What Is Smeraldo Books? BTS' New Twitter Is Part Of The Bangtan Universe

BTS has a new Twitter account! But it’s not exactly what you’d expect it to be. Their new Twitter account, which is @Smeraldo_Books, is part of the Bangtan Universe. Now, if you're a newer fan, you might be wondering what that means. The Bangtan Universe is basically an alternate universe created by BigHit Entertainment (BTS' label) and inspired by the members of BTS. So, what is Smerlado Books? And how does it fit into all that? Here’s what you need to know.

Bangtan Universe is essentially a fictional storyline that weaves through a series of BTS' music videos in which each member of the band has their own character. The characters have the members' real-life names, but their storylines should not be conflated with their real-life counterparts (especially considering each character has a pretty harrowing backstory). I won't get too deep into it since the universe is pretty complex (there are plenty of Reddit threads and YouTube videos dedicated to decoding everything that goes down), but what seems to be a common thread in all the fan theories is that there's time travel or alternate timelines involved.

In addition to being explored through a series of music videos, Bangtan Universe is also depicted in short films, short stories, posters, and album notes. Smeraldo Books is just a new addition to this ever-expanding universe.

Now that you know what the Bangtan Universe is all about, let’s delve deeper into Smeraldo Books. The new Twitter account was announced on Sunday, Jan. 6.

In announcing the account, BTS wrote:

Smeraldo Books is named after the Smeraldo flower which means ‘The Truth Untold’ in the language of flowers. We will do our best to deliver the truth through the books made by Smeraldo Books.

The Smeraldo is a fictional flower that only exists in the Bangtan Universe (which is why it happens to translate into the name of one of BTS' songs). The flower was discovered on June 12, 2013 — the same day BTS debuted. The Smeraldo has popped up in the boys' Love Yourself Highlight Reel as well as right on their Twitter account.

As fictional as the Smeraldo flower is, it's worth wondering if BigHit could be hinting at the release of very real books set in the Bangtan Universe based on this new development. After all, they did say they'd "deliver the truth through the books made by Smeraldo Books."

Since the initial announcement, Smeraldo Books has been sharing messages and videos from each of the boys' characters on a daily basis. They're all very mysterious and seem to be excerpts from the HYYH notes found in the Love Yourself albums. But perhaps these particular excerpts hint at where the Bangtan Universe is heading (and, perhaps, the concept of BTS' next comeback).

So, that’s a tiny glimpse into what Smeraldo Books is all about (it's admittedly still a bit mysterious, isn't it?)!

Now, here’s a look at each character's Smeraldo Books' tweets.


SeokJin (aka, Jin's character's) teaser reads: "Would I be able to straighten out the errors and mistakes and save the others? I didn't grasp the depth and weight of this question. — SeokJin, May 2, 2022."


Suga's character, YoonGi's, teaser is as follows: "The car had just barely missed me. The remaining buzz of the alcohol all made me feel giddy. Then I realized I couldn't hear the piano anymore. — YoonGi, April 7, 2022."


RM's character, NamJoon's, teaser is a bit mysterious. The tweet reads: "SeokJin just stood there on the edge of my sight. He didn't come closer or start talking. — NamJoon, April 11, 2022."


The teaser for Jeon Jungkook is also quite mysterious. I wonder what it all means! Here's what the tweet says: "My phone rang. I came back to myself as if awakened from a long dream. I took out my phone. It was YoonGi. — JungKook, April 11, 2022"


Unlike the rest of the teasers, which seem to take place in the future year 2022, HoSeok's character's teaser is from the past. It reads, "My mom handed me a chocolate bar. 'HoSeok, close your eyes tight and don't open them until you count to ten.' — HoSeok, July 23, 2010."


JiMin's teaser is set in the future as well, but in 2020. His reads, "I lied for the first time today. I looked into the doctors eyes and pretended to be depressed. 'I can't remember anything.' —JiMin, Sept. 28, 2020."


Oddly enough, after releasing excerpts from six different band members' characters, one may have expected the seventh excerpt to be from TaeHyung. But alas, the seventh excerpt was another from YoonGi.

It reads, "The sheet caught fire and instantly flared up. My last sight of this world was this dirty, isolated room, the red-hot flames and rolling heat, and JungKook's twisted face. —YoonGi, May 2, 2022."

WHAT DOES IT MEAN? Smeraldo Books is definitely keeping us on our toes!

Overall, it seems like BTS is doing everything they can to create an immersive experience for fans. Just the very fact that they have their own fictional universe is pretty astounding. That they’ve put so much thought, love, and hard work into it shows how passionate they are about giving their fans the kind of content they deserve.

Smeraldo Books is still quite the mystery at the moment, but we can probably expect more awesome Bangtan Universe secrets to be unveiled there, so I'll definitely be keeping my eyes on that account!