Abstract
This research note is aimed at exploring the opportunities and challenges faced by teenagers living in an underprivileged region in Romania as fans of an internationally popular K-pop band. We used desk research and netnography to explore similarities and differences between the local and international BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan) fandom, also called “Army”. Which are the barriers a Hungarian “Army” from Romania encounters when engaging with their idols? What is the role of K-pop in opening up the language and cultural bubble in which Hungarian youth in rural Romania live?1 The innovative element in our empirical research is the focus on family context: we interviewed both BTS fans and their parents in order to assess to what extent is K-pop in general and BTS in particular part of their daily lives. With its limitations as a small-scale qualitative analysis, such research can give insights into fan studies from a comparative perspective.