BTS
Snoopy, Batman, ARMY & More: BTS Break Down Their Style Heroes
Aside from their infectious songs, BTS is also known for their impeccable style. In a new interview with GQ, the septet revealed who their biggest style heroes are–and those who inspired them are pretty diverse. While Jungkook takes style notes from bandmate RM, RM from painters Whanki Kim and Hyong Keun Yun and V from his father, J-Hope shared a more unusual source for inspiration: The beloved dog Snoopy from the Peanuts series. “He gives me a fun way to express myself,” he said. “I own Snoopy clothes and pajamas. I think you should try everything you want. That way, you get to understand what works and doesn’t work for you and this will build your own style.” Jin agreed with that sentiment, crowning himself as his biggest style hero...
BTS on Gaining Respect in the U.S.: ‘We Definitely Feel That’
Loud and happy screams erupt in unison from the seven-member pop stars BTS when they hear they have notched their first No. 1 hit on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 chart. “DREAM,” yells band member RM. “It still doesn’t feel real,” adds SUGA, speaking in Korean through a translator. “We’re really happy.” “Dynamite,” the group’s first all-English song, debuted at No. 1 on the U.S. music charts this week, making BTS the first Korean pop act to top the chart. The upbeat song even supplanted “WAP,” the raunchy smash hit by Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion, to claim the No. 1 position. “Never expected it,” RM tells The Associated Press of beating “WAP” for the top spot. “Never! It’s like the song of the year.” But getting their first chart-topping track seemed inevitable for the K-pop boy band,...
BTS’ Jimin Admits ‘Tears Keep Forming’ While Thanking ARMY for Hot 100 No. 1
It’s a big day for BTS. Not only is it their youngest member Jungkook’s birthday on September 1, but the septet is also celebrating their first-ever Hot 100 chart topper, as “Dynamite” blasts into the No. 1 spot. Jimin took to Twitter to share his moment of overwhelming positivity, kicking his string of tweets off with a birthday message to Jungkook. “Happy birthday to our youngest, Older brother loves you a lot,” reads the sweet Korean message translated to English. “Congrats to my members for our No. 1. I’m happy because you guys are here with me. You know the ones I love and are most thankful for are ARMYs, right? ARMYs need to be congratulated!” He added that he’s “still crying,” before sharing another thought. “I ...
BTS Bring the Summery Good Vibes in B-Side ‘Dynamite’ Music Video
BTS is heating up the summer with a bang. The group unveiled their retro-tinged B-side music video for their smash English single “Dynamite” on Monday (Aug. 24). Similar to the original music video, the clip finds the K-pop stars in a number of groovy outfits, busting a move everywhere from in their bedrooms and on a colorful basketball court, to in a record store, coffee shop and outside a disco club. The septet channel John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever, breaking out their best hustle and disco finger points in the “B-side” footage. The OG music video from BTS counted 101.1 million views within 24 hours of its release, YouTube confirmed to Billboard, making it the music video with the biggest first-day debut to date. More than 3 million...
BTS Crave Pineapple on Pizza & Are on a ‘Watermelon Sugar’ High, Thanks to Harry Styles
If there’s one song that BTS has stuck inside their heads, it’s not their explosive new English-language single “Dynamite.” The K-pop group chatted with SiriusXM’s Tony Fly and Symon on Friday (Aug. 21) to talk about their new release, which they’ll perform for the first time ever at the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards. BTS is currently up for three nominations that evening, including best pop, best k-pop and best choreography for “On,” and can’t wait to bring the “Boom!” on stage. But while the hosts got to know the Bangtan Boys and their pro-pineapple-on-pizza stance during the “BFF Speed Round” test, BTS couldn’t get enough of another fruit mentioned in their favorite song at the moment, which is, indeed...
BTS are Releasing an EDM Remix of Their English Language Single “Dynamite”
Record-breaking K-pop group BTS are swerving into the dance music lane with a forthcoming remix. Shortly after they released their new English language single “Dynamite,” the group announced that an EDM rework is on the way. In addition to the electronic remix, the South Korean band also announced that an acoustic rendition of “Dynamite” will hit streaming platforms next week. Both versions are slated for release on Monday, August 24th at 1PM KST (12AM ET, 9PM PT). Big Hit Entertainment, BTS’ label, shared the news in a tweet today along with images from the group’s music video shoot for the single. That video was released today, and it has already racked up an eye-popping 67 million views at the time of this article’s publishing. It feat...
