2023 was a testament to how BTS truly won’t be going anywhere, even when they are apart. As we all know, the K-POP phenomenon is currently on hiatus from their group activities in order to fulfill their military duties. This marked the beginning of chapter two, where each member experimented with solo releases, showing ARMY and the world what they are capable of as individuals. But even when they can’t be together as a seven, it doesn’t mean they aren’t thriving and succeeding! Let’s take a look at how 2023 was for BTS, with some of the many highlights.
Yet To Come In Cinemas Had Us Flocking To The Big Screen
BTS kicked off 2023 at the cinemas. Last year’s iconic final show from the Bangtan Boys took place in the shape of Yet To Come in Busan, a phenomenal free event that took place in Busan, South Korea. The concert was recorded and gave ARMY around the world the chance to see the incredible performance with Yet To Come in Cinemas back on February 1st for just one day at 1,817 cinemas in 240 countries and territories around the world, and grossed $53 million to date. It was then released on Amazon Prime in various countries later this year. The most beautiful way to say goodbye. *sniff*
j-hope Brings Us Hope (‘On The Street’) With Extensions Of His Solo Debut Era
Despite saying farewell for now to our sunshine j-hope, he still managed to deliver some amazing content for us this year. Back in February, j-hope in the Box dropped on Disney+, giving us an insight into the behind-the-scenes work on his debut solo album, Jack in the Box, and his headline performance at Lollapalooza last year. Just before his enlistment, Hobi gave us a parting gift in the form of his heartwarming single, ‘On the Street,’ featuring his hero, J. Cole. With the name being inspired by his old series, Hope On The Street, and the message the song holds, it was the perfect gift for ARMY to hold onto dearly. The song won the Melon Popularity award for the week ending March 20th and was later nominated for Best Music (Spring) at the Fact Music Awards, as well as for Best Rap & Hip Hop Performance and Song of the Year at the MAMA Awards.
Then, in July, we were delighted with Jack in the Box: Hope Edition, giving us live versions of the tracks from the iconic and aptly nicknamed Hobipalooza performance. This led to the album reentering the Billboard 200 and placing at number 6. We were definitely well-fed here in Hope World in 2023!
Jimin Serves Face With His Solo Debut Era
Jimin continued the solo debut era trend into 2023 with the release of his debut album, FACE. The album dropped back in March and made Jimin the first solo artist in Hanteo Chart history to exceed 1 million album sales on its release day. Before breaking the record for the highest sales of all time for first-week sales by a solo artist. Jimin also scored the top spot on both the Circle Album Chart and the daily Oricon Albums Chart in Japan. It debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, which led to Jimin being the first artist to debut this high on the chart since 2021, and even achieved the year’s second-largest first-week sales.
Then, back in October, Jimin’s Production Diary was released on Weverse, giving us a behind-the-scenes look at the production journey from start to finish. Later that month, FACE received a nomination for Album of the Year at the MAMA Awards and Top K-POP Album at the Billboard Music Awards before being nominated for Album of the Year and Million Top 10 at the Melon Music Awards in November. He went on to win Best Male Artist at the MAMA Awards. We’re so proud of our Jiminie!
D-DAY Arrives With Agust D’s Farewell (For Now…)
In April, we had the bittersweet release of Agust D‘s D-DAY, marking SUGA‘s debut solo album and the last of the Agust D trilogy. The album led to him becoming the second Korean solo artist in Hanteo Chart history to surpass one million first-day sales, after Jimin. It took the top spot on the daily Oricon Albums Chart in Japan and was shy of one place from the top spot debuting at number two on the Billboard 200. In addition to the album, SUGA: Road To D-DAY was released on Disney+, which followed SUGA on his musical journey around the world in search of inspiration for the album. We then, of course, were blessed with the SUGA | Agust D Tour, AKA the D-DAY Tour, which spanned 28 dates in both the US and Asia, which saw him perform songs from both Agust D and BTS’s discographies.
But if you thought all of this was plenty of content from SUGA, you’d be wrong, as the Suchwita series sees our beloved Busan boy in the presenter’s chair, absolutely delivering countless interviews with influential people from around South Korea, other K-POP artists and even his fellow BTS members. Rounding out the year, D-DAY received a nomination for Album of the Year at the MAMA Awards, while ‘People Pt.2’ featuring IU was nominated for Best Rap & Hip Hop Performance and Song of the Year, winning the former. The album was then nominated for the Million Top 10 award at the Melon Music Awards and in the album division at the Golden Disc Awards. The album was also added to Rolling Stone‘s Best Albums of 2023. SUGA truly made the most out of his 2023 before his enlistment, and we are so thankful!
