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+<nav class="table-of-contents capital">
+	<ol>
+		<a href="#top">back to top</a>
+		<li>
+			<a href="{$bts-suga-pre-debut}" id="goto-suga">Suga</a>
+		</li>
+	</ol>
+</nav>
+
+<pre>
+  This is a rendered version of <a href="https://old.reddit.com/r/bangtan/comments/b4p5ok/rm_predebut_history/">this reddit post</a> saved for ease of reading.
+</pre>
+
+<hr>
+
+<h2>RM pre-debut history</h2>
+
+<p>
+	Namjoon started rapping in either June or September 2007 (he's said both
+	dates in different interviews but he was already collaborating with others by
+	September so I'm inclined to believe the June date is more accurate). He was
+	mainly active on the underground hiphop cafe called Jungle Radio, although he
+	did also post on the Hiphopplaya boards from time to time. He had almost no
+	presence on the DC Inside Hip hop Gallery, which is actually kind of ironic
+	considering most of the songs of his that survive come from his old fans
+	posting them on that site.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	And I think that's actually an important fact to keep in mind because all of
+	the songs we have of Namjoon from his time as Runch Randa and Largo survived
+	only because of reposters. Namjoon deleted all his posts on both Jungle Radio
+	and Hiphopplaya sometime around 2010 so we only have the songs that people
+	reposted. This isn't the case for a lot of other underground/amateur artists
+	turned idols. Zico's posts are all or mostly still available to this day for
+	example.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	The earliest known collab he did was with Changmo (the same Changmo that
+	featured on Suran's "Wine" which Yoongi produced) which was uploaded to
+	hiphopplaya by Changmo in September 2007. At the time Changmo used the name
+	LUPE.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	Through late 2007 and early 2008, Namjoon, along with Changmo/LUPE, were
+	part of a crew called the "Black Pirates." He did his first stages with the
+	Black Pirates, though he later left the group seemingly because he felt they
+	were too focused on fame rather than the music (this info comes from a post on
+	JR where another member of BP talks about why they left and Namjoon commented
+	that he had similar reasons).
+</p>
+
+<figure>
+	<img alt="Poster for the 2009 달이차오른다 Concert" src="/media/content/bts-pre-debut/rm1.jpg">
+	<figcaption>
+		Poster for the 달이차오른다 Concert in 2009. Namjoon's 2010 Big Hit Profile
+		listed him as a guest, likely of the Black Pirates, though he'd also
+		collabed with members of SAFARI and with ex8er.
+	</figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p>
+	Despite leaving the group, Namjoon stayed on friendly terms with the members
+	and continued to perform and collab with them in 2009 when a portion of them
+	reorganized into "Undisputed Ill." In the Thanks to section of 2 Cool 4 Skool,
+	Namjoon wrote that he missed both groups (though he referred to them by their
+	abbreviated nicknames "블파" and "언디릴"). He also gave a shout out to Jungle
+	Radio.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	2008 was the year that Namjoon's profile really raised in the underground
+	scene, and a lot of the old songs we have come from this year. He also went
+	through several name changes which caused some fans to be confused. Besides
+	Runch Randa, he used the names Largo, and The Nexist which he both mentioned
+	in Bon Voyage 2.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	The three surviving songs he released as Largo are
+	<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsC-i2TajV8">"LaLaLa"</a>
+	(a collaboration with eiyan and 201호), a song usually referred to as
+	<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAjcAZw-UI8">"녹음물/Recording"</a>
+	with UglyDuck (the original file name of the Uglyduck song was
+	<code>08_07_04_with_Largo</code>), and
+	<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1myHveqM5A4">"Favorite Style"</a>
+	a collaboration with Yammo who would go on to win the Big Deal Squad audition
+	over Namjoon a year later "Favorite Style" is also the only song where Namjoon
+	explicitly calls himself Largo in the lyrics.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	Besides the Bon Voyage reference, the only other records of the Nexist is a
+	<a href="https://gall.dcinside.com/board/view/?id=hiphop&no=867689">DC board
+		post</a>
+	listing Runch Randa's other aliases (the list also includes the
+	name Stealo, but I've never found Stealo anywhere) and a diss track toward the
+	Nexist from a rapper called Fetion. Fetion wrote Nexist aka 점심 in his post
+	which confirms that the Nexist and Runch Randa were the same person because
+	점심 is the Korean word for Lunch and Lunch when written in hangeul is the
+	same as Runch. Other users had made similar puns with the name Runch Randa
+	before and he was sometimes affectionately called Kim Runch.
