The South Korean boys’ band BTS, popularly known as the Bangtan Boys, was founded in 2010 and made its debut in 2013. Big Hit Entertainment managed it. Musicians of the septet include Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jungkook. The septet co-writes as well as co-produces a lot of their music. Initially a hip-hop trio, they have expanded their musical approach to include a variety of genres. Their lyrics frequently touch on mental health, adolescence’s challenges, grief, the path to self-love, & individualism.
Additionally, their work typically parallels literary, philosophical, and psychological ideas and has an alternate universe plot. When they debuted in 2013 with the album 2 Cool 4 Skool, BTS simultaneously launched their first studio albums in Korean and Japanese in 2014, titled Dark & Wild and Wake Up, respectively. Wings (2016), the group’s second Korean album, became their first to reach a million sales mark in that country. By 2017, BTS had entered the international music market, driving the Korean wave into America and shattering numerous sales records. They became the first South Korean band to peak on the Billboard 200 via their new album Love Yourself: Tear and the first Korean group to get recognition from the Recording Industry (RIAA) for their track “Mic Drop” (2018).
With almost 30 million records sold via the Circle Chart as of 2022, BTS is the best-selling brand in South Korean history, and the latest album, Map of the Soul: 7 (2020), is the finest album of all time in the country. The Love Yourself World Tour in 2019 saw them perform to packed houses, making them the first Asian and non-English speaking act. They were also awarded the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry’s (IFPI) International Album Artist of the Year for 2020 and 2021. Nine American Music Awards, 12 Billboard Music Awards, 24 Golden Disc Awards, and nominations for two Grammy Awards and one for a Brit Award are among the group’s numerous honors.
Is BTS Overrated?
Even though BTS is omnipresent, it’s easy to think of them as an overrated band, especially since they are frequently contrasted with other boy bands like One Direction or the Backstreet Boys. But BTS has its narrative, sound, and aesthetic. Additionally, sufficient proof demonstrates that the buzz surrounding them is wholly legitimate. The seven BTS members’ rise to fame on their own merits after beginning at the bottom proves that they are a great group. Fans decided to give BTS a chance even when there was no reason to pay attention to them, and they were still relatively unknown, proving that they stood apart from the majority of other boy bands at the time. BTS also made a name for themselves as enduring artists over time. They put a lot of effort into building upon their brand while maintaining everything that made them successful in the first place, instead of being a one-hit wonder group. They now have a portfolio chock full of albums that set records and singles that topped the charts. The fact that non-fans are continually being converted into ARMIES in every nation shows that their supporters haven’t grown bored of them.
BTS appears to be on track to reach even greater heights and will remain popular for some years at the current rate.
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BTS Members
JIN: His full name is Kim Seok-Jin, and he is 24. Jin, the group’s eldest member with one of its four vocalists, was approached by Big Hit Entertainment after being spotted on the street while studying cinema at Konkuk University. He enjoys cooking, is a proficient guitarist, and is the master of dad jokes. Additionally, Jin co-produced the Wings solo song “Awake.”
SUGA: His full name is Min Yoon-Gi, and he is 24. Suga, like Rap Monster, had a thriving underground rap career in Daegu before entering BTS, but he is much more than just a lyricist. The 24-year-old just launched a solo mixtape titled Agust D. He enjoys songwriting, producing, & playing the piano.
RAP MONSTER: His full name is Kim Nam-Joon, and he is 23. Before BTS was created, the “leader” of the group honed his abilities as an underground rapper and was the first person chosen for the group. He has collaborated with hip-hop and indie musicians, including Primary, Don Mills, Gaeko, MFBTY, and Wale. He is renowned for giving songs his unique spin. Rap Monster, who picked up English while watching Friends, typically speaks for most of BTS’ English-language interviews.
J-HOPE: His full name is Jung Ho-Seok, and he is 24. Before joining BTS, J-Hope was a member of the street dance group Neuron and is renowned for his exceptional dance skills and positive demeanor. He chose his stage name to give his fans inspiration and hope. J-Hope won a national dancing contest in South Korea in 2008, but he has also shown that he can rap.
JIMIN: His full name is Park Ji-Min, and he is 21. Vocalist Jimin studied modern dance at Busan High School of Arts, where he was one of the best students. After auditioning for BTS in Daegu, he later transferred alongside bandmate V to Korea Arts High School. Jimin is renowned for his meticulous nature and kind demeanor.
