Great Outfits in Fashion History: BTS in Prada Fall 2019

Two faves!

Photo: The Chosunilbo JNS/Imazins via Getty Images

There are perfectly good celebrity style moments, and then there are the looks that really stick with you, the ones you try desperately to recreate at home. In ‘Great Outfits in Fashion History,’ Fashionista editors are revisiting their all-time favorite lewks.

When it comes to BTS, I don’t love playing favorites — with the members (OT7 forever), with their songs (buy and stream “Proof“), with their performances. However, there’s one fashion moment out of many excellent ones in their nine years as a group that holds a special place in my heart, because it combined two things that I hold dear: Bangtan and Prada ready-to-wear.

At the 2019 Melon Music Awards, BTS turned the red carpet into a runway re-do of sorts, each member putting their own spin on Prada’s Fall 2019 menswear collection. From left: Kim Taehyung (a.k.a. V) in a dark grey pinstripe suit, buttoned-up collared white shirt and thick knit red cardigan on top; Min Yoongi (Suga) a fuzzy V-neck grey sweater over a white shirt, both tucked into grey pinstriped trousers with a black belt double-wrapped around the waist; Kim Seokjin (Jin) and Jeon Jungkook (Jung Kook) both in black double-breasted blazers and trousers, the former with a white shirt, black dress shoes and a layered heart brooch on his lapel, the latter in a black shirt and lug-soled shoes; Kim Namjoon (RM) in a grey-ish brown long coat with matching trousers, plus a layered heart pin; Park Jimin (Jimin) in a black suit, with a black belt double-wrapped high at the waist, and white button-down; and Jung Hoseok (J-Hope) in a grey double-breasted suit, the jacket tucked into the pants and a black belt cinching the waist.

This is one of the strongest examples of something BTS and their styling team have consistently been able to do over the years: create a cohesive visual narrative through fashion while still allowing for individual expression, whether they’re all dressed by the same brand or they bring together a mix of labels with complementary aesthetics. Also, while we’re here, let’s revisit their performance at that event, because they not only swept with nine wins that night, but they put on a 37-minute (!) show that ran through their extensive, varied discography up until that point.