BTS: ‘Dynamite’ Is Now the Fastest Song to Reach 100 No. 1s on iTunes
It’s no secret BTS rules iTunes, especially in 2020. With the release of their new single “Dynamite,” BTS set multiple records. Within eight hours, “Dynamite” reached No. 1 on iTunes in 100 regions, becoming the fastest song to do so.
BTS’s previous iTunes records
This past July, BTS broke a five-year-old record previously set by Adele when their song “Black Swan” achieved 103 No. 1s on iTunes. Adele had previously reached No. 1 with her song “Hello” in 102 countries. “Black Swan” has now reached 105 No. 1s on iTunes.
A few days after BTS broke Adele’s record, V broke his own band’s record with his solo song “Sweet Night.” The song was part of the Itaewon Class original soundtrack, and it is currently the song with the most iTunes No. 1s in history with 116 No. 1s.
BTS’ songs “Moon,” “My Time,” and “Your Eyes Tell” also surpassed 100 No. 1s on iTunes. “Moon” and “Your Eyes Tell” even exceeded “Black Swan” and achieved over 105 No. 1s on iTunes.
The iTunes records BTS set with ‘Dynamite’
Following its release, “Dynamite” reached 100 No. 1s on iTunes within eight hours. This made BTS the fastest artist ever to reach 100 iTunes No. 1s. The K-pop group also became the only artist to have five songs achieve 100 No. 1s on iTunes.
In 2020 alone, BTS’ songs “My Time,” “Black Swan,” “Moon,” “Your Eyes Tell,” and “Dynamite” all reached 100 No. 1s on iTunes, with four of those songs exceeding that number. V’s solo song for Itaewon Class continues to hold the record for the most iTunes No. 1s, and the only artist within reach of the record is BTS.
On Aug. 24, Big Hit Entertainment released two remixes of “Dynamite,” an EDM remix and an acoustic remix. With an instrumental version of the song available as well, these new versions could help extend the single’s iTunes domination.
‘Dynamite’ received critical acclaim and continued breaking records
Upon its release, BTS’ new single became a fan-favorite with strong critic support. Many cited the positive energy “Dynamite” brings to listeners as BTS encourages people to “set the night alight” in the disco-pop song.
“With ‘Dynamite’… they’ve given us both the song of the summer in a season that feels uncharacteristically bleak and the perfect pick-me-up that’s strong enough to defeat even the unstoppable onslaught of 2020,” wrote NME. “‘Dynamite’ mines the bright, infectious sounds of disco to get its joyful energy across, sticking to the genre’s tradition of serving as a form of escapism when life gets hard. There are snapping handclaps that urge you to join in and hip-swaying rhythms ready-made for the dancefloor.”
Of course, iTunes is not the only place BTS broke records with “Dynamite.” The song’s music video had the biggest YouTube premiere of all time with 3 million concurrent views. “Dynamite” also set the record for the most-viewed YouTube video in the first 24 hours by achieving 101.1 million views.
