We, the A.R.M.Y.

For several years, photographer Kasia Zalucka has wanted to create a project documenting the people behind the BTS A.R.M.Y. community. BTS, the world’s most successful K-pop boy band, has built a global fanbase that spans generations, professions, cultures, and countries. As a member of the fandom herself, Kasia experienced first-hand the support, friendships, and sense of connection that emerged during the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic. What she also encountered was a persistent stereotype: the assumption that K-pop fans are immature, obsessive, or disconnected from everyday adult life.

This project aims to challenge that narrative.

Through a series of portraits and personal stories, Kasia explores the diversity of BTS A.R.M.Y. members and the many identities they balance in their daily lives. The project focuses particularly on adult fans – professionals, parents, business owners, creatives, and individuals from a wide range of backgrounds – whose connection to music and fandom exists alongside the responsibilities and realities of everyday life.

At the heart of the project is the concept of duality. Participants are photographed in two contrasting portraits: one representing their everyday life, and another showing them as they would present themselves for a BTS concert or fan event. The paired images highlight the coexistence of professional, personal, and fan identities, challenging the idea that these aspects of a person are somehow incompatible.

The project also documents the personal spaces and objects that connect fans to the fandom. For some, this may be a carefully curated collection of albums and merchandise displayed across dedicated shelves or rooms. For others, it may be a single meaningful item or a less visible expression of fandom. These photographs explore the many different ways people choose to engage with the community.

Complementing the portraits are short interviews in which participants share their experiences: how they discovered BTS, what being A.R.M.Y. means to them, how fandom fits into their adult lives, and the friendships and opportunities that have emerged through it.

Rather than focusing on celebrity culture, We, the A.R.M.Y. is a project about people, identity, belonging, and community. It seeks to present a more nuanced and authentic picture of a fandom that is often misunderstood, while celebrating the individuals who make it what it is.

This is an independent, self-funded passion project created by Kasia Zalucka.