When stars fangirl over BTS
Arci Muñoz, Isabel Oli, Shaira Diaz, and Ysabel Ortega know what it’s like to have fans of their own. But mention BTS around them and watch the tables turn.
We recently caught up with the four actresses in Makati, where Arih—a Korean food and beverage brand developed in collaboration with BTS—launched its instant noodles in the Philippines. As expected, it didn’t take much prodding to get them talking about their biases and how far they have gone for the group.
And yes, their partners might be low-key Army, too.
Arci Muñoz
Arci Muñoz used to camp out on the pavement for tickets, pop-up stores, and other fangirl experiences—all in the name of BTS. “Natutulog talaga ako sa kalsada… Dati naninigas talaga ako,” she says.
While she has lain low recently—at least when it comes to flirting with frostbite—her love and dedication to the group haven’t waned one bit. By her count, she has been to more than 20 shows since she first became an Army in 2019, and the tally continues to grow.
She regrets missing the Los Angeles shows on the “Arirang” tour, but is grateful she made it to the Madrid stop, which—by a stroke of luck—coincided with a European tour she was part of. She also says she plans to attend the Philippine leg in March 2027.
Muñoz stumbled upon BTS during a difficult phase in her life, nursing a heartbreak. While watching a Post Malone video, she came across the music video for “Boy With Luv.”
“They came at the right time—when I needed them most. Before the pandemic, out of nowhere, I discovered them. Hindi ko namalayan, unconsciously, kailangan ko pala ang music nila,” says Muñoz, who admires BTS for their music and their character.
“They’re superstars, but they’re humble,” she points out. “Makikita mo sa kanila na iba-iba sila ng character. They inspired me in so many different ways.”
From there, she never looked back. “Parang once na-hook ka, ’di ka na makakaalis talaga,” she says. “But for a good reason.”
Case in point: In 2020, Muñoz began pursuing her dream of growing a forest by planting trees in Pangasinan and naming them after BTS’ BT21 characters. Later that year, in honor of her bias Jimin’s birthday, she put up a wooden sign at the entrance to a nearby 10-hectare property she had acquired. It read, “Welcome to Jimin Park.”
“Ang lalaki na ng mga puno. Before dry ‘yung river, pero ngayon sobrang flourishing na. Nakakatulong din sa mga locals na nag-aalaga doon,” she says. “Naiiyak ako kasi sobrang [concerned] ako sa environment.”
“Puwede na kaming mag-camping.” Sure beats the pavement.
Isabel Oli
Isabel Oli is a V girly, but loves everyone. And last April, she finally saw all seven members live onstage at the very first show of the “Arirang” tour in Goyang, South Korea. It was raining all day, she recalls, but that didn’t dampen her spirits. Her husband, John Prats, even told her, “Manood ka pa.”
Prats’ support of Oli’s fandom doesn’t stop there. Whenever BTS endorses something new, she says Prats places an order before she can even ask. “My gosh, ewan ko kung normal pa ba kami!” says the actress, who has gotten so obsessed with the group that she takes cues from what the members wear.
“Gagayahin ko talaga ang suot nila,” she says.
And when there’s a sale? “Abangan na ‘yan. Ilang laptop, ilang iPad ‘yan,” she says, laughing. “Ganun!”
Shaira Diaz
Shaira Diaz’s husband, EA Guzman, is just as supportive—and seems to take it a step further. “Nakikiyakap siya sa [BTS] pillows ko,” Diaz says.
In fact, she suspects he’s a low-key Army. First, he knows the songs. Second, during the last concert they attended, he announced that he wouldn’t take videos because his phone was running low on storage. “Pero mas marami pa siyang video kaysa sa ‘kin,” she says. “Nakakatuwa kasi may common ground kami.”
The actress’ fandom started unwittingly enough while she was watching an awards ceremony. She can’t remember exactly which year it was, but it was during the era, she says, when the members dyed their hair bright colors and wore eyeliner. Anyway, the camera panned across the group; she spotted Jung Kook, and that was that.
“I had a friend who was already an Army back then. I asked, ‘Sino ‘yung cute sa dulo?’” she says.
It wasn’t an overnight descent into the BTS rabbit hole. She wasn’t into streaming then. But she would hear their songs on the radio, and while she couldn’t understand a word, something about them resonated with her. She confirmed her hunch soon enough. The messages of their songs were, indeed, meaningful.
“May halaga. May meaning na makaka-relate lahat. Comforting,” she says.
The deeper she got into the BTS lore, the more she realized that these seven guys deserved their fans’ love and support.
“’Yung love nila for the fans ay totoo. At ’yung treatment nila sa isa’t isa, family talaga sila,” Diaz says. “Tao lang din sila. ’Yun ang mas lalong nagpamahal sa ’kin sa kanila. ‘Yung pagiging totoo nila. ’Di nila pinaparamdam na idol sila.”
Ysabel Ortega
Ysabel Ortega’s bias is Jung Kook. Her bias wrecker is J-Hope. Well, actually, she has several. Once the members started releasing solo music, all seven took a turn as her favorite. “We love all seven of them!” she says.
The actress describes herself as a “Dynamite” baby because she discovered BTS through the English-language single during the pandemic. “Since then, naging super, super big fan ako. Feeling ko naging inspiration ko sila sa lahat ng ginagawa ko noong time na ‘yun,” she says.
It’s safe to say that many of us went through difficult times during the pandemic. And amid the uncertainty, Ortega found herself lost in their performances, reality shows, and every piece of lore. The song “Whalien 52,” in particular, became a comforting musical companion.
“It’s about having a friend kapag feeling mo mag-isa ka lang,” she says. “Lalo na noong pandemic, nakakulong lang tayo sa bahay natin. So I feel like sobrang nag-resonate siya sa ‘kin. Until now, ‘yun ang favorite song ko.”
And oh, add Ortega to the list of fangirls whose partners might be low-key Army. There was a time, she recalls, when her boyfriend, Miguel Tanfelix, often danced to BTS songs on “All-Out Sundays.”
“Alam niya na favorite ko sila, so nag-BTS medley siya,” she recalls. “I’m so happy I have the best of both worlds!”
