BTS is without question the most famous K-pop band in the world. Since their global breakthrough in 2017, the boys have consistently stayed at the top and, even years later, are still setting new records and gaining new fans. BTS is now considered one of the most successful boy bands ever!
We would like to give you an overview of the history of BTS:
- Pre-Debut
- The members
- debut
- 2014-2017
- The global breakthrough
- 2017 to date: The biggest records and milestones
- Military service
Pre-Debut
Before we talk about BTS's debut and their first albums, let's first summarize for you how the boy band came about.
The first future member of BTS to join Big Hit Entertainment (now Hybe Corporation) was Leader RM. RM was a well-known underground rapper who auditioned for Big Deal Records in 2009 but was rejected. There he caught the eye of rapper Sleepy, who a year later encouraged him to introduce himself to Bang Si Hyuk, the founder of Big Hit Entertainment. Bang Si Hyuk was immediately convinced and took RM on as a trainee.
At that time, Big Hit Entertainment was still very young. Bang Si Hyuk had only founded the label in 2005 and only had the vocal trio 8Eight (2007) and the ballad group 2AM (2008) under contract.
Bang Si Hyuk planned to debut RM in a hip-hop group, so it's no surprise that the next BTS members he recruited were two rappers, Suga and J-Hope.
Suga took part in a Big Hit rap competition and took second place. Big Hit signed him as a producer and trainee. Suga was previously active as an underground rapper under the name “Gloss” and had already gained experience in composing and arranging music. Suga actually thought he would work as a producer, but Bang Si Hyuk convinces him to join BTS and debut as an idol. That's why the rapper now likes to joke that he was tricked.
J-Hope took part in an audition for Big Hit and subsequently signed a contract with the label. At the time, he was part of a dance team called Neuron and had already won several dance competitions.
Big Hit Entertainment had already gathered three members of BTS in just one year. And the following year (2011) three more were added!
Jin was spotted on the street by a Big Hit casting director and asked to come to an audition. At the time, Jin actually planned to become an actor and therefore applied to Big Hit as an actor. As we know, he did become a trainee and later debuted as an idol!
Jungkook wanted to take part in the talent show Superstar K in 2011, but unfortunately he wasn't accepted. But he certainly wasn't disappointed, because seven different agencies then contacted Jungkook, eager to recruit him! Why he chose Big Hit is probably one of the most well-known facts among fans. Jungkook was so impressed with RM after seeing him perform that he wanted to join the same agency as him.
V took part in an audition, but only by chance. Actually, he just accompanied a friend to support him. A Big Hit employee also convinced him to take part. V was the only one to pass the audition that day and became a trainee shortly afterwards.
The seventh member joined in 2012: Jimin. He studied modern dance and was the best student in his department. A teacher suggested he introduce himself at an entertainment. Jimin followed this suggestion and ended up at Big Hit Entertainment.
Finally, all seven members of BTS were gathered. And just a year later they made their debut together!
| Artist name | Real name | Birthday |
|---|---|---|
| Hearing | Kim Seokjin | 04.12.1992 |
| Sugar | Min Yoongi | 09.03.1993 |
| J-Hope | Jung Hoseok | 18.02.1994 |
| RM | Kim Namjoon | 12.09.1994 |
| Jimin | Park Jimin | 13.10.1995 |
| V | Kim Taehyung | 30.12.1995 |
| Jungkook | Jeon Jungkook | 01.09.1997 |
debut
On June 12, 2013, BTS released their debut single album “2 Cool 4 Skool,” laying the foundation for an incredible career. It started off rather slowly, however. “2 Cool 4 Skool” reached number 5 in the Korean Gaon Album Charts (now Circle Charts) and number 12 in the American Billboard World Album Charts. That's not bad, but of course it can't be compared to the current success of BTS albums. By the end of the year, 24,441 copies had been sold. The album was ranked 65th in Gaon's year-end chart.
BTS continued to climb the ranks with their first mini album “O!RUL8,2?” in September. The album reached number 4 on the album charts and landed at number 55 on Gaon's year-end chart of the best-selling albums of 2013; 10 places higher than 2 Cool 4 Skool!
For their initial successes, BTS was also awarded several New Artist Awards at the end of the year.
2014 - 2017
The boy band already showed what it was capable of with these first two albums, because all members worked more or less on the lyrics. RM, J-Hope and Suga in particular wrote most of their raps themselves early on. In addition, BTS already addressed controversial topics with these first albums and songs, which is what they are known for today. The title songs “No More Dream” and “N.O.” are aimed at young people who are put under pressure and frustrated by school and their environment. Especially N.O. criticizes the school system and rebels against it.
2014 promised to be a good year early on. On February 12th, BTS released their second mini album “Skool Luv Affair” , which is the third and final part of the “School Trilogy”. Skool Luv Affair topped the Gaon Album Charts and reached number 20 on the list of the best-selling albums in 2014! The title song “Boy In Luv” was also nominated for first place in a music show. However, it would take a good year before the boy group could take home their first music show trophy. The album did manage to reach number three on the Billboard World Album Charts.
