(Poll) Is It Safe To Say That BTS Are Now Among the Greatest of ALL TIME?

Yes!

Especially in South Korea and I hope they get military excemption.

(Whether they get it out not is up to the Korean ppl)

Now let me answer. If they stop right now, it's a bit hard to tell. But, if they stop when they will actually stop, I think yes.

I think they could get there but it's not a given at this point.

I guess I don't know the level of engagement fans of Dynamite & Butter have with BTS' other music. That's the thing that will decide whether they get remembered as the greats or not.

Quote from cherry-boy

Eh, the general public doesn't know any better. It really depends on if the SK Government.

What has me even more interested is even if BTS were to be exempted, would some of the members enlist regardless?

Dunno.

All I can say is, they deserve the excemption. whether they take it or not is up to them. And I will support whatever decision they make.

Times and the way people listen to music have changed so much I don't know if it's still possible today for a group/artist to reach the same status as the legendary acts of old. Up until the 90's, everyone was exposed to the top acts, through TV, through radio... Thus these acts entered the shared popular culture, their songs were known by most people, even those who don't necessarily listen to the kind of music they were doing. But today, fewer people keep on following these old world medias. It's all about the internet. On the internet though, people get mostly exposed to what they want to be exposed to. And they'll ignore the rest.

That's how I see things at least. Plus, as a European it seems to me BTS is not as popular here as in other territories. Among my youngest coworkers, I still have a hard time finding one who's interested in BTS and K-Pop. So it's really weird; BTS can fill up stadiums but there's still a massive number of people who couldn't even hum a BTS song to save their lives. So I struggle to figure out how they compare to the Beatles, Queen, Michael Jackson and the likes in the grand scheme of things.

Outside of the US, for sure.

Inside of the US, definitely not lol. I could name 100 acts, both current and past, that more popular than them.

yes. They have beat 60 year old records, in the west and Asia. And I think they are going to become one of the best selling acts in the world within the next 2 or 3 years.

Their impact is huge for a Korean and Asian group.

No. This is simply because you even need to do a pole to ask the question. If they were it would be so self evident there would be no question to even ask it. The greatest acts of all time sell HUNDREDS of millions of Albums. Have been at the top or near the top for decade(s). With a plural. Legendary acts such as The Who, Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Michael Jackson, Queen. These are acts that even though they haven't been around in decades and are long gone are still recognized in every part of the world by everyone regardless if they actually listen to music at all. They still know them. You ask your average person in Jamaica who never listens to music and they will know these artists but wouldn't have a clue as to who BTS is. I am NOT saying they aren't on their way to that status and they may achieve it but as of now they aren't there.

Quote from cherry-boy

Naw, there are a bevy of other factors. Longevity is bullshit. It's about what you did in the window of time that you did it in and or how much impact did you have.

Shit, Nas was already heralded as one of Hip Hop's greatest right when his SECOND album was dropping. And don't get me started about Guns and Roses

I was just thinking today, that the beatles as a whole were active for only 5 to 6 years. 50 years later their legacy is still going strong, and kids nowadays are listneing to them.

Longevity doesnt mean much if you dont have the impact. in BTS's case anyway.

I think yes, if we consider their whole cultural and societal impact.

Musically, they have redefined and elevated the whole Asian idol pop genre and made it something worth global attention. And theyre one of the few if not only pop acts in current era who does storytelling and concept albums at the scale and with the heart and skill they do. I hope that goes down in history.

Quote from cherry-boy

Shit, Nas was already heralded as one of Hip Hop's greatest right when his SECOND album was dropping.

Yes, but that's because of Illmatic.

You can't have that conversation with, like, Nas or Wu-Tang, or whatever, it's not the same. Pop music is a different field.

I'm not saying BTS don't have the music.

They have the music.

But how many people have heard it?

Or have they just heard the singles?

And if they've just heard the singles, what is the differentiating factor between BTS and any other pop act?

Like in the world stage at the moment, I think Taylor Swift has the bigger chance of going down as the defining act of this moment. Simply for the fact that she very effectively trojan horsed substantive, emotive music that really resonated with people........ On albums that were marketed with braindead singles that sold by the shit-ton.

I think BTS are playing from the same book, but we don't really have their true post-Dynamite album. We don't know what's inside the trojan horse yet.

Quote from BlackpinkHouse

I could name 100 acts, both current and past, that more popular than them.

Do it. As of right now, July 19 2021, name 100.

Quote from cherry-boy

BTS has the impact. Case closed. Oh, and people SHIT on the Beatles in the 80s and 90s LOL.

Longevity is impressive though.

However impact within a short time period i even more impressive.

Its kinfd of like rolling stones and the beatles. Rolling stones had great longevity and they are admired for it. But damn! The beatles....they are a whole new lever due to sheer impact. Its very impressive.

BTS are basically the beatles of kpop.

Quote from Alex_Murphy

Times and the way people listen to music have changed so much I don't know if it's still possible today for a group/artist to reach the same status as the legendary acts of old. Up until the 90's, everyone was exposed to the top acts, through TV, through radio... Thus these acts entered the shared popular culture, their songs were known by most people, even those who don't necessarily listen to the kind of music they were doing. But today, fewer people keep on following these old world medias. It's all about the internet. On the internet though, people get mostly exposed to what they want to be exposed to. And they'll ignore the rest.

Ding ding ding.

