BTS, the Beatles of 21st Century – How they paved the way for K-pop?

Just five years ago, the world (well, except East Asia) had no idea what K-pop was. All of us experienced the collapse, Gangnam Style created in 2012 and no one knew that song was K-pop. But it opened up a gate for many artists to come. It was pre-dominantly BTS who actually made an impact big enough to be recognized as pioneers of K-pop and make the genre mainstream.

BTS, a seven member group consisting of RM, JIN, JUNGKOOK, V, JIMIN, SUGA and J-HOPE are the biggest group in the world right now.

Deemed as the BEATLES of the 21st Century, "the BTS" are one of the most successful artists around the world. As of January 2021, they have had 5 albums go #1 on the Billboard 200 chart.

BTS became the fastest group to generate four no. 1 albums in the US since the Beatles. No wonder they’re called the BEATLES of the 21st Century.

They are also the first artist to reach #1 in 103 countries on iTunes worldwide with their song Black Swan, breaking Adele’s record. They’ve also broken an Oricon record previously held by Michael Jackson as they became the first foreign artist to reach #1 on Oricon mid-year chart with their album, Map of the Soul:7. Setting multiple Guinness World Records, BTS boast a total of 20 million physical albums sold as of April, 2020. DYNAMITE, their hit single debuted at #1 on Billboard Hot 100 and surpassed 101.1 million YouTube views in its first 24 hours of release. Thus, breaking a major YouTube record. BTS also became the only group to have three songs (dynamite, life goes on and savage love(remix)) go #1 on Billboard Hot 100 in 2020. Both DYNAMITE and LIFE GOES ON from their latest album, BE debuted at #1 on the charts. Life Goes On being a song sung in Korean language debuted at #1 on the charts and they made history again by becoming the first group ever to debut a foreign language song at #1. BTS also broke the record for most weeks atop Billboard’s Social 50 artist. With Grammy Nominations announced late 2020, BTS made history by becoming the first Korean act to be nominated for a Grammy. They are nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category for their chart topping single DYNAMITE.

Boasting a total of 59.1 followers on twitter (across their two official accounts), 36.5 million on Instagram, 27.8 million followers on Spotify and a total of 43.8 million subscribers on YouTube, they are one of the most influential artists right now.

From rags-to-riches, the boys have been through a lot, learnt a lot and it reflects in their music.

Despite selling out stadiums and millions of albums, they are some of the most humble and respectful artists and this is the reason why their fandom who call themselves ARMY loves and adores them.

Also Read: K-dramas you should watch in 2021!

They have not only broken down the barrier of language, but have also helped and inspired millions of people around the world to make their voices heard. BTS also launched the LOVE MYSELF campaign with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) aimed at protecting children and teens from violence and encouraging preventive measures. They have also done multiple donations in the past, one of them being a MILLION DOLLAR donation to Black Lives Matter. They also spoke at the UN General Assembly a total of two times in 2018 and 2020. Not only BTS, but their fans ARMY have done multiple donations over the past few years in their name. This goes on to show how impactful BTS truly is and the message they share with the world.

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