Fan Chant: Can’t Talk, Busy Running Through a Garden in a Ballgown to This New Vitamin String Quartet BTS Album

Welcome to Fan Chant, a weekly column for K-pop fans, stans, and newbies alike. Each week, I’ll be rolling out interviews, lists, and all kinds of content to keep you in the loop on the latest and greatest from our friends in Seoul and beyond. Also, make sure to subscribe to my companion newsletter!

As anyone who has even glanced at this column (or most of my writing) before can confirm, I absolutely love to love things. To that same end, I also adore people who love pop culture, film, fandom, and niche interests with all their heart. I’m obsessed with being part of the discussion around a cultural phenomenon, even if the product itself isn’t necessarily something I’m passionate about — I used to read Game of Thrones recaps regularly even though the show wasn’t my vibe, finding myself standing around talking about the Red Wedding as if those words meant anything to me.

Similarly, Bridgerton was one of those cultural phenomenons that swept Netflix accounts around the globe (don’t worry, that’s one I actually watched). In addition to gifting us the perfect introduction to Regé-Jean Page in Season 1 and an immaculate enemies-to-lovers plotline in Season 2, one of the best things the Shonda Rhimes Regency-era romantic drama did was share the wonderful Vitamin String Quartet with a whole new platform of listeners.

The orchestral group of four (Amanda Lo, Earl Maneein, Thomas Lea, and Derek Stein) are known for taking beloved pop songs and creating truly thrilling instrumental arrangements. They landed a perfect use of Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own” on Bridgerton; their cover of Ariana Grande’s “thank u, next” landed in my 2021 Most Played on Spotify.

Now, Vitamin String Quartet has taken things to the next level with an entire album of BTS covers. VSQ Performs BTS is now available, and the album arrived with a stunning music video for their take on the group’s magnificent “Black Swan.” The fifteen tracks included here were pulled from different eras of the groups career, and the lineup even includes two covers of BTS Japanese-language tracks, “Lights” and “Stay Gold.”

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To put it simply, this album has me losing my mind a bit; I’m sure I’ll be tuning into Season 3 of Bridgerton either way, but now I will be hoping — nay, demanding — for one of these spectacular covers to be included. It’s a bit ridiculous how my brain has already turned each of these songs into a scene. I’m on record as being a “Save Me” enthusiast to my very core, but this version is primed for a big ballroom scene featuring two characters coyly winking at each other as they pass through the crowd. You’re telling me this spicy cover of “IDOL” doesn’t scream “I’m annoyed at my rival but can’t keep myself away from them either?” This lush take on “Blood Sweat & Tears” demands a lover’s montage.

Take a listen to the full album, and please spill how you’d like to see these dreamy covers used, either in Bridgerton or beyond.

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