bts gender-defying fashion moments for their 8th anniversary
Cover Here are the best gender-defying moments from BTS. Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music

From wearing corsets to bold accessories, here are some of the moments when BTS defied gender norms and experimented with fashion

BTS is known for many things—the biggest group today, chart-topping hits, inspirational songs, making history and of course their irresistible fashion sense. Since their meteoric rise, the group has broken barriers as an Asian act and also shattered traditional gender norms, challenging the notions of masculinity.

In celebration of their eight-year anniversary, we look back at some of the moments when BTS showed they weren't afraid to experiment with fashion—giving us all the more reasons to admire (and stan) them.

Related: BTS Anniversary: 9 Inspirational Lyrics That Will Even Relate to Non-BTS Fans

1. Jimin and Jungkook in a corset

Tatler Asia
bts gender-defying fashion moments for their 8th anniversary
Above Jimin wearing a corset for "Black Swan" concept shots (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Tatler Asia
bts gender-defying fashion moments for their 8th anniversary
Above Jungkook in a corset for "Black Swan" music video (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)

In the photoshoot for their Map of the Soul: 7 album, we see both Jimin and Jungkook sporting a corset and in the Black Swan music video. While corsets are worn for both men and women, it's been an integral part of women's wardrobes to shape the torso into a certain figure or to support the breasts.

Related: Sorry Army: BTS x McDonald's Meal in Singapore to Be Delayed Till June 21

2. The group sporting fishnets, skirts, chokers

Tatler Asia
bts gender-defying fashion moments for their 8th anniversary
Above J-hope wears a skirt and fishnet stockings while Jimin dons a choker and fishnet stockings (Photo: Courtesy of Singles)
Tatler Asia
bts gender-defying fashion moments for their 8th anniversary
Above RM wears a corset and chokers (Photo: Courtesy of Singles)

In their Singles photoshoot, BTS members were decked in clothing mostly worn by women including fishnets, skirts and chokers. Fishnet is generally considered a sexy item, a type of undergarment usually worn by women.

In the photoshoot, we see J-hope wearing it as stockings and in his arms while sporting a skirt, and Jimin opted to wear it as stockings with a choker. RM, on the other hand, wears a corset and choker.

Related: Tatler's Haute List: Fishnets Are the Trend That's Fit for Summer

3. When they wear clothing marketed for women

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Photo 1 of 13 Jimin wears Chanel embroided glitter tweed jacket (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 2 of 13 Jimin wears Chanel's wool tweed jacket (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 3 of 13 Jimin wears Chanel cotton tweed dress (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 4 of 13 Jimin wears Chanel pull-over (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 5 of 13 Jimin wears Maison Mihara Yasuhiro contrast pattern shirt ((Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 6 of 13 Jimin wears JW Anderson layered collar blouse (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 7 of 13 Jimin wears Y Project tulle wrapped sweatshirt (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 8 of 13 Jungkook wears Charles Jeffrey Loverboy women's yellow wool sweater (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 9 of 13 Suga wears Chanel denim jacket from Spring 2018 ready-to-wear collection (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 10 of 13 V wears Jacquemus bahia dress (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 11 of 13 V wearing Jacquemus La Vésté d’homme suit jacket (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 12 of 13 J-hope wears lavender and blue tweed jacket (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 13 of 13 Suga wears Gucci's flashtrek sneaker with removable crystals (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)

Members of the group have been wearing pieces of clothes marketed for women, usually part of a womenswear collection, showing that they're not confined to just wearing what's labelled as "for men". Jimin has been spotted wearing pieces from Chanel's womenswear collection many times including the iconic Chanel tweed jacket.

Other members such as J-hope also wore the Chanel tweed jacket while V wore womenswear pieces from Jacquemus. Suga wore a Gucci women's sneakers and has been spotted wearing an Sk8-Hi model sneaker that supports the LGBTQ community when visiting the BTS Map of the Soul pop-up store in Seoul.

