BTS History

Explore the journey of BTS from debut to global superstardom through this interactive timeline.

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BTS Timeline

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BTS Awards & Milestones

7MAMA Artist of the Year

BTS made history by winning the prestigious Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA) Artist of the Year for seven consecutive years (2016-2022), an unprecedented achievement in K-pop history.

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Billboard Breakthroughs

BTS has collected numerous Billboard Music Awards, including becoming the first K-pop act to win "Top Duo/Group" in 2019. Their singles "Dynamite," "Butter," and "Life Goes On" made them the first Korean act to debut multiple songs at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

United Nations Addresses

BTS has addressed the United Nations General Assembly three times (2018, 2020, 2021), spreading messages of self-love, pandemic resilience, and climate action to youth worldwide as part of their ongoing work with UNICEF's "Love Myself" campaign.

2018: "Speak Yourself" Speech
2020: Pandemic Resilience
2021: "Permission to Dance" Performance

Grammy Recognition

BTS became the first K-pop act to perform at the Grammy Awards in 2020 and received nominations for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for "Dynamite" (2021), "Butter" (2022), and "My Universe" with Coldplay (2023), breaking barriers for Korean artists in Western music's most prestigious award show.

BTS History Facts

Did You Know?

BTS was originally supposed to be a hip-hop group similar to YG Entertainment's 1TYM. Their concept evolved over time to include various music genres.

BTS Firsts

BTS was the first K-pop group to perform at the American Music Awards, present at the Grammy Awards, and speak at the United Nations General Assembly.

Name Origin

The name BTS stands for "Bangtan Sonyeondan" (방탄소년단) in Korean, which translates to "Bulletproof Boy Scouts." In 2017, they also introduced "Beyond The Scene" as an English meaning.

Record Breaking

BTS holds multiple Guinness World Records, including "Most Twitter engagements" and "Most viewed YouTube video in 24 hours" with their hit song "Butter."