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A look back on BTS’ towering achievements

By Yim Hyun-su

  • Published : Aug 24, 2018 - 15:56
  • Updated : Aug 24, 2018 - 15:56

From topping charts in the US to instant sellout concerts, we round up this K-pop sensation’s trailblazing achievements

BTS is experiencing a great year, having enjoyed soaring popularity as demonstrated by its record sales, streaming views and Twitter engagement.

With the much anticipated “Love Yourself: Answer” hitting the music industry on Friday, here is a look back at some of the group’s most impressive achievements in recent months.

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(AP-Yonhap)
No. 1 album in the US

In May, BTS debuted at the top spot on the Billboard 200 albums chart, becoming the highest charting K-pop act ever in the US.

“Love Yourself: Tear” sold 135,000 units in its first week, according to Nielsen Music, leaving behind the likes of Post Malone and Cardi B.

The album also became the only primarily foreign-language album to top the chart in over a decade.

The feat unprecedented by not only music acts from Korea but also from the whole of East Asia received wide international media coverage, including from BBC and CNN, bringing K-pop further to the global mainstream.

Guinness World Record for most Twitter engagement

The seven-piece boy band was recognized by the Guinness World Records for most Twitter engagements, thanks to its enormous and interactive fan group “Army.”

BTS will appear in the 2019 edition of the publication for averaging 330,624 engagements on Twitter per tweet.

Twitter engagements include any form of interaction on the platform, including retweets, replies, likes and follows.

The record was previously held by the UK’s Harry Styles from One Direction.

BTS also holds another record for having the most viewed video within 24 hours by a K-pop group. The “DNA” video was watched over 21 million times in a single day.

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(AFP-Yonhap)
Record-breaking preorder sales


“Love Yourself: Answer” has sold more than 1.5 million copies in preorders in South Korea, becoming one of the top-selling records in the country’s music history even before release.

The figure overtakes that of the band’s previous album “Love Yourself: Tear,” preorder sales of which marked nearly 1.45 million copies.

“Love Yourself: Tear” had sold over 1.6 million copies two weeks after its release on May 18, according to the Gaon Music Chart, becoming Korea’s highest-selling album in over 17 years.

800,000 in attendance

Starting with concerts at Olympic Stadium in Seoul over the weekend, the group will embark on a world tour with stops at 16 cities, including Los Angeles, London, Berlin and Tokyo, for a total of 33 shows.

Tickets sold out in about an hour for the septet’s first US stadium show at New York’s Citi Field, which can accommodate some 42,000 people.

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(V Live's Twitter account)
10 million subscribers on V Live


In July, BTS became the first group to hit 10 million followers on Naver’s video platform V Live.

BTS still has by far the most popular channel on the video service, with EXO and GOT7 trailing behind with 5.9 million and 4.9 million followers, respectively.

Countries where the group’s videos were most played include South Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines, the US and Thailand.

The group’s landmark number was recognized by Naver’s headquarters building in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, which lit up at night with a message of congratulations.

By Yim Hyun-su (hyunsu@heraldcorp.com)

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