+</p>
+
+<figure>
+	<img alt="Poster for the first 94 liner concert in August 2009" src="/media/content/bts-pre-debut/rm2.jpg">
+	<figcaption>
+		Poster for the first 94 liner concert in August 2009. Namjoon performs under
+		the now shortened Randa name in a duo with Supreme Boi (then Suprema) called
+		FEARZ.
+	</figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p>
+	In the first half of 2009, Namjoon changed his name from Runch Randa to Randa.
+	Once again, evidence for the change can be seen in the 2C4S Thanks page where he
+	thanks fans of Runch Randa and Randa. In Cypher Part 1, he lists Randa in his
+	list of top 5 rather than Runch Randa. The poster for the 94's Paradise concert
+	also shows the name change.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	2009 also saw the rise of the 94 line in the scene. While both Namjoon and
+	LUPE were fairly well established, new members like Suprema/Supreme Boi,
+	Marvel J, and Kyum2 entered the scene and would later come together to form
+	<a href="https://omonatheydidnt.livejournal.com/15132635.html">DaeNamHyup</a>
+	(DNH) at either the end of 2009 or the beginning of 2010.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	As evidence of how much Namjoon's star had risen, the first 94 line group
+	song did not include him and there were enough comments about his absence that
+	Supreme Boi had to address it in the comments that Namjoon had been to busy to
+	record. In a Daegu hiphop cafe, Yoondal (a sometimes collaborator with Namjoon
+	and participant in the first group song) uploaded the song and one of the
+	first comments jokingly said they didn't need a 94line song without "Runch."
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	Namjoon is also mentioned in songs by other rappers throughout 2008-2010.
+	I've collected around eight so far and most of the mentions are complimentary
+	and wishing they had his skill or fame. I've also found a couple examples of
+	people "clickbaiting" with the Runch Randa name to gain attention for their
+	own work. (One particularly funny example in hindsight used both Runch Randa
+	and Tiger JK to get attention).
+</p>
+
+<figure>
+	<img alt="TODO" src="/media/content/bts-pre-debut/rm3.png">
+	<figcaption>
+		"There's no need for a 94 Line without Runch. Ah, since Yoondal's there it's okay"
+	</figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p>
+	In August 2009, Namjoon auditioned to join the Big Deal Squad. He passed the
+	preliminary round along with six other finalists but did not win a spot. In
+	his interview for the
+	<a href="http://tonguetechnology.blogspot.com/2016/12/rap-monster-part-1.html?m=1">"Let's Do Hip Hop"</a>
+	book about Korean rappers, Namjoon said that he forgot most of his lyrics when
+	he went to perform on stage with Big Deal Squad member Dead'p.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	However, his performance must not have been as terrible as he made it out to
+	be, because it was enough for Sleepy from Untouchable to go up to him after
+	the show and get his contact info. (I think it's also possible that Sleepy may
+	have already known Namjoon from his song postings online since that is what he
+	ended up showing Pdogg when they went out for drinks several months later).
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	This seems to be a case where either Namjoon or Sleepy isn't telling the
+	whole truth. If Namjoon's performance really was bad, Sleepy probably knew
+	about him beforehand and sought him out because of that. If Sleepy really
+	didn't know of him before hand, Namjoon was probably being overly critical
+	about his performance.
+</p>
+
+<figure>
+	<img alt="Advertisement for the Big Deal Squad show that Namjoon attended." src="/media/content/bts-pre-debut/rm4.jpg">
+	<figcaption>
+		Advertisement for the Big Deal Squad show that Namjoon attended.
+	</figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p>
+	After the failed audition, Namjoon seemingly stepped away somewhat from
+	rapping to focus on studying instead, essentially giving up his dream until
+	Sleepy called him out of the blue in May 2010 to suggest he go and meet with
+	Bang PD at Big Hit Entertainment.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	Pdogg details a lot of the early process
+	<a href="http://tonguetechnology.blogspot.com/2016/12/interview-idol-maker-pdogg-producer.html">here</a>
+	but essentially Big Hit and Bang PD hired Namjoon first and then kind of tried
+	to come up with a plan of what to do later. Bang PD mentioned in
+	<a href="https://kpopduck.com/post/168890283183/idol-maker-bang-shi-hyuk-ceo-a-company-that/amp?__twitter_impression=true">this interview</a>
+	that they really didn't have much going on in the way of artist recruitment or
+	training when they took on Namjoon. Namjoon was taken on the spot while later
+	trainees where later trainees had to go through a 3 month evaluation period.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	Namjoon was the first male trainee at Big Hit (though there were other male
+	artists being managed by them) which he referenced in "Freestyle 3." Because
+	of this, Big Hit didn't set up dorms until August 2010 and Namjoon became the
+	first resident there.