‘The Planet’ Gave Us The Power
Back in May, BTS teamed up with the animated series Bastions for its OST, ‘The Planet.’ This marked the first OT7 song this year and was recorded in advance for the superheroes-meets-K-POP TV show. The release swept the iTunes charts across the world, claiming the top spot in over 70 countries, including the UK, Mexico, Japan, Australia, and more. It also topped the US chart, making it the first-ever song by a K-POP group in 2023 to reach the number-one spot. BTS and ARMY really got the power!
‘Take Two’ Was The Perfect Gift For ARMY
Back in June, BTS dropped ‘Take Two,’ a beautiful song that was part of their 10-year anniversary celebrations. Co-written by RM and j-hope and produced by SUGA, the song served as a special gift for ARMY to show their love and appreciation as well as their hopes to be with them and each other for a very long time. Though the song was only truly intended as a fan gift, it didn’t stop ARMY from charting it! The song debuted on the top spot of the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. This also led to BTS making history yet again by becoming the first act to have a new song reach the number-one spot on the Global 200 chart since it was first established back in 2020. The song then went on to be nominated at the MAMA Awards for Best Vocal Performance (Group) and Song of the Year. Even when they aren’t able to be together, they’re still the superb seven that’s making waves!
June Was Painted Purple In Honor Of 10 Years Of BTS
2023 marked 10 years of BTS, and the celebrations were out in full force. The annual FESTA took place, as well as even more celebrations, including Seoul turning purple and hosting events to mark the occasion. An estimated 400k people gathered in South Korea’s capital to celebrate, with a variety of exhibits on display, including commemorative statues, a BTS history wall, and even their iconic stage costumes on display. RM also had a special event where he performed, read out fan messages, and even had guest calls from V and Jungkook. The celebrations concluded with a special fireworks show at Han River, narrated by Jungkook.
So much took place to celebrate 10 years of BTS, and June truly felt like a Bangtan spectacular! We still feel chills when we think back to the milestone celebrations and everything these past 10 years have brought. And we truly believe there’ll be many more milestones to come!
Beyond the Story Jumped To The Front Of Our Reading Lists
Continuing on the 10-year anniversary celebrations in 2023 was the release of the first official BTS biography, Beyond the Story: 10-Year Record of BTS. The book was written by Myeongseok Kang along with BTS, who each sat with the author to recount their decade-long career, documenting the highs, lows, and never-before-told stories. Hitting the shelves in July, the book became an essential source for ARMY to get to know BTS better, and the inevitable popularity led to them debuting on the top spot of The New York Times Best Seller list, becoming the first book by a Korean author to take the number one place on the books chart. Releasing in 23 languages, the book also flew straight to the top of the bestseller charts in June and became the daily best-selling book on Amazon in a number of countries, including the UK, US, Australia, and Brazil. We’re so proud!
V Had Us ‘Slow Dancing’ With The Release Of His Debut Album, Layover
In September, it was V‘s turn to take the spotlight with his debut era, and Layover continued the 2023 solo releases. It was one of the biggest music sales trackers in South Korea and set a new record for the highest first-day sales by any solo K-POP artist in chart history. It went on to earn the highest debut-week sales by a K-POP album from a soloist, breaking Jimin’s record from earlier in the year. Layover had the 10th highest first week amongst all Korean albums, leading to it becoming the bestselling solo debut in South Korean history. Over in Japan, Layover made its debut on the number two spot on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums and Oricon Albums Chart, respectively.
Meanwhile, in the US, it also debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart, tying V with Jimin and SUGA as the highest-charting Korean soloists in Billboard chart history. The album was then nominated for Album of the Year at the MAMA Awards, while ‘Love Me Again’ received nominations for Best Vocal Performance (Male Solo) and Song of the Year. Layover also received a nomination for the Million Top 10 award at the Melon Music Awards. In October, V held his ‘Vicnic’ fan meet, meeting ARMY in Seoul, playing games with them, and having a guest appearance from Jimin, who sang their duet ‘Friends’ with him, making a truly memorable moment with fans!
RM Teams Up With Fellow Korean Artists For Iconic Collabs
Though he didn’t release any solo projects of his own this year following his debut solo album Indigo in 2022, RM was still a super busy guy this year, immersing himself in both music and arts. He featured on So!YoON!’s ‘Smoke Sprite,’ which debuted at number nine on the World Digital Song Sales chart, giving RM his fourth top 10 hit as a soloist. It also led to him ranking third place amongst South Korean musicians on the Digital Song Sales chart, with j-hope and SUGA ahead of him. He also featured on Colde’s ‘Don’t Ever Say Love Me,’ which debuted at number four on the World Digital Song Sales chart and took the top spot of Billboard’s Hot Trending Songs. RM also won two awards at this year’s Korean Hip-Hop Awards for Collaboration of the Year and Music Video of the Year for his 2022 collab ‘Sexy Nukim‘ with Balming Tiger.
