Jaehwa Bernardo

Thai boy group BUS. Photo from BUS' X account

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Meet BUS: Things to know about PH-bound Thai pop group

Carmelle Lacuata

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1774339693322BUS.jpeg" style="width:960px;display:block;height:auto" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Thai boy group BUS. Photos from BUS&#x27; X account"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Thai boy group BUS.<em> Photos from BUS&#x27; X account</em></span></span></span></div><p>While K-pop and J-pop idols have long dominated the international pop scene, Southeast Asian acts are increasingly making their mark abroad. One standout is BUS, a Thai boy group that has been steadily expanding its fan base with their youthful energy and polished performances.</p><p>Composed of 12 members, the group was formed through a reality talent competition in 2023 and made their debut in December of the same year, quickly becoming one of the most talked-about rising acts in Thailand&#x27;s idol pop scene.</p><p>In a bid to connect with fans across Asia, and perhaps gain even more supporters, the group has announced their first-ever fan concert tour, &quot;The First Light,&quot; which will include a stop in the Philippines at the New Frontier Theater on May 24.</p><p>Here are five things to know about the boys who have captured Thailand&#x27;s hearts and are now setting their sights on an international audience.</p><div><strong>ORIGINS AND MEMBERS</strong></div><p>BUS, which stands for Because of You, I Shine, was formed through the survival program &quot;789 Survival.&quot; The group&#x27;s name reflects the importance of their fans, collectively known as BEUS, whose support they credit for turning them into idols.</p><p>&quot;You gave us power, and it turned an ordinary person into an artist. We wouldn’t be here today without each and every one of you,&quot; member Peemwasu said in a documentary for the group&#x27;s debut.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1774339755754BUS 1.jpeg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="(From left) BUS members Nex, Phutatchai, Copper, AA, JungT and Peemwasu"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">(From left) BUS members Nex, Phutatchai, Copper, AA, JungT and Peemwasu</span></span></span></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1774339809614BUS 2.jpeg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="(From left) Alan, Markcris, Khunpol, Heart, Jinwook and Thai"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">(From left) Alan, Markcris, Khunpol, Heart, Jinwook and Thai</span></span></span></div><p>Apart from Peemwasu, the other members are Alan, Marckris, Khunpol, Heart, Jinwook, Thai, Nex, Putatchai, Copper, AA and JungT.</p><p>The group debuted in December 6, 2023 with the song &quot;Because of You, I Shine&quot; before launching two sub-units — BUS5 and BUS 7 — both in 2024.</p><div><strong>DIVERSE SOUNDS</strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KLuCFhq3vNM?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong></div><p>Instrumental to the group&#x27;s rising popularity is their music, with their music typically alternating between upbeat pop with bright, colorful visuals (such as in &quot;Bow Wow&quot; and &quot;So Blue&quot;) and hard-hitting hip-hop-leaning tracks (&quot;Liar&quot; and &quot;Transformer&quot;).</p><p>Debut single &quot;Because of You, I Shine,&quot; for instance, is a melodic pop track that highlights the strengths of the members. The producers assigned lines to each members to ensure that listeners would get to know them better, with some of the boys contributing lyrics to the song, as shown in the documentary.</p><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nrioo1HXk8?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></div><p>Meanwhile, sub-unit tracks &quot;No Matter What&quot; and &quot;Brother Zone&quot; showcase a slower, R&amp;B-tinged style that highlights the group&#x27;s vocal strengths, setting them apart from previous singles.</p><div><strong>GROWING POPULARITY</strong></div><p>BUS has grown its presence across social media, with content ranging from dance practice videos and behind-the-scenes clips to livestreams and fan interactions consistently generating strong engagement.</p><p>On YouTube, the group boasts 1.1 million subscribers, with several music videos racking up millions of views, while on Spotify, they have a more modest 445,661 monthly listeners. The group also has roughly 1.4 million followers on Instagram and 389,400 on X.</p><p>But their popularity extends beyond the digital space. Offline, the group boasts multiple brand endorsements across Thailand, covering everything from telecommunications and snacks to pet food.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1774340194936BUS3.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Thai boy group BUS. <em>Photos from BUS&#x27; X account </em></span></span></span></div><div><strong>OVERSEAS PROMOTION</strong></div><p>Earlier this year, the group expanded their promotions overseas. In February, they performed on the popular South Korean music show &quot;M Countdown,&quot; with Thai media reporting them as the first T-pop act to appear on the program that&#x27;s typically watched by K-pop fans worldwide.</p><p>BUS had already caught the attention of some K-pop fans before &quot;M Countdown.&quot; Their New Year&#x27;s countdown performance of K-pop group Cortis&#x27; &quot;Go&quot; in Bangkok went viral. The two groups later shared a video of Cortis performing BUS&#x27; version of the song, delighting fans.</p><div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-1" src="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DUaY4fUmm3i/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=540&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A1%2C%22os%22%3A14253582.200000048%2C%22ls%22%3A39563.299999952316%2C%22le%22%3A39893.40000009537%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="881" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-1" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe></div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><p>Aside from filming a dance challenge video with Cortis, BUS has also filmed with Thai K-pop idols, such as Minnie of I-dle, Chiquita of Babymonster (who is also Copper&#x27;s sister) and Yorch of POW.</p><div><strong>INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS</strong></div><p>BUS have also built their presence outside of music, with members pursuing solo work in acting, variety shows, modeling and brand collaborations.</p><p>Before BUS, for instance, Khunpol starred in the hit boys&#x27; love series &quot;I Told Sunset About You&quot; and its sequel &quot;I Promised You The Moon.&quot; Meanwhile, Copper debuted as an actor in the 2022 series &quot;My Sassy Prince: Wake Up, Sleeping Beauty.&quot; In 2020, Thai also starred in the series &quot;Friend Forever.&quot;</p><p>Phutatchai, on the other hand, was a former youth Thai national ice hockey team member.</p><p>Aside from acting, several members have also collaborated with different artists in singing official sountracks of different Thai series.</p><p>Tickets for BUS&#x27; Manila fan concert, priced from P1,000 to P12,000, go on sale March 25 for BEUS members, March 26 for Mastercard presale, and March 27 for the general public.</p>

<p>Thai boy group BUS has been steadily expanding its fan base with their youthful energy and polished performances.</p>

Thai boy group BUS has been steadily expanding its fan base with their youthful energy and polished performances.

Meet BUS: Things to know about rising Thai pop group

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Meet BUS: Things to know about rising Thai pop group

Rose Carmelle Lacuata,

ABS-CBN News

Published March 24, 2026 04:34 PM PHT

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Updated March 24, 2026 04:51 PM PHT

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