BTS’ Billboard chart takeover: are the fan Army playing fair? K-pop single Butter became 2021’s longest-running US No 1 thanks to three remixes, iTunes discounts, plus cassette and vinyl releases …
- It used to be unthinkable for a foreign band to top the US singles chart – but BTS’ nine-week No 1 run with Butter is being celebrated as a breakthrough
- But some analysts have blamed mass streaming and repeat buying by fans for ‘skewing’ the charts far beyond K-pop’s mainstream actual popularity
Following its May 21 release, Butter reigned atop the chart for seven weeks in a row before yielding the spot to another BTS anthem, Permission to Dance, dropped July 9. The former, however, dethroned the latter only a week later and has since ruled the chart for nine non-consecutive weeks as of Monday.
The K-pop megastars have hit an apex in their career with this feat, but their accomplishment deserves more attention for many reasons, according to industry experts.
BTS’ success has altered the way pop music fans think about the chart. Once, non-English-language artists could never top it, but now a Korean group has taken it over. The Hot 100 is finally, truly, global
“BTS’ recent chart success is meaningful because it implies one of the victories that the group – which consists of non-white, non-American performers – and its global fans have achieved in the ideological battle against the white-dominated American entertainment industry,” said Stephanie Choi, an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of East Asian Studies at New York University College of Arts and Science.
Brooklyn-based music journalist Maria Sherman, who wrote the 2020 book Larger Than Life: A History of Boy Bands From NKOTB to BTS, pointed out that BTS’ continued dominance is a testament to its “massiveness”.
“For many, the Billboard charts are still the ultimate barometer for achievement and there is no more reputable way to show the success of an artist or what the biggest song in the US is at any given moment,” Sherman said.
“Its latest accomplishment is proving that it is the biggest band on the planet. In fact, Butter is the group’s fourth consecutive No 1 hit – following Dynamite, Savage Love and Life Goes On (all from 2020) – and no other acts have done that so quickly since the Jackson 5 in 1970. On top of that, BTS’ success has altered the way pop music fans think about the chart. Once, non-English-language artists could never top it, but now a Korean group has taken it over. The Hot 100 is finally, truly, global.”
Are BTS and the Army are playing fair?
A single fan buying Butter six times in six weeks does not mean BTS gained five more fans in America in that time
There are, however, some voices in the US criticising the seven-member group and its global fandom, named the “Army”, for “skewing” the Billboard chart. They insist the fans, who often get involved in mass-streaming or bulk-buying to help their singers secure the top spots, are preventing it from reflecting the actual popularity of different songs. In fact, the fairness of these tactics has long been a hot talking point in the Korean music industry, too.
Asked about their perspectives on the issue, US-based experts mostly said they believe these fans are still playing fair.
“As long as they’re not cheating – for example, artificially boosting streaming or sales totals with robotic replays or fake purchases – it is totally fair for them to buy all of the remixes or buy a song on vinyl that they already have as a download,” said chart analyst and pop critic Chris Molanphy, who is also the host of the Hit Parade podcast and the writer of Slate magazine’s “Why is This Song No. 1?” series.