Discover how it was created and what the meaning of the phrase “I Purple You”, frequently used among fans and members of the group BTS
BTS was created in June 2013 by BIGHIT Music (at the time, Big Hit Entertainment), existing for more than a decade, but gaining new fans every day. With that in mind, if you are new to the fandom (known as ARMY), you may have already been asked how purple became the color responsible for representing the group, given that this shade can easily be found in the various forms of communication and connection with members. fans.
The truth is that it all started on November 13, 2016, at the 3rd Muster held in Seoul, South Korea, when Taehyungbetter known as V, created the expression “I Purple You” (in English) or “Borahae” (in Korean), which is a combination of the words “I love you” and “purple”. At the time, he said:
Do you know what purple means? Purple is the last color of the rainbow and means ‘I will trust and love you for a long time’”, sending fans into a scream. “I just made that up,” he then clarified. “I wish I could see you for a long time as in the meaning of purple. We will always trust you and climb the stairs with you.”
Representing love, trust and loyalty between the group members and the fandom, the idea of how the phrase came to mind V was explained by the idol himself on KOKOWA TV’s Special Talk Show — Let’s BTS in 2021, where he said:
The whole time ARMY covered their ARMY Bombs with a purple dome, which turned it purple. I was thinking between performances and the idea just came to my mind. Think about the rainbow. They say the rainbow is youth or life. Purple is the last color. I just wanted to say that we will talk, trust, depend, love and like each other until the end. I just said it, not knowing it would get so big.”
The phrase became an important symbol for the BTSmaking the color purple significant for the group, even used in campaigns for global brands such as Samsung and McDonald, as the latter incorporated the term into the purple packaging of BTS Meals, making them collectible items for fans.
Furthermore, in 2018, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) also used the phrase in a special video thanking the group for the “LOVE MYSELF” campaign, where BTS helped raise money for an initiative to end violence against children. That way, Henrietta H. Forethe company’s executive director, said: “We here at UNICEF purple you”.
It is worth remembering that HYBE (a conglomerate that has BIGHIT as a subsidiary) tried to patent the term “I purple you”, but the South Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) did not allow it, since, even though V has an established contract with the company, he was the one who used the phrase first, being the only one with the right to it, as explained by Billboard in October 2022.
“We accept that the applicant has registered a trademark that is similar or the same as a trademark used by a different person who has a contractual or employment relationship, such as partnership or employment,” KIPO said under V own the intellectual property of the phrase.
Source: Recreio
