Breaking record after record, South-Korean group BTS and their smash summer hit “Dynamite” dominated the charts worldwide. According to the members, this fun disco-pop track was the result of the current situation regarding COVID-19. 

“The song is a reaction to the current pandemic situation. We wanted to give people energy through singing and dancing, which is what we do best,” vocalist Kim Taehyung, also known as his stage name V, stated during an interview with the Grammys Museum.

In an interview with Vogue, vocalist Kim Seokjin, a.k.a. Jin, stated that, “‘Dynamite’ is a song about focusing on what you can do even in difficult situations. It’s a fun disco pop song, and I hope a lot of people will get energized by listening to this song! We were healed through ‘Dynamite’ and we hope it reinvigorates you as well.”

“Dynamite” achieved astounding success, debuting at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart and maintaining its spot in the top 2 for three more weeks, eventually repeaking at #1 several weeks after its original release date. This achievement in itself earned BTS a number of accolades, giving them the titles of the first international band in history to debut at #1, the only Asian act to debut at #1 and the first Asian act in 57 years to earn a #1 spot.  

BTS is also the first act in the world to maintain a #1 spot on all Billboard charts simultaneously, which consists of the Hot 100, Global 200, Global 200 (excluding U.S.), Digital Song Sales, World Albums, Artist 100 and Top Social 50. 

Outstandingly, these records are only half of the achievements BTS gained from their summer single. “Dynamite” also earned a #1 on iTunes in over 100 countries, making BTS the first act to have six songs with 100 #1s on iTunes. They topped all major markets with “Dynamite” and debuted #1 on the Worldwide iTunes song chart and Global Spotify (also giving BTS the biggest Spotify debut of 2020 as well as the biggest debut for any Asian act).

This success, however, branches out much further from just the charts. The “Dynamite” music video broke the record for most views within the first 24 hours of release, obtaining 101.1 million views. With this, “Dynamite”’s video was also the fastest music video in history to reach 100 million views.

BTS continues to make leaps and bounds for people of color in the western music industry, especially for non-English speaking acts. This, however, does not stop the consistent xenophobic comments and racist microaggressions they face on a daily basis. Many sentiments spread throughout social media agree upon one central idea: the success of seven men of color, all whose first language is not English, threatens a music industry that has continuously silenced people of color and has not paid the respect that is due for racial minorities in the western industry.

Weverse, a web platform created by BTS’s entertainment agency BigHit, released an article for its magazine titled “BTS & ARMY, We Walk Together” which addressed the xenophobia the group has faced.

“[W]hen BTS visited SiriusXM on Feb. 21, their writer Sal Governale said, ‘There’s no way those guys don’t have coronavirus.’… In the world we are living, even BTS can be the victim of racism.”

On top of this, BTS have been openly ridiculed and criticized on Twitter solely because of the language they speak and the country they’re from, in which condescending and racist microaggressions often attempt to discredit the many successes of BTS.

However, the BTS members have addressed the prejudice they’ve encountered in the past.

Since 2017, rapper Min Yoongi of BTS, a.k.a. Suga, has preached that, “You’ll like BTS music if you listen without prejudice.”

With their millions of supporters worldwide and the countless records they continue to break because of their music, the accuracy of Min’s statement speaks for itself.