In April, a music video for the song “Just One Day” from Skool Luv Affair was released. By the way, the song was released as a pre-release single before the album and is considered the lead single alongside “Boy in Luv”.
On March 29, BTS held their first fan meeting titled “BTS Global Official Fanclub A.R.M.Y 1ST Muster” with 3,000 fans. The fan club name “A.R.M.Y” was announced in July 2013 and is an abbreviation for “Adorable Representative M.C. for Youth.” Today, millions of fans around the world proudly refer to themselves as A.R.M.Y. The official YouTube channel and Instagram account of BTS now (January 2023) has more than 70 million followers! Are you one of them?
Just four months later, in July 2014, the boy group gave their first concert in America and in August the boys performed at the KCON in Los Angeles.The KCON is a Korean convention. You can find out more about the KCON and other K-Pop festivals here!
Of course, Skool Luv Affair was not the only album that BTS released in 2014. In August, the first studio album “Dark & Wild” followed, which also has two lead singles: “Danger” and “War of Hormone”. First, BTS performed “Danger”, later a music video for “War of Hormone” was released.
Dark & Wild didn't top the Gaon Album Charts, but was just behind the top at number 2. However, it surpassed Skool Luv Affair in the year-end charts. With 100,906 copies sold, Dark & Wild was the 14th best-selling album of the year. In January 2015, BTS even won the Bonsang, one of the biggest prizes at the 29th Golden Disc Awards, for the album!
But apart from the albums, BTS achieved several milestones in 2014: The first tour “2014 BTS Live Trilogy Episode II: The Red Bullet” took place in Asia from October to December and the first Japanese album “Wake Up” was released in December published.
We're getting closer to the big global breakthrough, but before that, BTS have solidified their position in Korea. After the boys attracted attention in 2014 and topped the charts for the first time, they showed in 2015 that it was no coincidence. They stormed the charts with every single album and set new personal records!
Two albums were released in 2015: “The Most Beautiful Moments in Life, Pt. 1” (April 29, 2015) and “The Most Beautiful Moments in Life, Pt. 2” (November 30, 2015).
Pt.1 not only topped the Korean Gaon Charts, but was also awarded two Bonsang Awards in January 2016! (25th Seoul Music Awards & 30th Golden Disc Awards.) The title song “I Need U” also finally brought BTS their first win in a music show! The first win wasn't the only one, as I Need You won four more music show trophies! A music video for the second single "Dope" was also uploaded on June 24th, which has been viewed over 100 million times!
Pt. 1 ranked sixth among the best-selling albums on the Gaon year-end charts with 274,135 copies sold. Pt. 2 was right before it at number 5 with 275,000 copies sold.
All nine songs from Pt. 2 entered the Gaon Weekly Digital Chart and all nine also made it into the Billboard World Digital Songs Chart. The album itself stayed at the top of the Billboard World Album Chart for a full 22 weeks and also earned BTS a place on the Billboard 200 Chart for the first time!
BTS not only released successful albums in 2015, but also gave concerts around the world. BTS set off on their first Japanese tour in February 2015. Fans outside of Asia also had the opportunity to cheer on BTS live for the first time. The boy band continued their Red Bullet Tour from 2014 in June and visited, among other places, Australia, America, Mexico and Brazil. The tour ended in August and a new one started in November with the title 2015 BTS Live “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life: On Stage”. Until March 2016, BTS gave concerts in Japan and South Korea as part of this tour.
In 2016, the Korean compilation album “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life: Young Forever” (May 2016) and the second Japanese album “Youth” followed. It is no surprise that these albums also topped several charts. One of the most notable achievements of Young Forever was that BTS won the Daesang (grand prize) for the first time at the 8th Melon Music Awards. In addition, the songs “Fire”, “Save Me” and “Epilogue: Young Forever” took the top three spots on Billboard’s World Digital Songs Chart, something no K-pop artist had ever achieved before.
The third and final album that BTS released in 2016 was an even bigger success than its predecessors. “Wings” was released on October 10th and was pre-ordered 500,000 times, a personal record for BTS. But BTS didn't just set personal records with the album. Among other things, the music video for the title song “Blood Sweet & Tears” reached 10 million views faster than any other K-Pop music video. “Wings” also reached number 26 on the Billboard 200 chart, making it the best-selling K-Pop album in America ever. At the end of the year, the album was honored at several Korean award shows and Billboard declared it the best K-Pop album of 2016!
“Wings” is undoubtedly a particularly big milestone in BTS’ career to this day, but the boy group celebrated their big breakthrough with the subsequent repackage album “You Never Walk Alone” (February 13, 2017). It hit like a bomb and opened a whole new era for BTS!
The global breakthrough
The album sold 1.49 million copies by the end of February, topping charts in Korea, China and America and putting BTS in the spotlight. With over 300 million votes from fans around the world, BTS won the Top Social Award at the 24th Billboard Music Awards, beating superstar Justin Bieber, who had won the award for the previous six years. Suddenly the whole world was watching the boy band from South Korea, the first K-pop group to win a Billboard Award.
