not being able to travel and, if I’m honest, being afraid to, I found BTS. Finding them led me to discover the love I have for meeting people and seeing the world.
Not to be overlooked is the fact that I love concerts! They overflow with positive energy from people that share a common love of the performer and their music. Knowing that BTS would provide an unforgettable concert experience, I booked my flight and hotel the day the concerts were announced so I wouldn’t lose my nerve. A week later, I joined the online concert ticket buying madness and secured tickets to the third and fourth LA shows. Oh, shit, this is it. I’m going to do this. Spending money I probably need to survive, but knowing I will be okay because I will work to live this way.
Fly Away to LA
Fast forward to November 30, 2021. Time to fly to LA. On the first flight, I met another person who was going to the concerts. This is not normal for me. I’m usually too anxious to talk to new people spontaneously, so I avoid it. Before, I would only be able to focus on getting there and seeing the concert. Not this trip, though. The friend I was traveling with actually told me to stop being so loud and so social. I get it. I wasn’t normally like that. But, I was tired of letting social anxiety win. Thank goodness, because with my new friend, I discovered that the second flight was filled with Army. This was a whole new experience.
Facing my anxiety head on was definitely worth it. I made a wonderful new connection with Alli on my way to LA. She’s a fellow member of the BTS Army. Alli has since become part of My Squad (see the That’s My Squad portion of this blog for more on Alli). I immediately wanted to get to know her. After arriving at our hotel, we decided to meet again and share some Korean food. We enjoyed sodduk sodduk, gimbap, and LA galbi. So yummy! Food is such a friend and culture connector. I’m so glad I shared this evening with Alli.
During this trip, it became obvious that my knowledge of the world was culturally, geographically, and every other “ly” you can think of, lacking. I sensed that because of COVID isolation, the world had changed in a way that could be incredible for me. People are appreciating human connection again and I was and am ready to join them. I had been living in a small anxious world that didn’t make sense anymore.
These life experiences are precious. Is it cliché to say that we should make the most of the time we have? Yep, but it’s a cliché because it’s so true. We only get one shot. My vibe is centered around not wasting life. Life is happening right now. So many possibilities to discover. No more waiting. I get to move. I get to choose.
Merch and Concert Joy
Not wasting my shot at this moment meant capturing the BTS LA experience. One way to capture it was the sweet merchandise. To get what I wanted, sacrifice was necessary. 😀 This meant waking up at 4 am to get in line on the morning of the first concert. By the way, LA mornings are cold in the winter. That’s just one thing I learned during this trip. One thing I already knew was that I love In-N-Out. Our reward for waiting six hours for the merch was a delicious burger. I hope In-N-Out comes to my homebase. If it doesn’t, at least I can look forward to it when I travel.
After the merch mission, it was time to get concert ready. I love choosing concert outfits. Concerts are where I’m always able to be my best, sexy, and confident self for a few hours while I dance and sing with wonderful friends. Once we were ready, we went to the venue to wait for the show. Alli and her friend kept us entertained until the doors opened. We loved the anticipation.
When BTS took the stage at Sofi Stadium, I was in a whole new heaven. They are such amazing and powerful performers who put all of themselves into the show. BTS is brilliant at engaging the audience with their performance. The dancing! Words really can’t describe it. Dance is my core passion. I’ll never be a professional dancer, but I have a deep appreciation for it. I feel so alive when I dance or get to experience amazing dancers. BTS actually embodies most of my passions. Dancing, music, and concerts bring people together. They are universal in the language they speak.
As BTS went around the stadium on carts to be closer to the fans, it struck me that I really understand why human connection is so important to them. They want to look at our faces and really live in the moment. I appreciated Jungkook so much. He is a beautiful performer and my bias.
BTS is so talented, but they also work incredibly hard. They are inspiring. In a world where so many of us feel isolated, BTS brings people together through common passions in a way that encourages us to put judgments aside.
One of the purposes of these new experiences is the reinforcement that I can work hard and achieve amazing things. It starts by appreciating greatness in others without jealousy, seeking greatness by facing my fears, and being grateful for the experiences and connections that help me see and absorb the beauty in the world.
In My Universe
The second concert day offered something different. It was super chill. I love excitement, but I’m learning that chill time on trips balances me when there is so much adrenaline. These moments are perfect for connecting. It’s so precious to me that I get to enjoy my friends, my surroundings, and my passions.
That night, BTS performed a couple of different songs than they had the night before. I loved that they changed it up. It made seeing two shows totally worth it. RM, the leader of BTS, started crying. I felt the emotion and also cried (not ashamed at all 🙂). After COVID, everyone was so grateful to be able to connect in person again. You could feel it in the stadium. It was so amazing to see BTS and Chris Martin of Coldplay perform “My Universe”. This is MY new universe. What an amazing trip!
All That Vibes…
As I said at the beginning, if you get to know BTS, you’ll discover that they sing about loving yourself and following your dreams. Maybe this is why this trip made so much sense to me and helped me lean into the shift in my life. I’m embracing myself for who I am and for what my life can be.
I love who I’m becoming and know that it only gets better from here. I’m grateful for every moment of the BTS LA trip. I believe that it was the beginning of my journey to pursue life as I want to live it. Facing my anxiety, devoting time to my passions, and most importantly, connecting with people and appreciating them.
Coming home from LA, I was processing everything I experienced. What do I need to do to make living my dance, cultural, and musical passions the centerpiece of my adult life? I have never really considered myself creative, but now I wonder if I can open new doors. I want to embrace my creativity and have adventures during my twenties. It’s the decade where I can make great choices. Where the past takes its place on the bench and the present shows itself as the main event.
My new and mysterious path, I already know, will not be smooth. I also already know that the bumps are more than worth it. I love that I’m feeling worthy of all the things I want. This is the person I want to commit to, work hard for, and who is open to commit to others. I want life changing connections. My passions are my lifeline and my purpose. This is my twenty-something vibe.
Our twenties are when life meets us and the world opens up. Writing this, I’m now sure that this new vibe took a bigger hold on me during that BTS LA trip. It isn’t letting go. The vibe is only getting stronger. Is this what enlightenment feels like? I may never understand all of the reasons I’m seeing the world differently, but I’m not sure that matters. This is an amazing journey so far. Please share it with me. What is your twenty-something vibe?
My journey is just beginning!
Find “K-Pop Dreams” on the Poems page
Check out my Youtube vlog of the BTS Permission To Dance – LA experience!
Discover more from That Twenty-Something Vibe
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