+</p>
+
+<figure>
+	<img alt="Poster for the 2nd 94 Paradise Concert Dae Nam Hyup's NIGHT" src="/media/content/bts-pre-debut/rm5.jpg">
+	<figcaption>
+		Poster for the 2nd 94 Paradise Concert "Dae Nam Hyup's NIGHT"
+	</figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p>
+	The same month that Namjoon moved into the dorms, he performed at the DNH Night
+	concert. If you've seen footage of him and Zico performing and he's in a blue
+	shirt, it's from this concert. Notice also that Yammo of Bigdeal Squad is
+	listed. Yammo is the rapper who beat Namjoon in the finals, though they had
+	collabed together before that. V-dob is Iron, who likely got an invite after
+	meeting Namjoon at Big Hit. As far as I know neither of them knew each other
+	before that.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	Namjoon and Iron recorded 2 songs apiece for the start of the first Hit It
+	auditions, which went on over several months. During that time, they also
+	recording "Hook Gayo" and "We are B.P.B." which were both shared on hip hop
+	sites like hiphopplaya. Many people in the comments recognized Namjoon as
+	Randa/Runch Randa and Supreme Boi, but there was little to know awareness of
+	Iron at that time.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	As most people know, Yoongi earned a place at Big Hit after placing second
+	in the finals and i11evn joined Bangtan as the winner of the auditions in late
+	October 2010. Though both i11evn and Iron ended up joining DNH, both of them
+	also left Bangtan with rumors of Iron having left as early as May 2011.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	The predebut line-up of Bangtan is still something of a mystery. Namjoon,
+	Iron, and Supreme boi all featured on professionally released tracks under the
+	Bangtan moniker (Though at this time Bangtan was abbreviated as B.P.B and
+	their English name was Bullet Proof Boyz. It changed to BTS at the time of the
+	2nd Hit It Auditions and the release of Paldogangsan). Kyum2 was rumored to
+	have been a member, and Kidoh of Top Dogg (and DNH) was in the lineup at one
+	point.
+</p>
+
+<figure>
+	<img alt="Screencap of Namjoon's 2010 Big Hit Profile" src="/media/content/bts-pre-debut/rm6.jpg">
+	<figcaption>
+		Screencap of Namjoon's 2010 Big Hit Profile which lists his pre-debut
+		concerts to that date. (This comes from a predebut BPB (Bangtan) fan blog
+		which is no longer accessible)
+	</figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p>
+	Interestingly, in j-hope's 2c4s thanks to section, he mentions someone named
+	"Park Yeong-man" as a former BTS member along with Iron and i11evn. He also
+	mentions other trainees in a separate section and includes
+	<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9d4PyV0h9Nk1sEoICXvYdA">Jihoon</a>
+	who has made several YouTube videos about his time as a bts trainee. I haven't
+	been able to find out any other info about who Yeong-man was, other than that
+	Namjoon also included him in his thanks as part of the "Big Hit Fam" and he was
+	older than both of them since they called him hyung.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	2011 saw the entrance of a lot of new trainees, including Jungkook, Jin (in a
+	vlive they mentioned signing the contracts on the same day), and the above
+	mentioned Jihoon. In a
+	<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3yqKfBoFjw&">video</a>
+	detailing his first impressions of the members, Jihoon mentioned learning that
+	Namjoon was a well-known rapper and that he had a definite leader aura around
+	him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	In another
+	<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vpxvu-pkIe8&t=1s">video</a>,
+	Jihoon also credited Namjoon's leadership of the team with their success
+	because he encouraged trainees to help each other rather than falling to the
+	infighting that is common amoungst most trainee groups. Jihoon is quite
+	positive about the year he spent as a trainee living in the dorms and shares a
+	lot of funny stories in his videos.
+</p>
+
+<figure>
+	<img alt="Poster for the 2011 DNH Concert" src="/media/content/bts-pre-debut/rm7.jpg">
+	<figcaption>Poster for the 2011 DNH Concert</figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p>
+	In August 2011, Namjoon performed at the 3rd 94/DNH concert. As far as I
+	know, this was the last underground concert he did. Interestingly, Deepflow
+	(of the Big Deal Squad though it had more or less gone defunct at this point)
+	was also a performer. You may also know Deepflow as the bald guy sitting
+	beside them and trying to melt into the floor during their talk at the hiphop
+	panel with B-free in 2013.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+	In 2012 all the members were in place and the line-up was finalized. In addition
+	to working on songs for BTS's debut, Namjoon also worked on GLAM's debut song
+	"Party (XXO)" and the follow-up "I Like That."
+</p>