BTS at every turning point: How ARMY raises music as a shield and charts songs in global sync

BTS’s success is directly proportional to the scrutiny they receive every year. Each word, sigh and look is dissected, examined, and held up for a potential 'gotcha' moment.

You only need to watch K-pop timelines to see how quickly this cycle plays out.

The anatomy of a misread moment

Recently, BTS’s leader RM, during a visibly frustrated live broadcast, said that he no longer represents the team and that the members can speak for themselves. Many assumed this was a reaction to Jungkook’s dating rumours.

The response was immediate. Quote tweets flooded timelines in rapid succession: “BTS is so over.” “RM isn’t leading the team anymore.” “BTS is done.”

Why? Only because RM said that his teammates were adults and could respond for themselves.

The repeated fantasy of a fall

This isn’t a seasoned ARMY’s first rodeo, folks. It takes a split second for a misunderstanding to brew, and for hate campaigns to be manufactured, and for ARMY's to rush to the band's defense.

BTS’s Jin, Jimin and V sing Spring Day for Jin’s final concert, impromptu. Scathing criticism emerges from non-ARMYs: How terrible. How poor. They’ve forgotten how to sing. Their tour will be a failure. "I'm seated for this failure," one wrote.

The jeering goes on.

Once again, the refrain returned: BTS is over.

That phrase has surfaced repeatedly over the past year, appearing with increasing frequency since the group returned from military service in June. In September, the Jimin–Song Da-eun fiasco sparked renewed hate campaigns against Jimin. Tweets were everywhere about things that no one had ever known sure, down to Jimin 'promising marriage' to Song Da-eun and letting her down.

When Jungkook was rumoured to be dating AESPA’s Winter, some fans felt entitled enough to demand explanations and send trucks to the agencies.

Who is a real ARMY?

ARMYs—referring to those who stood by Jungkook and minded their own business—pushed back. They asked people to grow up, denounced invasive behaviour, and made it clear: Those demanding access to an idol’s private life are not real fans.

After all, who is a real ARMY? Those who bully idols into public confessions, bully others—or those who respect them enough to let them live, enjoy their lives, and feel free to laugh or cry without explanation?

ARMY has grown in leaps and bounds since 2013. What began as a small, fiercely passionate group of fans on platforms like Twitter, Tumblr, and Korean fan cafés evolved into one of the most organised global fandoms in pop culture.

Unlike traditional K-pop fandoms that depended heavily on television promotions, BTS and ARMY built their foundation online. They leveraged social media, YouTube, and livestreaming platforms like V Live to create a grassroots community—an approach that was revolutionary at the time, as noted in BTS: The Review by music critic Kim Young-dae.

Between 2013 and 2016, ARMY expanded steadily as BTS released music that confronted difficult, often taboo subjects: mental health, self-worth, societal pressure, and the anxieties of youth. Songs like No More Dream, N.O, I Need U, and Run didn’t just gain listeners—they imprinted themselves on ARMY’s collective consciousness.

As BTS’s international profile grew—with their first Daesang win in 2016 and their U.S. debut performance at the 2017 Billboard Music Awards—ARMY’s growth accelerated globally. As documented in Beyond the Story: A 10-Year Record of BTS, each passing year brought in new fans across age groups and professions: working adults, parents, and even academics, a diversity often visible in BTS’s own interactions with audiences at their concerts.

It is this ARMY that stands by BTS every single time, shielding them from smear campaigns and hunting down misinformation—as seen during the fabricated narratives surrounding Suga’s DUI incident. But beyond corrections and call-outs, ARMY has a powerful, unmistakable way of affirming its support.

When streaming becomes a statement

They chart music. For instance: The Butter music video amassed 108.2 million views in 24 hours, trended worldwide, and propelled the song up Western charts—ultimately earning it a Grammy nomination.

And not just any music. There is often a near-synchronised global response, where specific songs climb the charts at precisely the right moments.

When BTS members left for military service in December 2023, their debut track No More Dream surged through the charts—during Christmas, no less, a season dominated by Mariah Carey.

When Suga faced public scrutiny, Polar Night reached No. 1 on the Worldwide iTunes Chart. Its lyrics speak of a world obsessed with extremes, where perspectives are flattened into black and white:

“The audience sees blood as they bite each other
A war without guns
An omnipotent illness
If you’re not on my side, you’re all my enemies
An extreme choice to become.”

The song critiques performative righteousness and selective hypocrisy. Was it any surprise it topped the charts at that moment?

A global, unspoken sync

This is what ARMY does. Resistance shows up as streams.

When Blackpink won at the VMAs, ARMY responded by pushing the underrated Lights up the charts. Spring Day—BTS and ARMY’s eternal love letter—has remained on the Melon charts for over eight years, sustained by a fandom that refuses to let it fade.

These chart resurgences are rarely random. Home reached No. 1 just as Suga was returning from military service—a six-year-old song finding new life at a precise moment.

These streams are messages from ARMY to BTS. Amid the pressure of a comeback the world is waiting for—and, in some corners, actively rooting to see fail—these chart movements are never coincidences. They are communication.

The most recent example? RM getting his driver’s license, followed by Nuts charting soon after.

BTS speaks through music. ARMY answers by making sure the world hears it.BT