K-pop powerhouse BTS added a new chapter in K-pop history when they got nominated for the first time for the prestigious Grammy Awards.
BTS are nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for their hit song “Dynamite,” the first K-pop artist to get a nomination for the Grammys.
They are competing in the category against “Un Dia (One Day)” by J Balvin, Dua Lipa, Bad Bunny & Tainy; “Intentions” by Justin Bieber Featuring Quavo; “Rain On Me” by Lady Gaga with Ariana Grande; and “Exile” by Taylor Swift featuring Bon Iver.
A video posted on BTS’ Twitter account showed RM, Jungkook and Jimin together with V became ecstatic when their name was announced as a nominee.
"Thank you @RecordingAcad for this great honor," BTS tweeted. The Recording Academy announced the nominations in 83 categories on Nov. 24 (Nov. 25 in the Philippines).
BTS posted, “Thank you to everyone who listened to our music and empathized with it in difficult times. Above all, it is you ARMY that made the miracle of (us becoming) a Grammy-nominated artist. Thank you and love you always," according to Yonhap News.
Fans celebrated their nomination on social media. The hashtags #BTSGrammyNomination, #GrammyNominatedBTS and #BTS_Dynamite trended on Twitter along with “Congratulations BTS.”
“Dynamite,” released last Aug. 21, is BTS’ first all-English language song and it debuted at No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100. The “Dynamite” music video recorded 101.1 million views in the first 24 hours of release to set the record as the No. 1 most viewed MV in its debut and it also set a new record for the biggest music video Premiere on YouTube.
Since their debut in 2013, BTS’ popularity has grown tremendously and along with this, their goals and aspirations have changed over the years.
In an interview on Dec. 6, 2014, a day before BTS held their first ever concert in Manila titled “2014 BTS Live Trilogy Episode II: The Red Bullet,” Manila Bulletin asked them what were their goals for 2015.
RM, who was known as Rap Monster then, said, “Our purpose is to get first place in a Korean TV music program, do more concerts and show more of our music on stage.”
It came true in May 2015 when BTS won first place on SBS MTV’s “The Show” for “I Need U,” the main track of their album “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Part 1.”
Manila Bulletin also asked BTS what qualities they have that distinguished them from other K-pop groups.
“I think that we compose and write our music, so that’s really more powerful than others. Our performance is really hard and powerful so I think we can give much more energy, more feelings to the people who watch and listen to our music,” RM replied.
From their triumphs in music awards in South Korea, BTS’ reach expanded globally and recorded wins in American music shows.
This year alone, BTS won Favorite Music Group at Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice Awards 2020 in May. At the 2020 Billboard Music Awards in October, BTS bagged the Top Social Artist award for the fourth straight year.
Last Nov. 8, BTS emerged as the biggest winner at the 2020 MTV Europe Music Awards (MTV EMA) by bagging four trophies: Best Song for “Dynamite,” Best Group, Biggest Fans and Best Virtual Live for their ‘Bang Bang Con: The Live” online concert held in June.
BTS won two awards at the 2020 American Music Awards (AMAs) held on Nov. 22: Favorite Social Artist award and Favorite Duo or Group-Pop/Rock.
Before the Grammy nominations were announced, BTS were candid to say that they were aiming to get nominated.
“It will be amazing if we are nominated. I think it will be announced early in the morning. We will probably be awake and waiting for that. I hope there will be amazing news,” said RM last Nov. 20.
Jin said that bagging a Grammy nomination was their goal, explaining, “To be honest, it would be at the Grammys. We reached the top spot on Hot 100. That was amazing. That was an incredible honor. The nominations will be coming out soon and we hope that our name will be called in that nomination.”
The Recording Academy tweeted that “this year, we received over 23,000 submissions across 84 #GRAMMYs categories!” The 63rd Grammy Awards will be held on Jan. 31 next year with Trevor Noah as host.