Since 2013, Korean group BTS has made music and written lyrics with the best of intentions. Despite singing in Korean, their message is understood and respected worldwide. With their latest single titled “Dynamite,” they changed it up a bit.
When BTS was breaking into the Western scene, American interviewers constantly asked them if they would ever make a song or possibly a full album entirely in English. They never gave a clear answer because that simply isn’t what BTS is about. They are a Korean group from Korea who write songs in their native language. “Dynamite,” which was released on August 21st, was their first all-English song. It was unexpected, but so was the COVID-19 pandemic.
During promotions for this song, the seven member group spoke about how this song came to them from two outside songwriters while they were working on their next album, which is set to come out later this year. When they received the “Dynamite” demo, they loved it just the way it was and decided to keep its original lyrics. The song is a fun disco-pop track and it sounds vivid and lively. It’s addicting to listen to and after first hearing it, listeners will want to play it again.
The boys of BTS have said this song was released to give hope and positive energy amidst the current crisis. They have spoken about trying to do things they can control during the pandemic. Their music is a way for them to do just that, instead of focusing on the things they can’t change, like a postponed tour. In an interview with MTV, leader and rapper of the group, RM, said, “We focused on what we can do best, which is music and the performance. So we tried to get energy by hopping in a new challenge and that’s how Dynamite came to be. We hope this song can energize everyone as it did for us.”
This song is already making headlines as it broke numerous YouTube records. It became the most viewed YouTube video in 24 hours, receiving a total of 101.1 million views. The video is bright, colorful, and vivid. It also has a retro feel with the seven members dressed in retro outfits; there are also retro-inspired props and sets seen throughout the video. The song also broke the record for the biggest debut on Spotify with over 12.6 million streams in a day and gave the group its highest ranking on the UK Official Singles Chart,coming in at #3. It also gave the group it’s first number #1on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. A huge achievement for the group as they became the first all-South Korean group to reach the No.1 spot. It is the first song by an asian act in 57 years to earn a #1 spot as well. BTS made their MTV Video Music Awards debut on Sunday, August 30th with the track.
“Dynamite” is also getting radio play that their other songs (in Korean) don’t typically get. This song is clearly achieving the goal the group had in mind, making a lot of people feel good during a time that’s filled with anxiety and fear. It’s no doubt that BTS’ first all-English song is making massive waves, but make no mistake, they break these kinds of records all the time with their Korean music and lyrics too.