47 Facts About BTS

BTS, known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010 and debuting in 2013 under Big Hit Entertainment.

In 2020, BTS became the first all-South Korean act to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard Global 200 with their Grammy-nominated single "Dynamite".

Septet's name, BTS, stands for the Korean phrase Bangtan Sonyeondan, literally meaning "Bulletproof Boy Scouts".

In July 2017, BTS announced that their name would stand for "Beyond the Scene" as part of their new brand identity.

BTS was formed in 2010, after Big Hit Entertainment CEO Bang Si-hyuk wanted to form a hip hop group around RM, an underground rapper who was well known on the music scene in Seoul.

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BTS was originally supposed to be a hip hop group, but, seeing falling album sales, he changed his plans, thinking a different path would be more marketable.

BTS chose to vary from the usual, highly regimented idol groups and create one where the members would be individuals rather than an ensemble, and free to express themselves.

That same month, BTS starred in their own variety show, SBS MTV's Rookie King Channel Bangtan, in which members parodied variety shows such as VJ Special Forces and MasterChef Korea.

In July 2014, BTS hosted a concert in West Hollywood, their first show in the United States, and in August, they appeared at KCON in Los Angeles.

BTS experimented with other styles of music besides hip hop in The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Part 1, released in 2015.

In November, BTS commenced their third concert tour, 2015 BTS LIVE "The Most Beautiful Moment in Life: On Stage", which began with three sold-out shows in Seoul, and was extended to Japan.

BTS embarked on their Asia tour extension, 2016 BTS LIVE "The Most Beautiful Moment in Life On Stage: Epilogue" from May to August 2016.

In February 2017, BTS released the repackaged edition of Wings entitled You Never Walk Alone.

BTS fans cast over 300million votes for the band and broke a six-year winning streak held by Justin Bieber, a performer with 100million Twitter followers.

BTS released a remake of Seo Taiji's "Come Back Home" in July 2017, giving it new lyrics but maintaining the theme of urging societal change.

In November 2017, BTS became the first K-pop group to perform at the American Music Awards.

In 2017, BTS partnered with UNICEF on the "Love Myself" campaign, intended to help end violence, abuse and bullying, and to promote self-esteem and well-being among young people.

BTS won major awards at the Golden Disc and Seoul Music Awards in January 2018.

BTS released their compilation album Love Yourself: Answer in August, 2018.

In conjunction with Love Yourself: Answer's release in August2018, BTS commenced their world tour, BTS World Tour: Love Yourself, with two concerts in the Seoul Olympic Stadium, which sold out in a matter of seconds, as did others of the 22 shows in 12 countries.

That October, BTS renewed their contract with Big Hit Entertainment through 2026.

In early November 2018, a popular Japanese music show cancelled BTS' performance, citing a T-shirt a member wore the year before, bearing a photograph of a mushroom cloud following the bombing of Nagasaki.

John Lie, in his scholarly article on BTS, opined that the Nazi incident showed that the group is not tightly controlled, as are other K-pop ensembles, whose every move seems scripted, and that the members have opinions and are not afraid to express them.

BTS was the third top-grossing touring musical act of 2019.

At the 34th Golden Disc Awards, BTS became the first artists in history to win grand prizes in both the physical and digital categories in a single year.

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In January 2020, BTS released "Black Swan" along with a choreography art film performed by MN Dance Company of Slovenia as the first single from their album, Map of the Soul: 7.

Later that month, BTS performed at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards, making BTS the first Korean act to perform at the Grammys.

That month, amid the pandemic restrictions, BTS held a two-day online streaming concert event titled Bang Bang Con, where the group shared footage of past concerts on their YouTube channel.

Kim, in his book on the influence of Korean popular culture, suggested that 2020, the worst year in many people's lives, was a noteworthy one for Korean culture, with Parasite winning the Academy Award for Best Picture, and BTS posting three number-one hits on the Billboard Global 200.

BTS occupied three spots in the Global Album Sales Chart of 2020 with Map of the Soul: 7 coming in at number one, Be at number two, and Map of the Soul: 7–The Journey at number eight.

Hybe Corporation, which owns Big Hit, clarified in subsequent statements that BTS was neither disbanding nor going on hiatus, but would be actively furthering their individual careers with the label's full support while still participating in future group activities, including the filming of Run BTS.

BTS have cited Seo Taiji and Boys, Nas, Eminem, Kanye West, Drake, Post Malone, Charlie Puth, and Danger as musical inspirations.

Since their inception, BTS have emphasized hip hop as their musical base, largely due to the influence of RM and Suga's background as underground rappers; during visits to the US, the group has received mentoring from American rappers.

Since their formation, BTS have believed that telling their own stories is the best way for the younger generation to relate to their music.

BTS released the song amid the 2016 South Korean political scandal that resulted in the impeachment of president Park Geun-hye.

In 2020, BTS became the first non-western and non-English speaking artist to be named IFPI's Global Recording Artist of the Year.

In 2022, Youna Kim described BTS as having spearheaded the Korean wave, representing the global expansion of Korean culture as effectively as Psy did in the previous decade and with the strength of influence that the Academy Award-winning South Korean film Parasite had in 2020.

South Korea's central bank, the Bank of Korea, found in 2021 that BTS, including a "ripple effect" that included increased tourism to South Korea; increased interest in Korean culture, movies, and study of the Korean language; and added approximately US$5billion per year to South Korea's economy, a growth of about 0.

That year, BTS became the youngest recipients of the Order of Cultural Merit.

In September2019, BTS were mentioned by Moon while announcing strategies for the content industries, for having pioneered innovative business models through direct communication with fans.

In 2020, BTS were given the James A Van Fleet Award in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the promotion of US-Korea relations, the youngest honorees to receive the award.

Unlike other K-pop groups, BTS interacted with and engaged their followers from their earliest days over social media, as well as via BTS Universe, an alternate storyline involving the members told through music videos, mobile games, books, short films, and more that gives fans ample room to theorize.

BTS' lyrics speak to social values, and fans respond by trying to improve the world.

Feedback from ARMY to BTS affects the group's actions and lyrics; BTS has eliminated certain Korean words that sound like American racial slurs from their songs and ended collaboration with a Japanese producer when Korean ARMY members deemed his views extreme.

BTS has served as global brand ambassadors for LG Electronics' smartphones, and Hyundai Motors' 2019 flagship SUV the "Palisade" and hydrogen fuel cell electric SUV, the "Nexo".

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BTS became global ambassadors of the electric street racing series Formula E to promote how electric vehicles can help combat climate change.

In 2020, BTS partnered with Samsung Electronics, releasing a limited BTS-themed version of the Galaxy S20+ and Galaxy Buds+.