US gum and trading cards firm Topps Co. has removed parody sticker cards portraying K-pop idol group BTS’ failure to win at the 63rd Grammy Awards after it received criticisms.
“We hear and understand our consumers who are upset about the portrayal of BTS in our GPK Shammy Awards product and we apologize for including it. We have removed the BTS sticker card from the set, we have not printed any of the sticker cards, and it will not be available,” Topps Co. posted Twitter.
BTS were included in the company’s annual Garbage Pail Kids’ The Shammy Awards sticker set, a parody of the Grammy Awards.
The BTS stickers called “Bopping K-pop” and “BTS Bruisers” showed them in a Whac-A-Mole machine with bruised faces as a result of being whacked by a Grammy statuette, a portrayal of Grammys’ snub of the boy band.
BTS were nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for their hit song “Dynamite” at the 63rd Grammy Awards.
“Rain On Me” by Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande won, which triggered backlash from BTS ARMYs who accused the Grammys of racism for snubbing BTS.
Topps’ 2021 The Shammy Awards set also includes Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Megan Thee Stallion and Harry Styles, who all won at this year’s Grammy Awards, and ceremony performer Bruno Mars.
The release of the BTS stickers was deemed insensitive amid the ongoing attacks on Asians in the US.
RIAA Certification
Despite the loss, BTS continued to receive recognition for “Dynamite.”
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) announced on March 17 that the digital single “Dynamite” has been certified multi-platinum, platinum and gold in the US.
“Dynamite” has garnered multi-platinum status for garnering 2 million units. According to RIAA, “each permanent digital download counts as 1 Unit for certification purposes” or “150 on-demand audio and/or video streams will count as 1 Unit for certification purposes.”
RIAA awards digital singles with the following awards: Gold, 500,000 units; Platinum, 1,000,000 units; Multi-Platinum, 2,000,000 units (increments of 1,000,000 thereafter); and Diamond, 10,000,000 Units (increments of 1,000,000 thereafter).
Kids’ Choice Awards 2021
At the Kids’ Choice Awards 2021 held on March 13 in the US, before the Grammy Awards, BTS won in all the three categories they were nominated in. They bagged Favorite Music Group, Favorite Global Music Star and Favourite Song for “Dynamite.”
“We love you, and we miss you… you guys are the best!” BTS said as they accepted their awards.
Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records belatedly confirmed that BTS’ “Dynamite” music video set a new world record for the biggest YouTube Premiere, nearly seven months after its release.
“The worst kept secret in history. @BTS_twt’s record for the ‘most simultaneous viewers for a music video on YouTube Premieres’ has now been confirmed, with the 2020 single Dynamite clocking up over three million viewers,” Guinness World Records posted on Twitter on March 16.
The music video was released on YouTube on Aug. 21, 2020. YouTube told Manila Bulletin on Aug. 22, 2020 that “Dynamite” set a new all-time record for the biggest music video Premiere with viewers of over 3 million peak concurrents.