Before the idol industry became so powerful and especially made a positive impact like BTS did, there were a lot of stereotypes about idols. Many people even think that they are not real artists when compared to the stereotype made by people who think they are true artists.

In particular, during the time when BTS debuted, members who were active in the underground like RM and SUGA had met with many criticisms. In one show, SUGA was once directly scolded by a rapper for his discrimination against idols.

This story then made many fans extremely uncomfortable and even years later, they still criticize the rapper and he has to admit his mistake.

In the music world, sometimes the idol industry is not appreciated when people just stop at the stereotype that an idol is someone who has a beautiful appearance but is not talented. Many people even believe in those stereotypes unconsciously without really researching and educating themselves about this industry.

That makes idols often the target of sexism and prejudice because they wear makeup and fancy outfits. Even at a time when BTS had not yet become famous and had just debuted, they were directly mocked when they went from being an underground rapper to becoming an idol.

SUGA and RM are the ones who have directly faced this incident as they come from the underground hip-hop world. Just because they chose to become idol rappers, underground rappers who don't love K-pop criticized them for their looks and working style and put them in an uncomfortable situation but couldn't refute it strongly.

It was years ago when RM and SUGA were on a radio show together. There are many other veteran rappers and underground people here. In it, rapper B-FREE couldn't say anything nice other than mocking SUGA's look with makeup.

He even thinks that people like SUGA and RM are not real rappers because of the way they dress and make up like their idols. B-FREE only limits the image of a rapper to a raunchy outfit and face without makeup to call him a rapper. When someone is different from this kind of rapper, he claims that their music is not hip hop and they are not rapper.

He also shows a disdain for the kind of music that BTS has used and doesn't appreciate K-pop music. If that wasn't enough, he even mocked SUGA's stage name and called it "seoltang" (in Korean, it means "sugar").

He even criticized both SUGA and RM for 'jumping', mocking the artists that they were just 'beautiful boys and girls', just 'slaves', just 'taking advantage of the music and images created by the company to make money'. While it's perfectly normal to ask why your co-worker wants to change but attacking someone's gender and sexual orientation simply because they wear makeup when performing caused annoyed opinions in the community.

B-FREE was then met with a lot of criticism and anger from ARMYs and K-pop fans for what he said publicly on the show. He eventually apologized for saying so but no one accepted his apology as it was deemed insincere. B-Free's career then gradually extinguished.

As SUGA said in his later years, “To really understand K-Pop, you need to understand what separates the music industry from other branches… Besides auditory satisfaction, you will also be satisfied visually, because in K-Pop, music, video, clothes and makeup always go together. So, instead of assuming K-Pop as a musical genre (different from pop, jazz or R&B), I think you can understand K-Pop itself as a harmonious combination of many cultural elements."

Above all, genuine and recognized music makers are those who know how to harmoniously use all elements and bring to the public quality products and promote positive spirit and energy. That's why SUGA and RM are respected and respected while the person who criticized and criticized them is not!