BTS Become The First South Korean Act to Conquer the Billboard Hot 100
Hot on the heels of their debut VMAs performance, BTS have already added yet another feather to their cap: ‘Dynamite‘ just earned the boys their first No. 1 claim on the Billboard Hot 100.
Now, this marks the first time an all-South Korean group has dominated the Billboard Hot 100 charts, which is truly a laudable feat. BTS even managed to dethrone Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s ‘WAP’, which is currently getting comfortable on the No. 2 spot. It’s worth noting that a lot of the band’s previous numbers have traversed through the Hot 100 chart. From ‘Mic Drop’ featuring Steve Aoki to 2019’s ‘Boy With Luv’ in league with Halsey and more recently, their groovy hit ‘ON’ – have all spent a fair amount of time on the chart.
In fact, ‘ON’ even peaked at No. 4 on the chart and while it didn’t reach the summit, this tune brought home some big wins at the 2020 VMAs. ‘ON’ scored in the Best Pop category, beating out some top notch Western acts like Lady Gaga, the Jonas Brothers and even Justin Bieber. Further, this tune also bagged awards in the Best K-Pop and Best Choreography categories. So, perhaps the charts were in fact reserving that No. 1 spot for an even more special hit. In an exciting turn of events, their chart win also coincides with Jeon Jungkook’s (the youngest member of BTS) birthday.
So, it’s no surprise that Twitter has been flooded with a cocktail of congratulatory messages and birthday wishes. In fact, #BTS1onHot100 even became the top trending hashtag on Twitter, with fans reminiscing on the boys’ dreams to top the chart in various interviews.
The band’s sunny rapper, J-hope also shared his excitement over their win in a heartwarming message, “Congratulations on the Billboard No. 1 fellow members, I’m happy because of you guys. And ARMY! You know that we love and thank you more than anyone. You deserve to be congratulated, too,” the star tweeted.
And so, as BTS bask under a new victory, they’ve also proved that a South Korean act can after all, conquer a Western chart.
By: Nina Karun