Back in June, RM was appointed as the Public Relations Ambassador for South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense Agency Remains Excavation and Investigation Team, whose mission is to search for and identify the remains of war veterans from the Korean War. We’re so proud of our leader!
Jungkook Dazzled Us With The Release Of Golden
Jungkook was the final member this year to drop his debut album, Golden, though he kicked started the era back in the summer with the release of ‘Seven‘ featuring Latto. The single kickstarted Jungkook’s career as an international pop star, collecting a number of accolades, including being named Billboard’s Global Song of the Summer, winning Song of the Summer at the MTV VMAs, Top Global K-POP Song at the Billboard Music Awards, Best Collaboration and Best Dance Performance (Male Solo) at the MAMA Awards. It also set four Guinness World Records, including Most Streamed Track On Spotify In One Week (Male) and Fastest Time For A Music Track To Reach 1 Billion Streams On Spotify overall. Jungkook then earned an additional GWR for Fastest Solo K-POP Artist To Reach 1 Billion Streams On Spotify (Male).
In November, Golden was released, charting in 25 countries, topping several charts in South Korea, Japan, and France, while reaching the top 10 in 14 countries, including Australia and Germany, and debuting at number three in the UK, making it the highest-charting album by a Korean solo artist. It also debuted at number two on the Billboard 200. Golden was also nominated in the Album division for the upcoming Golden Disc Awards. Jungkook truly celebrated the launch of his solo career this year. In addition to performing at the Global Citizen Awards and appearing on several international TV shows, he held a free impromptu performance, TSX, in Times Square, New York, and Golden Live On Stage in Seoul, South Korea, both also live streamed for free. In between his chaotic schedules, he always found the time to regularly hang out with ARMY on Welive, too! We are so proud of our golden maknae!
We Took A Trip Down Memory Lane With BTS Monuments: Beyond The Star
On December 20th, the first two episodes of BTS Monuments: Beyond The Star were released on Disney+. The eight-episode docuseries highlights the decade-long career of the K-POP phenomena, getting deeper and more personal than ever before, sharing the highs and lows of their career. The series will also be focusing on key periods in their career, including their American debut, speaking at the UN, and performing at London’s Wembley Stadium. The remaining episodes will be released weekly, with two episodes dropping every Wednesday, making for the perfect end to 2023 and kickstarting 2024 with a bang!
Another Successful Year For Bangtan
@mnetmama [#2023MAMA] Worldwide Fans' Choice & SAMSUNG Galaxy Worldwide Icon of the Year #bts #방탄소년단 You made it! Honorable winner of the night!🏆 2023 MAMA AWARDS의 영광스러운 수상자를 소개합니다!🏆 ONE I BORN 2023 MAMA AWARDS #MAMAAWARDS #2023MAMAAWARDS ♬ original sound – 2023 MAMA AWARDS
2023 was another successful year for BTS in terms of achievements! In addition to their individual successes, the group also won a plethora of awards. At the Circle Chart Awards, they took home six prizes, including the Global Artist Award, Retail Album of the Year, and Social Hot Star. At the MAMAs, they won Worldwide Fans Choice, Worldwide Icon Of The Year, and Best OST for ‘The Planet.’ The Fact Music Awards saw them take home Best Music (Summer), Fan N Star Choice Award (Group), and Fan N Star Most Voted, while at the Golden Disc Awards, they received Album Of The Year, Best Album (Bonsang), and TikTok Most Popular Artist Award. At the Seoul Music Awards, they won the Best Album Award, Best Artist Award, and the Bonsang Award. At the MMAs, they took home the Favorite Star Award and the Top 10 Artists award. At the Hanteo Music Awards, they received a whopping five wins, including Artist of the Year, Best Artist, and Global Artist Award.
BTS also succeeded at international award shows again this year. In addition to three GRAMMY nominations, they won four awards at the Japan Golden Disc Awards, including Best 3 Albums and Best Artist. They also took home Best Fan ARMY and Best Music Video at the iHeartRadio awards. But the awards don’t stop there, as they placed 1st on Forbes Korea Power Celebrity list, and also earned four more Guinness World Records: Most Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards won by a music group, Most followers on Instagram for a music group, Most followers on Twitter for a music group, and Most followers on TikTok for a music group. Phew! Considering they’re taking time out from group activities, BTS has proven they still hold their power!
What was your favorite BTS memory from 2023? What are you hoping 2024 will bring? Let us know down in the comments below or by tweeting us @TheHoneyPOP! You can also hit us up on Facebook and Instagram or come join The Hive!
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