The South Korean megastars BTS have notched up yet another achievement by becoming the first K-pop act to receive a Grammy nomination.
The boy band’s latest hit single, Dynamite, will compete with releases by Justin Bieber and three other nominees in the best pop duo/group performance category when the US music awards are announced at an online ceremony on Tuesday.
BTS’s seven members appeared as presenters at last year’s Grammys and have made no secret of their desire to win one of the coveted awards.
The band thanked their legions of fans around the world – known as “Army” – for their part in securing the nomination.
“Thank you to everyone who listened to our music and empathised with it in difficult times,” they said in a Korean-language tweet. “Above all, it is you ARMY that made the miracle of (us becoming) a Grammy-nominated artist. Thank you and love you always.”
The group added in English: “Thank you Recording Academy for this great honour.
A video clip showed four of members of the band jump up from a sofa, clap and cheer when the nomination was announced.
Thousands of fans retweeted the reaction clips and congratulated the group: “So proud of you guys,” one said. Another wrote: “Congratulations! You made it! You deserve it!”
BTS released their latest album “BE” last week and will perform in South Korea on New Year’s Eve in their first live concert since the coronavirus pandemic forced them to cancel a world tour in April.
The band has been at the forefront of the K-pop scene since their debut in 2013, and make a significant contribution to the country’s GDP.
Dynamite, their first track performed entirely in English, became the first song by a South Korean artist to debut at top of the Billboard’s Hot 100, its main singles chart.
Yonhap news agency noted that if the band walk away with a Grammy next week, they will become the first South Korean group to win all three major US music awards, along with the Billboard music awards and the American music awards.