V: His full name is Kim Tae-Hyung, and he is 21. As the other members of BTS were well-known to the public before their 2013 debut, V is seen as a surprise band member. Despite coming from a farming family, V has embraced his artistic career. He enjoys photography and painting a lot and recently started starring in the Korean drama Hwarang.
JUNGKOOK: His full name is Jeon Jeong-Guk and he is 20. When BTS made its debut, Jungkook was only 15 years old. He began high school a year later to devote more time to the band (he graduated this February). Although the group’s youngest member, Jungkook, became one of the most sought-after singers after trying out for the South Korean talent program Superstar K. He ultimately decided to sign with Big Hit Entertainment. He is well-known for his singing, dancing, and love of video games.
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BTS Career
When Big Hit Media CEO Bang Si-hyuk intended to create a hip hop group surrounding RM (Kim Namjoon), a well-known underground rapper in Seoul, BTS was built in 2010. BTS was initially intended to be a hip-hop act comparable to 1TYM from YG Entertainment. Bang Si-hyuk formed an idol group akin to Seo Taiji and Boys, who were well-liked in the 1990s, shortly after BTS was founded. Due to declining album sales, Bang decided that an idol group would be more commercially successful. Before the 2011 premiere date was changed, artists like 2 AM and Lee Seung-gi featured them on several tunes. The Skool Luv Affair EP, the concluding installment of BTS’s “school trilogy,” was made available in February 2014. The record peaked at number three on Billboard’s World Albums Chart and the top of the Gaon Album Chart. Two singles, “Boy in Luv” and “Just One Day,” were released to promote the EP. After the release of Skool Luv Affair, BTS hosted its first fan gathering in Seoul. BTS performed at KCON in Los Angeles in August 2014 after hosting their debut concert in the country in West Hollywood in July. In the 2015 album The Most Beautiful Moments in Life, Part 1, BTS explored musical genres other than hip hop. BTS chose the song’s title, which may be loosely taken to mean “youth” literally as “the most beautiful time in life,” to portray the beauty and anxiety of youth. The EP examined the ups and downs of adolescence and its lighthearted and encouraging moments. Their youthful trilogy, a triptych of CDs focusing on the hardships of young people, was introduced with this album.
BTS’s top result in South Korea was the lead single “I Need U,” which also earned the group their first-ever music-show victory on SBS MTV’s The Show. BTS released Youth, their second new Japanese album, in September 2016. The album debuted at the top on the Oricon Daily Album Chart after selling 44,547 copies on its first day of sale. After selling well over 100,000 copies in Japan, the album was eventually given a gold certification. Their subsequent studio album, Wings, which was released in October, mixed the themes of youth offered in their earlier “youth trilogy” with desire and struggle. You Never Walk Alone, a repackaged version of Wings, was released in February 2017 by BTS. Its pre-orders shattered the South Korean record for the number of albums sold in a calendar month. “Spring Day,” the album’s main song, was named Best Music of the Year at the 2017 Melon Music Awards. BTS became the first artist not represented by one of the three Korean pop music agencies to win significant prizes at the Golden Disc and Seoul Music Awards in January 2018. Exclusive to YouTube Premium, the group debuted an eight-episode film titled Burn the Stage in March that provided some behind-the-scenes look at their 2017 Wings Tour.
BTS made their debut appearance at the 61st Grammy Awards in February 2019 as award presenters. They were included in April’s Time 100 list of 2019’s most essential individuals. On April 12, they released their sixth EP, Map of the Soul: Persona, which included the lead single “Boy with Luv” by American singer Halsey.
On June 10, 2022, BTS launched their three-CD anthology record Proof to favourable reviews from music reviewers. The group announced a temporary ban of group operations on June 14 to concentrate on solo projects and other undertakings throughout their ninth-anniversary festivities. In following announcements, Hybe Corporation made it clear that BTS was either not breaking up or taking a break but instead would be actively advancing their separate career with the label’s complete support while also taking part in future collective activities, such as the production of Run BTS. The incident prompted a sharp drop in Hybe Corporation’s stock, which reduced its market worth by $1.7 billion (US).
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