BTS had very impressively proven that they are not just a particularly successful Korean boy band, but a phenomenon with the potential to reach the top of the music world.
Now would be the right time to say: “The rest is history.” Most people know what happens next, because BTS has repeatedly made headlines with new groundbreaking successes in the following years. Even if you're not a fan of BTS or K-Pop, you know the boy band and some of their records.
But we don't want to leave the developments of the next few years entirely to your memory. Below we have summarized the most interesting milestones for you.
2017 to date: The biggest records and milestones
September 18, 2017: The Korean album “Love Yourself: Her” was released.
It is the first album since “Chapter” by 1st gen boy group “god” to sell more than 1.2 million copies. It is also the first K-pop album to enter the Billboard Hot 100 chart (#85). The music video for the title track “DNA” was viewed more than 21 million times in the first 24 hours.
November 19, 2017: BTS became the first K-pop group ever to perform at the American Music Awards.
2018
May 2018: The studio album “Love Yourself: Tear” was released. It debuted at the top of the Billboard 200 and is the first K-pop album to top the US album chart. BTS won “Top Social Artist” for the second time at the 25th Billboard Music Awards.
August 24, 2018: The compilation album “Love Yourself: Answer” was released. There is an additional digital version of the title song “Idol” featuring Nicki Minaj. The album has sold more than 1.9 million copies.
October 2018: All members of BTS signed a new contract with Big Hit Entertainment that runs until 2026!
November 15, 2018: The documentary film “Burn the Stage: The Movie,” which follows BTS behind the scenes of the 2017 Wings Tour, was released in theaters. More than two million fans from 19 countries saw the film in cinemas.
End of 2018: BTS won “Artist of the Year” at the 20th Mnet Asian Music Awards and reached number 8 on Billboard's Top Artists Chart.
Bloomberg Media included the boy band in its list of the 50 most influential people who have the potential to shape politics and business. Bloomberg praised BTS for addressing social issues, mental health and politics. The K-Pop genre isn't necessarily known for that, which is why BTS stands out.
2019
April 2019: The mini album “Map of the Soul: Persona” was released. BTS sings the title song “Boy with Luv” together with the American singer Halsey. The boy group was the first K-pop artist ever to perform the song on “Saturday Night Live”.
May 2019: BTS won “Top Social Artist” and “Top Duo/Group” at the 26th Billboard Music Awards.
June 2019: BTS released their own mobile game called “BTS World”.
November 24, 2019: BTS won three awards at the 2019 American Music Awards - “Best Tour”, “Favourite Duo or Group - Pop/Rock” and “Favourite Social Artist”.
December 2019: BTS became the first group to win the four top awards at both the Melon Music Awards and the Mnet Asian Music Awards. At the 34th Golden Disc Awards, the boy band took home the top prizes in the physical and digital categories. No artist has ever won both awards in one year!
2020
January 26, 2020: BTS became the first ever Korean artists to perform at the Grammy Awards!
February 21, 2020: The studio album “Map of the Soul: 7” was released. It sold over 4.1 million copies in just nine days and is still the best-selling album in South Korea to date (January 2023)! BTS currently occupies no less than eight of the top 10 places in the list of best-selling albums in South Korea.
April 2020: As of April, BTS became the first K-pop artist ever to sell more than 20 million albums in total. At this point, 2020 is already a highlight in the history of BTS and the Korean music industry.
August 2020: BTS topped the US Billboard Hot 100 chart with the English single “Dynamite”. Before them, no Korean artist has ever had a single reach the top of the US charts! At the MTV Video Music Awards, the boy band won four awards: “Best Group,” “Best Choreography,” “Best Pop Video” and “Best K-Pop.”
2021
May 21, 2021: The English single “Butter” was released. It was the 7th most searched song on Google in 2021.
July 9, 2021: The English single “Permission to Dance” was released and topped Billboard's Digital Songs Chart. It was BTS's eighth number 1 hit on the chart. The boy band thus further extended their record of most number 1 songs in the chart!
September 24, 2021: BTS released the single “My Universe” together with Coldplay. It topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart. No collaboration between two groups has ever achieved this before!
2022
January 15, 2022: BTS released their own webtoon titled “7 Fates: Chakho”. In the first few days it was viewed more than 15 million times. This beat all other projects ever published on “Webtoon”!
April 8, 2022: BTS was nominated for seven different awards at the Billboard Music Awards. The boy band took three of them home with them. This makes BTS the group that has been nominated and honored by the award show the most times.
June 2022: On June 10, BTS released the compilation album "Proof" and caused a stir four days later with a livestream for the 9th anniversary! The members explained that they want to focus more on solo projects and will take time to find out who they really are. Many sources falsely reported that BTS would disband, causing great consternation among fans. However, the HYBE Corporation quickly cleared up the misunderstanding and made it clear that although the members will pursue their solo careers for the time being, they will continue to be active as a group.
Since then, several members such as J-Hope, Jin and RM have made their official solo debuts. All seven also published a photo book together in November. So we can look forward to both solo projects and joint activities from BTS in the future!