Related: BTS Joins Louis Vuitton as its Newest Brand Ambassadors

4. Their dramatic accessories

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Photo 1 of 5 J-hope wears colourful rings and bracelet with nail stickers (Photo: Big Hit Music)
Photo 2 of 5 Jimin wears a black flower earring (Photo: Big Hit Music)
Photo 3 of 5 Jimin wears Gucci's GG crystal drop earrings (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 4 of 5 V wears Chanel flower earrings (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 5 of 5 V wears flower earrings (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)

Besides their gender-defying outfits, BTS is also known for their colourful and dramatic accessories. J-hope received a lot of love when he did a live video making beaded bracelets for his fellow members. A similar-looking bracelet appears in his Chicken Noodle Soup music video for his mixtape, Hope World. Don't expect to see J-hope wearing earrings though, unless they're ear cuffs, as the BTS member doesn't have any piercings—yet.

The 1995 line, Jimin and V are also known for their love of accessories and in fact, in one episode of their reality show Run BTS, where the members had to count which one has the most number of accessories, V was the winner (or the loser as the game required the least number of accessories). We love seeing Jimin wearing elaborate earrings and V's flower earrings.

Related: Face Masks: 8 of the Most Innovative Accessories and Creations

5. J-hope's "dotori" bags

Tatler Asia
bts gender-defying fashion moments for their 8th anniversary
Above J-hope wears a colourful "dotori" bag (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Tatler Asia
bts gender-defying fashion moments for their 8th anniversary
Above J-hope wears a flower bag (Photo: Courtesy of Vlive)

Dotori also known as acorn bag is what Koreans have been calling these mini-sized bags. J-hope has been wearing these since 2016 from their travels to their concerts.

Perhaps the most famous acorn bag is his flower bag from BTS' trip to Malta for their travel reality show, Bon Voyage. RM bought the bag for J-hope as he needed a place to keep their travel budget and specifically chose the design, noting that J-hope would love it—and he does! He even bought it for their next travel and let Suga use it.

Related: These Are the Luxury Bags That Korean Celebrities Love

6. Suga in puff sleeves and Jin in skirt for "Butter"

Tatler Asia
bts gender-defying fashion moments for their 8th anniversary
Above Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music
Tatler Asia
bts gender-defying fashion moments for their 8th anniversary
Above Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music

BTS released concept photos before the release for the music video of their latest smash hit, Butter. There, Suga wore a puff-sleeved top from the H&M x Simone Rocha collection. Puff sleeves have been gaining popularity again thanks to the success of historical and period dramas such as Bridgerton.

Meanwhile, Jin wore a skirt in translucent long-sleeve blouse with an elaborate collar which complimented his dark denim jeans well. The two hyungs (older brother) in a similar pose, hair and clothing? We're here for it.

Related: BTS Suga: The K-Pop Rapper's Most Stylish Moments

7. Decked in pink

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Photo 1 of 3 BTS in "Run BTS" (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 2 of 3 BTS in pink (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 3 of 3 BTS in "Boy in Luv" music video (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)

BTS aren't afraid to wear pink, a colour stereotypically associated with girls, women and for being feminine. In fact, their Map of the Soul: Persona album is available in four different shades of pink. The members also wore pink outfits for the music video of Boy in Luv.

Related: BTS Butter: 7 Best Moments From The Chart-Topping Group's Latest Music Video

8. The "Forever Young" photoshoot

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Photo 1 of 7 V in the "Young Forever" photoshoot (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 2 of 7 Suga in the "Young Forever" photoshoot (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 3 of 7 Suga in the "Young Forever" photoshoot (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 4 of 7 Jin in the "Young Forever" photoshoot (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 5 of 7 J-hope in the "Young Forever" photoshoot (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 6 of 7 Jin and RM in the "Young Forever" photoshoot (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)
Photo 7 of 7 BTS "Young Forever" photoshoot (Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music)

After an era decked in black, hip-hop and even punk aesthetics for their school trilogy, BTS shifted their music in the Most Beautiful Moment in Life era/Youth trilogy and focused on the themes of youth and growing up. Ditching the dark colours, BTS changed their hairstyles to a bolder palette and their photoshoot and music videos splashed with colour.

In the Young Forever photoshoot, the group went for a "softer" image of youth, sporting fairytale-like clothing, looks and aesthetics. V with his vibrant orange-red hair, Suga with his freckles, blond Jin and so on. It's definitely a far cry from the more masculine image that their school trilogy emitted, showcasing the range of not only their creative prowess in music but also in their fashion style.

They also showed that they're not afraid to wear make-up, something that RM and Suga were previously criticised for as rappers.

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