BTS Blow It Up With ‘Dynamite’ Music Video: Watch
Boom! BTS are back with the explosive new release, “Dynamite,” their very first English language track. Big Hit Entertainment lit a long fuse on the tune earlier in the week. At midnight, it blew up with an official music video. The new tune has a disco vibe running through it, and the music video has a kitsch, throwback Los Angeles look as the lads show us all their best moves. In July, BTS mentioned an upcoming new single. “We are preparing an album for the second half of this year, but decided to first release a single because we wanted to reach our fans as soon as possible,” they revealed on the Korean broadcasting app V Live. “Due to COVID-19, people around the world have been going through tough times and we wanted to share some positive energy with our fans.”...
The Chainsmokers, BTS Producer DJ Swivel Shares Music Business Advice in New YouTube Series
DJ Swivel doesn’t believe in gatekeeping in the business and believes that information is meant to be shared. DJ Swivel has launched two new YouTube series called “Story Time” and “Just The Tips.” Too many big players—artists, songwriters, producers, engineers—think they have the “secret sauce” in what it takes to be successful. They found a method that’s worked for them and don’t share their expertise with others for any number of reasons. What they fail to realize is that their success will be different than mine, yours, and, well, just about everyone else in music. Not DJ Swivel, though. He doesn’t believe in gatekeeping in the business and believes that information is to be shared. He’s proven that time and time again with his Full Sail Universit...
The Track List For Max’s New Album Confirms the Collab With BTS’s Suga We’ve All Been Wishing For
The just-revealed track list for pop singer Max‘s upcoming sophomore album, Colour Vision, features the BTS collaboration he’s been teasing since he revealed that he hung out with his “new brother” Suga earlier this year. The pair will meld their voices on the track “Blueberry Eyes,” one of a handful of duets on the album, due out on Sept. 18. They previously teamed up on “Burn It” from Suga’s D-2 mixtape. Also included on the 12-track release are previously-released collabs with Hayley Kiyoko (“Missed Calls”), Chromeo (“Checklist”) and Quinn XCII (“Love Me Less”), and the next single, “Working For the Weekend,” which will drop on Aug. 14. Check out the full Colour Vision track list below....
The 101 Best Albums of the 2010s
Why now? Because — and there’s no reason to ignore the elephant in the room: SPIN stewardship has changed hands many, many times since we made the online jump — we got our chance. Because plenty of our favorite albums of the last 10 years could still use a boost. Because some of the already unanimously beloved music on this list still merits further praise. Because we relish excuses to sound off on the music that’s affected us the most and to enlist some of our favorite writers to do so. Because the works of art below serve as a reminder that the 2010s weren’t all bad. Because lord knows we need the distraction. Because it’s fun. There’s a lot of music that isn’t on this list. Which, duh, but plenty of artists whose work defined the decade for many, many people, including many of us, ...
ARMY, K-pop Fans Become an Unexpected Ally to American Protesters
As American protesters took to the streets to mourn the death of George Floyd, they found an unexpected ally: K-pop fans. Floyd died May 25 after a police officer pressed his knee into his neck for several minutes even after he stopped moving. K-pop fans galvanized by police brutality and political disappointments swiftly mobilized, re-purposing their usual platforms and hashtags from boosting their favorite stars to backing the Black Lives Matter movement. They flooded right-wing hashtags and police apps with short video clips and memes of their K-pop stars. In a tweet Thursday to its 26 million fans, South Korean boy band BTS said it opposes racial discrimination and violence and announced a $1 million donation to Black Lives Matter. Fans quickly followed suit with the hashtag #MatchAMil...
Big Hit Entertainment Global CEO Lenzo Yoon Talks New Role, ‘Localizing’ In the U.S. & Growing Artist Roster
“Any new service that Big Hit will present all starts from our business philosophy of ‘What content will fans enjoy the most?'” A decade into his tenure at Big Hit Entertainment, Lenzo Yoon is gearing up for some big moves — both in the company and in his personal life. One of the biggest takeaways of last week’s executive changeups at Big Hit Entertainment — the South Korean label home to the record-breaking BTS, Tomorrow X Together and GFriend — came in co-CEO Lenzo Yoon’s expanding his role to Global CEO and soon leading from the United States. The move not only pointed to a more global outlook for the company (which had its biggest year ever with a record $500 million in revenue in 2019), but also that it was official...
