Even in a pandemic year like no other, the K-pop group BTS – and their fandom like no other – managed to break records, pushing the limits of what a band singing mainly in a language other than English can accomplish in the music industry. from the United States, while raising the spirits of millions of fans with hopeful lyrics in a dark time. His exploits will be on display again in full force at the Grammy Awards on Sunday, where BTS is set to perform.
The group has already achieved new achievements only in the first months of this year, becoming the first Asian artist nominated by the IFPI as the Global Recording Artist of the Year. Last week, the IFPI also crowned BTS’s “Map of the Soul: 7” album. as the first winner of its new global album format chart, which tracks the best-selling albums of the year across all types of consumption.
Fans will be watching with anticipation to see if the group, which starred Variety’s cover last year, take home the gold this weekend in the race for the best performance of the pop duo / group.
In no particular order, but roughly chronological, here’s a look back at some of the band’s milestones last year, before the Grammy stage this weekend.
- “Black Swan” rose to the top
The first single from “Map of the Soul: 7,” “Black Swan” was released on January 17 last year to pave the way for BTS’s long-awaited fourth Korean album. Driven by the social media action of global legions of BTS fans, collectively known as ARMY, the song reached No. 1 on iTunes in 104 countries, more than any other song in history – surpassing Adele’s “Hello” already held the record almost five years ago.
- Give back big
Last week, BTS announced that it would extend its ongoing UNICEF “LOVE MYSELF” campaign to eliminate violence against children, promising to donate an additional $ 1 million, as well as a portion of the profits from its “Love Myself” merchandising and album “ Love Yourself ”for the cause. The campaign has raised nearly $ 3 million since its inception in 2017.
His newest commitment to UNICEF is only the last step in his efforts to give back.
At the height of the social justice protests provoked by the death of George Floyd of Minneapolis in June, Variety broke the news that BTS and its manager Big Hit Entertainment quietly donated $ 1 million to Black Lives Matter. In the next 25 hours, fans organized to match the donation with another $ 1 million. “It was a decision that we thought about very carefully: what could we do as part of our overall message to speak out against prejudice and violence?” Said the RM group member Variety in October, explaining his reasoning.
In June, BTS and Big Hit also donated $ 1 million to Crew Nation, Live Nation’s campaign to support live entertainment workers affected by the pandemic.
- NPR Tiny Desk Concert
It took BTS just 25 minutes to break the NPR series record for most of the first day’s views on YouTube with their first Tiny Desk Concert in September. The clip had more than 6 million streams in just 24 hours. Unable to travel to the organization’s headquarters in Washington, DC, the band sang intimate interpretations of “Save Me”, “Spring Day” and “Dynamite” while sitting on stools amid rows of vinyl in a Seoul record store , accompanied by a live band.
“The main American market has been a tough nut to crack for the band. It looks like a little dynamite was enough, ”commented NPR host Mary Louise Kelly in a recap of the program, calling it“ a reminder that BTS has arrived ”- as if the world needed another.
- “Dynamite” proves dynamite
The lively disco funk track “Dynamite”, BTS ‘first entirely English song, was released in late August with a bang. It debuted first on the Billboard Hot 100, making BTS the first Korean group to top the charts. He also topped Spotify’s streaming ratings, winning the biggest opening day of any song from last year on the platform, beating Taylor Swift’s “Cardigan”. His video clip also broke records, making it the YouTube video with the most streams in the first 24 hours of all time, with 101.1 million plays on the first day.
“Dynamite” was initially not part of the band’s plans, but in the middle of the pandemic, the group said they wanted to send something positive for the fans to enjoy. “It just made us feel good when we heard it,” RM explained before his debut. “We really wanted to share that energy with the fans as quickly as possible.”
- Acquisition of “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” for one week
Apparently, closing New York’s Grand Central Station with dozens of backup dancers, a martial band and Jimmy Fallon in tow to play “ON” was not enough for the boys. They returned to The Tonight Show in October for an unprecedented weeklong acquisition that left the show’s official twitter bleeding purple hearts.
“We love having BTS on the show,” said Fallon at the time. “You just know that they are going to do everything to make your performance unforgettable.”
- Record-breaking live streams
Never a group to stand still, BTS managed to keep their shows alive, despite the cancellation of the planned 38 world tour “Map of the Soul” last year. With a smart pivot and high production value for digital, they presented “BangBangCon: The Live” in June, a virtual pay-per-view show to celebrate the seventh anniversary of their debut. The event reached the Guinness World Record for “the majority of viewers broadcasting a live music show”, thanks to 756,000 fans from 107 countries who tuned in to their set of 12 songs. Variety’s recapitulated the virtual event as “the second best thing than being there” personally, noting that, despite the distance from the spectators’ boys, “one of BTS’s charms is its ability to make fans feel valued and seen”.
The record did not last long, however. Just three months later, BTS broke it again. His two-day online show “Map of the Soul ON: E” drew 993,000 viewers from 191 countries and territories. With production costs about eight times higher than “BangBangCon”, the full stage show was broadcast live without an audience of the 15,000-seat KSPO Dome in Seoul.
- Big Hit IPO
Big Hit Entertainment is listed on the Korean stock exchange on October 15 with an offer of $ 820 million, the largest in South Korea in three years. Although its stock price has skyrocketed since the initial peak in its market debut, the initial IPO nevertheless made Big Hit Bang Si-hyuk’s founder and co-CEO South Korea’s 14th richest person. one of the seven members of BTS also received 68,385 shares, making them multimillionaires in their own right. The company said last week that it is changing its name to HYBE Corporation.
- Launch of “BE”
Despite COVID-19, BTS managed to put together their fifth Korean studio album, “BE”, which debuted on November 20. The album featured the creative talents of the band members, with Jungkook directing the video for the lead single “Life Goes On” and V taking on the role of visual director for the LP. The release made BTS the first group to simultaneously reach the top spot in the Artist 100, Hot 100 and Billboard 200 charts.
Unlike “Dynamite,” “Life Goes On” featured the boys singing and rapping in their native Korean, making their rise to the top of the charts even more impressive, especially considering that it received little reproduction on American radio.
- Growing public profile
BTS’s growing global presence has given boys more opportunities to act as inspirational ambassadors in areas other than their music.
In June, they spoke at YouTube’s “Dear Class of 2020” graduation event alongside Barack and Michelle Obama. In September, they spoke alongside Korean President Moon Jae In to kick off South Korea’s first National Youth Day. A few days later, they made a special video appearance at the virtual UN General Assembly, offering a speech on resilience in the face of uncertainty during the pandemic. In October, they received the Van Fleet Award for their role in promoting cultural ties between the United States and Korea. To end a strong 2020, Time Magazine named the group Artist of the Year.
And while it may not be such a formal honor, Jungkook was named People Magazine’s “Sexiest International Man” last year, marking a blow to Asian male representation.
- A historic Grammy nomination
BTS became the first Korean pop group to receive an important Grammy nomination thanks to “Dynamite” (the group was nominated for best album package in 2019). Their first nod is in the category of best pop duo / group performance, where they will compete with collaborations from pop heavyweights like Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber.
It will not be the first time that they will take the stage at the Grammy Awards, however. In 2019, they briefly debuted on stage as award presenters and last year they performed alongside Lil Nas X. However, after the show, they reiterated their dream of winning a Grammy.
“They didn’t give us much time” on stage, RM admitted in Korean. “We wanted to do more. I would love to sing our song here one day. We hope for more next time, please. “
On Sunday, they will finally have their chance.