On Friday, Dec. 4, Rolling Stone released their "The 50 Best Albums of 2020" list. Among the big-name Western artists who made the list, K-pop superstars BTS sits within the top 20. Keep on reading to learn more!
Rolling Stone released their best albums list, selecting albums that helped people power through this "lonely" year. The list had numerous indie-rock, pop, and country entrees. BTS, however, sits at number 16 as the only K-pop album on the list.
The boy group's album, "Map of the Soul: 7", which was released on Feb. 21, was the BTS album selected to make the list. Rolling Stone commends BTS for not watering down their style or language to take America by storm and compliments them for winning over a remarkable fan base in the West on their own terms.
"Map of the Soul: 7" is regarded as the group's most complex and personal album to date. Rolling Stone specifically praises certain songs in the album. "Interlude: Shadow" is praised for Suga's rap that perfectly expresses heartfelt individual confessions. The song that receives the biggest praise is member Jin's solo song, "Moon", which is a wonderstruck long song dedicated to the ARMYs, where he expresses how devoted he is to those who support them.
BTS themselves have said that this album is "deeply personal" to them, as the album is heavily influenced by the journey and growth BTS has gone through during the seven years since their debut. The album's lyrics revolve around themes of reflection, self-acceptance, and introspection.
BTS worked with numerous Western artists on this album, such as Halsey, Ed Sheeran, Troye Sivan, and Sia. Members Suga and Jimin were given producing credits alongside Pdogg, Fred Gibson, Hiss Noise, Supreme Boi, Arcades, El Capitxn, and more. "Map of the Soul: 7" received critical acclaim from music critics, with people praising the K-pop group for the album's deep narrative and cohesive production. The album was also well-loved for exploring numerous styles.
"Map of the Soul: 7" was extremely successful. The album topped the charts in over 20 countries, such as Australia, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Japan, Canada, New Zealand, and Spain. It topped the Billboard 200 chart and became BTS's fourth consecutive chart-topper in the United States. It solidified BTS as the first Asian group to top the charts in all top-five music markets in the world.
Within the first nine days of its release, BTS sold 4.1 million copies for the first time in the Gaon Chart history. It became the best-selling album in South Korea and still holds the title to this day.
"Map of the Soul: 7" has two title tracks, "Black Swan" and "ON". They entered the US Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at number 57 and number 4, respectively. "ON" became BTS's first top-five hit in the United States.
"Map of the Soul: 7" is the first of two albums that the Big Hit Entertainment boy group has released. On Nov. 20, BTS released their fifth studio album, "BE" with the lead single "Life Goes On". The aforementioned song debuted at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 charts.
Congratulations, BTS!
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Written by Alexa L.
