V’s Solo Debut’s Promotions
It’s been almost a year since BTS announced they were preparing their enlistment into the Korean military and would be performing their mandatory duties. Since then, each member has released their own solo projects from singles to albums to collaborations with other celebrities. Now, the day has arrived when we get to see V’s personality shine through with his exciting EP, Layover.
The promotions officially started with a social media blast announcing the soulful artist’s promotion schedule for August going into September. The picture shows a yellow notepad with a handwritten “Layover” title along with important dates and times that ARMY should be aware of starting from August 8, 2023. Music videos of the tracks Love Me Again and Rainy Days as well as two photos were to be released within the next week, leaving fans curious about what will happen in the big gap between August 16 and September 8.
Thankfully, we didn’t have to wonder too long. On August 17, a second promotion schedule was released, and included many fun surprises. In the coming days, ARMY would get two teasers for the new Blue music video, two more promotional pictures, and the official releases of V’s older solo songs, Scenery, Winter Bear, and Snow Flower, available on streaming platforms. Since Blue only had teasers dropped in the schedule rather than the actual videos, fans then speculated when the actual music video will be released. The Blue and For Us official music videos later went on to be released a month after the music videos for Love Me Again and Rainy Days.
Being a solo artist can also come with its own perks as one figures out the best ways to promote themselves and their new music in a way that’s tailored to them. As such, once preorders for the upcoming album were open, Big Hit Music announced an offline fanmeeting event where 1400 fans would be able to meet V as he performs special stages as well as view exclusive behind-the-scenes stories. According to ARMYs who won the raffle, the event will take place on October 14 at the Peace Amphitheater, an open air theater located in Kyunghee University. This choice in staging will paint a beautiful picture filled with a soulful ambience set in an autumnal background.
For those who weren’t able to win a ticket to see V at the Peace Amphitheater, they would have been able to see him during his promotions on music shows. In one instance, ARMYs were informed that V would appear on M Countdown on September 14 and were provided instructions on how to attend the pre-recording occurring two days prior. Those who did attend were treated with a delight! V’s dog, Yeontan, made a special appearance at the beginning of the recording before his dad began singing Slow Dancing alongside the beat of bopping ARMY lightsticks.
Besides the music shows, V has also been busy appearing on different variety shows and guest shows. One obvious show that V was a guest on was SUGA’s own show, “Suchwita.” His appearance marks him as the last BTS member to appear on the talk show as well as the last episode that SUGA would release before enlisting. V has also appeared on other shows such as “IU’s Palette 🎨”, Spotipoly on K-Pop On! Spotify’s YouTube channel, Tiny Desk Korea on NPR’s YouTube channel, and even Pixid’s YouTube channel.
V’s album is a great one to listen to. It’s perfect for those looking for something to wind them down at the end of the day or accompany them as they drive home. It evokes a different kind of intimacy that we might get from any of the other BTS members’ solo projects and even incorporated some of his private life through the use of Yeontan’s pixelated portrait as the digital cover. Though we might not know whether or not his promotions will end with the upcoming offline fan meeting, V has definitely staked his claim on the music world with his unique voice and R&B-inspired tracks.
Written by: Rei
Edited by: Marcie
Designed by: Achan
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