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BTS’ members are world-class celebrities. However, even they take inspiration from the work of other artists. Here’s a look at the time one member of BTS said Ariana Grande really impacted him — and how BTS’ popularity in the United States stacks up to that of Grande.

Ariana Grande | Monty Brinton/CBS via Getty Images

One of BTS’ members found an Ariana Grande performance ‘really moving, really impressive’

During an interview with Rolling Stone’s Brian Hiatt, Jungkook discussed everything from BTS’ ‘Dynamite” to to the Grammy Awards. Hiatt asked Jungkook if he ever tried to emulate other artists. Jungkook said he tries to enjoy music of all kinds. “In general, I’ve tried to listen to a lot of different music. To really find the voice that I have right now, I listened to random music and just tried to sing along and learn how other artists sing.”

However, he pointed to one artist in particular as someone he’d like to emulate: Grande. “If there is one moment that really stayed with me, it was when we went on one of our overseas tours, and I had a chance to go to an Ariana Grande concert,” he recalled. “I was really impressed by her stage presence. She’s a very small person, and the volume of her singing and what she was able to do was really moving, really impressive. And it just seemed like something I wanted to emulate and learn from. It made me want to develop and continue to grow.” Grande was the only artist Jungkook mentioned by name when answering this question.

A “7 Rings” live performance

This raises an interesting question: Who had more No. 1 hits — BTS or Grande? So far, BTS released three No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100: “Dynamite,” “Savage Love (Laxed – Siren Beat),” and “Life Goes On.” On the other hand, Grande released songs that topped the Billboard Hot 100, specifically “7 Rings,” “Thank U, Next,” “Positions,” “Save Your Tears,” “Rain on Me,” and “Stuck With U.” Notably, Grande broke through in the United States years before BTS did. She also had a fan base in the United States because she appeared in the Nickelodeon show Victorious and its short-lived spin-off, Sam & Cat. BTS, on the other hand, didn’t gain exposure through Nickelodeon sitcoms.

“Rain on Me”
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Albums are a different story. So far, BTS released four albums that topped the Billboard 200, specifically Be, Love Yourself: Answer, Map of the Soul: 7, Map of the Soul: Persona, and Love Yourself: Tear. On the other hand, Grande released five albums that topped the Billboard 200, namely Thank U, Next, Sweetener, My Everything, Yours Truly, and Positions. Regardless of which act is more popular, a Grande concert clearly had am impact on Jungkook.

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