On the first episode of SUCHWITA, when asked, “What made you the way you are today?” RM responds, “Being a fan.” RM has many things in his life that he’s passionate about: He collects art, reads constantly, grows bonsai trees and watches things like the movie Decision to Leave and the YouTube channels Psick University. Whatever the hobby, he always dives in deep. RM often refers to these hobbies as his “Bibilly Hills”—things he can rely on. Everyone needs their own Bibilly Hills, he said, and while he once had too many things on his mind, he now doesn’t get phased by what others say ever since he has made a lot of Bibilly Hills. And just what are his Bibilly Hills, specifically, you ask?

Korean art

Evidence of RM’s love of art is everywhere; his solo album, Indigo, features work by artist Yun Hyong-keun on the cover and includes a track titled “Still Life” (with Anderson .Paak) in reference to the type of art of the same name. The rapper’s interest in art took hold during a tour in 2018 when he visited the Art Institute of Chicago, which he was drawn to simply because it seemed a waste to spend all his time in hotels. After visiting some world-renowned museums, it suddenly occurred to him one day that all his roots are in Korea, and from then on he became interested in Korean painters. He later explained on The Art Basel Podcast that he developed his deep affection for Korean art and related fields by visiting Korean art museums and galleries whenever he had the time to. He seeks out works by famous painters like Lee Jung Seob and Kim Whanki as well as those by lesser-known artists. He also personally owns many pieces of art, including his first purchase, Dai Won Lee’s Mountain, pieces from Yun Hyong-keun’s Umber-Blue series hanging throughout his studio and Horse, a work by Kwon Jin Kyu that RM famously lent out for an exhibit, among others. RM’s love of art goes beyond simply collecting them as he works to promote artwork to the general public and spread awareness of it. He “curates” his collection on Instagram, in his words, and lets people know when he’s been to a certain exhibit so that others will follow in his steps and develop their own interest in art. Plus, he’s donated to the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art as well and asked them to republish out-of-prints to spread a culture of reading beautiful art books. It’s no wonder The New York Times called him an “art patron.”

Reading

RM loves books. He reads books while in the makeup chair, while eating—even while hanging out with the other BTS members. He spends most of his time on In the SOOP reading, and he’s stocked one area of his living room with books he can pull out at any time, as seen in part one of “All Day (with Kim Namjoon).” He’s into a variety of genres, from novels and poems to psychology, history and art; upon seeing RM’s bookshelf, author Kim Young-ha even noted, “These aren’t books you commonly see in someone’s bookshelf.” A quick list of books RM’s recently mentioned shows just how wide a range of reading material he enjoys, including Depth of the Landscape, Mitsubachi to Enrai, End of the Summer, All About Saul Leiter, The Midnight Library and Doing Good Better. To get an idea of just how much books mean to him, look no further than what he wrote on the card that accompanied his book donation: “There’s no way to understand things so easily and so deeply as with books.” In a smartphone world where you can find anything at the tap of a screen, he reads books to better understand and really dig deep into the world of authors, different knowledge systems or varying viewpoints from across the globe. RM, for example, recently revealed that he drinks whiskey while reading up on the drink at the same time. The very oldest pastime and means of study, reading feels like a perfect fit for someone whose preferred method of learning can be likened to the way a fan combs over every little detail.

Interior decoration

RM loves interior decorating so much that, starting from when he first debuted, he would post pictures or do a live stream showing off his studio whenever there were changes. He’s changed the name of his studio from Mon studio to Rkive and the interior design has followed suit, receiving an update several times, but it always reflects those things which RM is a fan of. The studio was full of KAWS figurines when RM first debuted, for example. One look at photos from this early iteration proves how much of a fan he was, showing a studio brimming not only with figures large and small but also clocks, cushions, posters and rugs, all belonging to the KAWS brand. “Since I started to collect the figures,” RM said in one video showing the space, “my room became like a museum.” Ever since the rapper developed an interest in art, however, his studio has gradually undergone a transformation. Where once hung KAWS posters are now Yun’s art; gone is the monotone furniture of old, replaced instead by wooden furniture made by artist George Nakashima; the figurines now share their space with sculptures and bonsai trees. Seeing how much art was on display both inside the studio and in the hall outside when RM most recently showed the space off on social media, it’s fair to say that it’s become an art museum in its own right. The rapper is perpetually updating his space to reflect his interests as they evolve.

People

RM said he went on Dictionary of Useless Human Knowledge because he has “a strong passion for learning and a desire to learn from those who are wise.” He’s long expressed his respect for Tablo and he’s on the record as saying his dream of doing hip hop came to him after hearing “Fly” (feat. Amin. J of Soulciety) by Epik High. He’s also referred to Nas and Eminem as his “childhood heroes” again and again. As an artist himself, RM studies the lives of other artists through books and through their work, suggesting he learns from the lives of those who have come before him and struggled with the same questions, and in this way finds inspiration for his creative process but also for his direction in life. “I wouldn’t dare say I’m as skilled as them,” he said, “but I believe I’m on my own frequency and that I could keep myself from feeling bad even if my album came out on the same day as Eminem’s.” When a fan wrote about wanting to break out of the habit of comparing themselves to others, RM responded, “That’s instinctual. You only have to worry about keeping yourself standing straight. Whenever you think you see the sky, there’s always more.” As with his hobbies, RM finds a way to look back on himself through other people. He talked about people with experts in other fields when he was on Dictionary of Useless Human Knowledge, too. It’s all part of how RM’s built up the Bibilly Hills he stands on today.