21 K-pop bands breaking the internet that you should know about

This seven-member boy band has taken the world by storm and are definitely the biggest name in K-pop. BTS have performed sell-out arena shows across the US and UK, have achieved two No. 1 albums in the US, boast 16 million monthly listeners on Spotify, have sold 16 million albums (Map of Soul is the best-selling album in Korean history), and were the best-selling artist to debut in the 2010s. According to the IFPI’s Global Artist Chart, BTS were the second best-selling artists of 2018 (behind Drake), as well as the only non-English speaking artist to enter the chart. The seven members are rappers Suga, RM and J-hope, and vocalists Jimin, V, Jin and Jungkook.

In August 2020, BTS released the track ‘Dynamite’, their first song entirely in English, which topped the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and stayed there for three whole weeks. It was the band’s first No.1 single in the US and made BTS the first all-South Korean act to top the Hot 100. Shortly after, they became the first K-pop musicians to receive a Grammy nomination, with ‘Dynamite’ up for ‘Best Pop Duo/Group Performance’.

Fast forward to the 2021 American Music Awards, and the group has received their biggest accolade to date, winning Artist of the Year (the biggest award of the night) and making history as the first Asian act to win the category. Oh, and they also took home the gong for Favourite Pop Duo or Group for the third year in a row, plus an extra win with their track ‘Butter’ winning Favourite Pop Song.

In October 2022, their Korean management company confirmed they would start their country’s mandatory military service, and they aim to reconvene as a group in 2025.