Thread by @odettemarch

#TinfoilHatTime: BullyBoard's Anti-BT5 Antics Are Backed By An Industry Running Scared—And I Think I Know (In Part) What's Driving The Fear

DISCLAIMER

It's called "Tinfoil Hat Time" for a reason. These are *my* crackpot theories. Take with a generous helping of salt.

I don't know if it's ignorance or arrogance, but ever since "Butter" dropped, the US music industry has used its various media mouthpieces to say the quiet parts out loud.

Ironically, while hoping their condensation and cruelty will discourage BTS and ARMY, driving us away.

Instead, ARMY were gifted these takeaways:

+ Fan support is enough to help BT5 get #1 hits.

+ Labels are visibly struggling to effectively astroturf (place industry plants out of nowhere with fake hype).

+ Music industry pay0la doesn't stretch as far as it used to.

+ The music industry does not like active fandoms, as they provide artists with lots of leverage. This is why we have social media followers being paraded as music fans and fandoms.

(They aren't.)

https://twitter.com/odettemarch/status/1417289348383485953

+ The industry is more than happy to have the public perceive media play and pay0la as the norm and determining factors in success while villainizing fandoms who act purposefully in countering their damn-near criminal schemes.

rollingstone.com/music/music-fe…

Now, aside from pretty much screaming the above out loud through Bullyboard and other "reputable" music sources, there is something else that is to be gleaned if one reads between the lines:

Something is *off* about the US music industry at the moment, more so than usual.

Based on the behavior I'm seeing, whatever is "off" isn't affecting BTS, and it could be that there is some fear that whatever immunity BTS has to this ongoing trouble puts them in a powerful position.

One that's worrying to a certain corner of the US music industry.

I think these parties, used to screaming the quiet part out loud, didn't want us to realize just *HOW* well BTS did in 2021.

But proceeded to make it really fcking obvious anyway.

First, there was the BBoard-led campaign to attack the success of "Butt3r" and its weeks at #1. BT5 didn't just earn their #1 but massive sales due to AR/MY consumption.

BBoard's own sister company, EM-ARE-SEE Data spilled the beans that most music listeners in 2021 preferred-

catalog releases (older songs) to current releases. Initially, they placed the figure at close to 75% before quickly updating their estimate to just under 70%.

musicbusinessworldwide.com/over-82-of-the…

The enduring popularity of songs older than 18 months (when they are considered "catalog") in the face of recent releases had the Atlantic asking of old music is k-wording new music?

theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/…

I need you to sit with me for a moment. 🪑 I need you to take this in:

The industry coming for BTS happened during the SAME WINDOW OF TIME that new music consumption was visibly shrinking.

We may see consumption of new music continue to shrink through 2022.

But NOT for BTS.

Doesn't that put the ongoing attack on BTS and ARMY in a very fascinating new light? Almost like these people are coming for the ONE GROUP that most definitely saw growth during that period of shrinkage.

The ONE GROUP completely immune to whatever is causing labels to see new-

songs vastly under-perform, no matter how much pay0la they throw around.

Even better, labels are in the process of snapping up the valuable catalogs of decades-established music legends. These artists are making a KILLING at the moment as demand for safe bets in the form of evergreen hits is through the roof.

nydailynews.com/snyde/ny-john-…

A music industry rushing to protect its pockets by snapping up catalogs with staying power does not sound like an industry that has a lot of faith in the buying power of recent releases.

Almost like the newest plants aren't bearing fruit. 🤔🍎

But people who insist on screaming the quiet part out loud somehow also think they're intimidating. No idea what BB hoped to gain by destroying its reputation by propping up a possibly sinking ship.

odiegotablog.com/bts-army/curio…

I guess these people feel they can get away with all this misdirection because the average person just isn't paying attention.

ARMY is not the average person. We're always watching because we don't have the liberty of staying asleep.

BTS's real-time success combined with an engaged, watchdog fandom that will not let anything slide is probably nightmare fuel for the scammers and schemers of the US music industry.

BTS is a very VERY visible example of what it looks like when you hold all the cards. And for an industry that built itself up into a mega-billion valuation through outright robbing artists, a BTS is an act to be feared, destroyed, and driven away.

CONCLUSION
So my immediate takeaway is that the US music industry is finding its recovery from the slowdown brought on by the pandemic much *slower* than what's being shared.

And that the music acts it expected to jump-start things have NOT delivered.

At the same time, BTS saw an acceleration in sales and reach that has not been rivaled.

As was the case in Korea, BTS is growing despite the best efforts of huge labels and their media contacts to undermine them.

For veteran ARMY, these antics will look familiar. Those who fear the rise of Bangtan and what they feel it means for their bottom dollar and power will do whatever they can.

But their best efforts ultimately failed.

At the end of the day, it's the same in the US market. No matter what's at the heart of why the industry is running scared of BTS and ARMY and trying to undermine us.

Whatever their schemes, Bangtan is still rising, still succeeding, and still very much supported by ARMY.

/end

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ALSO: I'm in the process of turning a more expansive version of this thread into a video. 🙏🏾

I know it's taken me a while to get video content out, but I've been crazy busy. Hopefully, the video will be up soon!