The idea of a "shared cultural moment" even in a small geographical location is becoming increasingly elusive.

I think, on the whole, we're probably better for it.

But it probably does mean that the height of absolutely ubiquitous fame and adoration that Michael Jackson had will never be achievable again.

Quote from cherry-boy

Taylor Swift? Idk, she has been around for awhile but she never pushed the boundaries that BTS has, outside of changing MTV forever, in part, thanks to Kanye....

It doesn't matter.

Kids that grew up crying to her albums will remember them forever, and when they get to our age they'll be the ones defining this era.

Quote from Alex_Murphy

That's how I see things at least. Plus, as a European it seems to me BTS is not as popular here as in other territories. Among my youngest coworkers, I still have a hard time finding one who's interested in BTS and K-Pop. So it's really weird; BTS can fill up stadiums but there's still a massive number of people who couldn't even hum a BTS song to save their lives.

This. This why i feel like it’s such a weird situation. At least in the US, i doesn’t feel like BTS are household names. I rarely listen to the radio, but when i do, i never hear their songs.

I like to compare it to the likes of Adele or Lizzie (and i wouldn’t consider them legends). When they had hit songs, it was on every station and you couldn’t find a single person who didn’t know who they were when they came out of no where. BTS just had Butter #1 for how many weeks? And i can guarantee you my family, nor my friends would be able to sing a single line.

It’s such a weird disconnect between what is topping the industry and what the GP is listening/knows.

Quote from cherry-boy

You know a lot of people can't name more than two songs from Queen or the Beatles, right? In fact, a lot of people had no CLUE who Queen was until the movie dropped.

The fact that there is a Queen movie 30 years after Freddie Mercury's death proves my point. They still are in the collective mindset. They still garner interest even though their prime was decades ago. We'll see how BTS do in that regard in the future.

Quote from cherry-boy

I got one name for you; 2Pac. Plus the game done changed. Nobody buys albums anymore.

If you want to qualify is BTS among the all time Boy groups, or all time POP groups. Sure. 2PAC is considered one of the all time greatest RAP artists but does not equate to any were near Michael Jackson, or any of the others that I mentioned. The OP had all time greatest with absolutely no "qualifiers" to limit what he was saying. On that it meet the bar. Unless by greatest of all time is like the top 1000 artists.

Quote from pravda

No. This is simply because you even need to do a pole to ask the question. If they were it would be so self evident there would be no question to even ask it. The greatest acts of all time sell HUNDREDS of millions of Albums. Have been at the top or near the top for decade(s). With a plural. Legendary acts such as The Who, Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Michael Jackson, Queen. These are acts that even though they haven't been around in decades and are long gone are still recognized in every part of the world by everyone regardless if they actually listen to music at all. They still know them. You ask your average person in Jamaica who never listens to music and they will know these artists but wouldn't have a clue as to who BTS is. I am NOT saying they aren't on their way to that status and they may achieve it but as of now they aren't there.

I think if you ask an average Malaysian who is the who or led zepplin many haven’t even heard about them. So it a matter of perspective. And tbh I only confidently know only two Queen songs (we will rock you and bohemian rhapsody), but that doesn’t make them any less legendary,

So you see, basing their greatness on what average Joe in Jamaica or Malaysia is not really a good criteria lol

Quote from cherry-boy

Yes... and no. But I do agree that time will tell but.... at the same time, some people just drop something and you know it's special from day one a la All Eyez On Me or Nevermind or the Chronic 2001.

Albums like that were classics from day ONE. And then you have albums/ songs that were big at a certain time but now, no one gives a shit. Perception and impact is everything.

The fact that I think all those albums are straight garbage shouldn't sway me here, but, look, Nevermind is a terrible comparison.

Nirvana hit it huge with Teen Spirit, a song that was like nothing else in the mainstream at the time. The 80's underground came bubbling up.

Dynamite is NOT THE SAME THING AS TEEN SPIRIT.

That's, like, my entire point.

They really are much more like Taylor Swift in that you have to dig deeper to realise that there's something more there, the question is whether or not people will do that. If they don't do that, BTS will just be a group that was massively successful for a period of time.

Edit:

Look at it another way.

What if The Beatles stopped making music after Rubber Soul.

What do you think their reputation would have been at that point?

They still would have broken the barriers they did, achieved the massive commercial success they did.... But would they be this ultimate, enduring pinnacle of pop culture for decades afterwards? I mean, really? When people think of The Beatles in 2021, they think of The Beatles from Rubber Soul onwards.

I feel like people talking about their US impact and that people aren't singing and humming casually everyday in America forgot that the majority of their songs are in another language. The barrier there is strong. They have just in the last year started to release english songs and only have 3 so the recognition will build with the precious mass public or whatever however they were breaking records left and right and had such a huge impact in the West before that.

They are legendary definitely in their own right. You can't compare legendary english singers who's songs impact and connect straight away to BTS who are breaking diff barriers each day.

It just doesn't compare.

Anyway the fact that we can even have this conversation with all the legendary names people are throwing around tells me that even if people don't consider them legends now because they have to meet every metric you place in front, I think they are definitely on their way.

All this debate...

BTS is already a legend for breaking heaps of records,

gatekeeping, and cultural boundaries.

They are re-writing Global (and Billboard) musical history as you all debate here .

With regards to longevity, BTS and ARMY will prove all the naysayers wrong.

Just give it time.