Happy birthday BTS's Jin: The rare singer who turned a fish bop into a global slice of healing joy for ARMY
On the singer's birthday, here's looking at how a simple fish song broke all records
Once upon a time, a man wrote a song about a fish.
The rest was history.
It’s all part and parcel of BTS’s Jin’s curious enchantment. The singer is a different kettle of fish (yes, I went there). But before we get to the fish song, here’s the truth.
You can’t quite get away with predicting what he will do next, because out of some unconscious urge of defiance, he will prove you wrong. Is he the most verbose when angry to the point that no one gets a word in? Yes.
Does he also share words so wise they knock fans off their feet? Absolutely. If you’ve spent time on ARMY timelines, you’d know that his simple phrase, ‘If he flips it, he flips it,’ referring to V’s cooking, became a fan war cry.
But that’s Jin. He can put over-zealous users in their place during Weverse lives, when they ask for his food or ask to marry him; he sternly answers, “Don’t talk nonsense.” He can give his leader RM a rage-infused rap after his thoughtful gift on tissues was rejected.
And, he’s also that person, who after returning from military spent hours greeting fans, hugging them and singing his songs. He kept them entertained throughout with his deliciously batty Run Jin variety show, to ease the wait for the rest of the members. He is also the same who explores the hues and colours of love, the various stages of heartbreak, as well as ponders self-love.
Yet, he can also write a song about a fish too, be appalled that it goes viral as a challenge, and then return from military service with a new stanza, getting the previous song deleted from Spotify, regardless of the hits and listens. It’s Jin, after all. He has shot a video for the song too, where he even proposes to the fish (blub blub blub). The song and video returned as a breath of fresh air and joy for ARMY: The rest of BTS was away. There was much anxiety surrounding Suga at the time, owing to his silence and scooter DIU incident.
But Jin brought joy. Fishy joy.
Super Tuna: Timeline of releases and milestones
2021 – The birthday video
Jin released Super Tuna as a surprise birthday gift on December 4, 2021.
The video went viral almost immediately, gaining 20 million YouTube views in five days.
It became the #1 trending music video worldwide and sparked global parodies and dance challenges.
Appeared on the Billboard Hot Trending Songs chart for 11 straight weeks despite not being an official release.
Jin reflected on the phenomenon, later.
“I couldn’t believe it at all. I just expected the fans who like fun stuff to just sort of enjoy it and say, Okay, nice song. But I was seriously taken aback and surprised when I saw how the song was doing way better than I ever could’ve expected."
2022 – Spotify release
Jin officially released Super Tuna on Spotify, making it widely available for streaming.
The song continued to enjoy steady streaming numbers even after the initial viral spike.
2024 – full official version
A full-length version was released, accompanied by an official performance video.
Achieved #1 on iTunes Top Songs in 57 countries and regions, including the U.S., Japan, Brazil, and Australia.
Topped the Global iTunes Songs and European iTunes Songs charts.
Debuted at #1 on the Oricon Daily Digital Singles Chart in Japan.
Experienced a resurgence on the Billboard World Digital Song Sales chart, with a dramatic ~17,500% jump in weekly U.S. digital sales.
Triggered a second wave of TikTok challenges, introducing the song to new audiences.
The verdict: Jin wrote it for laughs, ARMY turned it into legend, and somewhere, a fish is probably blushing.
Happy birthday, Jin. Thank you for the laughs.
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