line (라인) — Korean Word Meaning | HallyuWords

K-Pop — Entry No. 0206

라인

line · noun

K-Pop intermediate

라인

line

[RAH-een]

nounintermediate

Meaning

In K-Pop, 라인 refers to subgroupings of members within an idol group based on shared roles, skills, or birth years. Common role-based lines include 보컬 라인 (vocal line), 댄스 라인 (dance line), 랩 라인 (rap line), and 비주얼 라인 (visual line). The term also describes cross-group friendships between idols who share a birth year, such as the famous ’97 line.’

K-Pop & K-Drama Context

BTS’s rap line — RM, Suga, and J-Hope — is one of the most celebrated subgroupings in K-Pop history, having released individual mixtapes and collaborative work that shaped the group’s identity and proved the creative power of role-based lines. The ’97 line’ friendship connecting BTS’s Jimin, GOT7’s Yugyeom, SEVENTEEN’s Mingyu, and several others born in 1997 became a beloved inter-group dynamic that fans tracked obsessively on social media, with their reunion photos regularly trending worldwide. BLACKPINK’s vocal line (Rosé and Jisoo) versus rap line (Jennie and Lisa) is a frequent point of fan analysis when predicting the group’s musical direction, showing how 라인 shapes how audiences understand group identity.

Example Sentences

BTS의 댄스 라인은 정말 대단해.

BTS-ui daen-seu ra-i-neun jeong-mal dae-dan-hae.

BTS’s dance line is truly incredible. (Expresses focused admiration — fans use this to spotlight specific members without diminishing others)

그들은 같은 97년생 라인이야.

geu-deul-eun ga-teun 97-nyeon-saeng ra-i-ni-ya.

They’re in the same 97-liner group. (Describes the birth year bond fans track across different agencies and groups)

보컬 라인이 이 노래에서 빛났어.

bo-keol ra-i-ni i no-rae-e-seo bit-nat-eo.

The vocal line shone in this song. (How fans highlight standout contributions — carries warmth and specificity that broad praise lacks)

⚠️ Don’t use line when…

Birth-year lines like ’97 line’ are informal fan constructs — idols don’t automatically consider themselves a group just because they share a birth year, and assuming close friendship based solely on birth year can misrepresent real relationships. Role-based lines (vocal, dance, rap) are also fan-assigned and fluid; agencies rarely officially designate them, so treating them as fixed official positions can lead to misunderstanding how idol groups actually operate.

🎵 Heard In

K-Drama: Imitation — the rival idol groups in this 2021 drama are visibly structured around vocal, dance, and rap line members whose personal rivalries and friendships mirror exactly how real K-Pop groups navigate internal role divisions.
K-Pop: BTS — Cypher Pt.3: KILLER (a track exclusively performed by BTS’s rap line — RM, Suga, and J-Hope — widely considered one of the best demonstrations of how a role-based line can carry its own artistic legacy within a group)

💡 Did You Know? The ’97 line’ became so famous that their group selfies reliably crashed Twitter trends — leading fans to coin ‘line selfie’ as its own genre of K-Pop social media content, and inspiring other birth-year groupings (the ’00 line,’ the ’02 line’) to cultivate their own public friendship dynamics.

ℹ️ Editorial Note: The cultural context and example usage are for educational reference only. Artist names, song titles, and drama references are used descriptively to illustrate vocabulary in context. This content is AI-assisted and reviewed for accuracy. For official information, please refer to the respective artists’ or studios’ official channels.

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