By Honorary Reporter Meryem Qozbour from Morocco

The blonde girl who appeared in BTS's music video for "On" is Rina Johnson, a child actress who played the lost sister of Taehyung aka V. She explains what it was like to work with the K-pop super group in this interview.

So who is Rina Johnson?

Rina Johnson is a 13-year-old girl and an eighth grader at a public middle school. She is a ballet dancer and soccer player, and also does acting and modeling because she lives in Hollywood. Her older brother Kai has 500,000 followers on TikTok, so they inspire each other in their careers.

How did you start acting?
When I was 8, a scout from an acting school spoke to me at a shopping mall. She invited me to go to her school, but it was really far away and expensive. However, I felt like I really wanted to go the school and become an actor. My mom helped me look for a talent agent near our home. My present agent, Minc Talent, was the one who responded to us and told me to go a local acting school, take nice headshots and make a great resume. I followed these instructions and was cast in my first commercial.

How were you chosen to appear in a BTS music video?
I'm not actually 100% sure, but I guess the Korean production crew was looking for 100 extras so they asked LA Casting, one of the largest casting companies in Los Angeles. I've worked for them many times. (I was in four music videos and "On" was my fifth). So they booked me without an audition. They called me and asked about my availability, saying it was for a big K-pop star.

What is the story in the video and your role in it?
This is a hard question but I think I am a symbol of BTS Army. V is a symbol of a BTS's music. V took off my blindfold to explore a new world of music.

How long did it take to film the video? Did you spend that time with all BTS members or just with V?
I think the filming took a week but I worked for two days. The entire production staff were Korean so V was my interpreter. He asked me many questions and found out that I'm half Japanese. He started speaking Japanese and told me how he loves everything about Japan. On the first day, we spent about four hours on the set.

The next day saw about eight hours of filming, so I spent a lot of time waiting. During the break, V taught me his signature dance move and we took selfies with his phone and joked around with Jimin, so I wasn't bored.

So how is BTS in person? Who is your favorite member? And how was your experience working with the group?
BTS members were just like my Japanese cousins. They weren't acting like superstars or messing around like my brother's friends. They worried about the little drummer boy and all the other actors who had to work under the California sun. I really liked how they acted on the set, and that's why I became a fan of the group. I really liked all seven of them. My experience with BTS is a very precious memory. The group treated me like a Hollywood actress, a princess and a little sister. I'm grateful to have met them.

chaey0726@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.