The World On arirang

The seven-member boy band BTS is rewriting the history of K-pop. Their latest album released on April 22 has once again climbed to number 1 on the Billboard 200 and Official UK Chart, coupled with performances on a variety of U.S. television programs. Critics have pointed to BTS's messages contained within their songs, their storytelling strategy and their close interaction with fans, as the key factors behind their success. Other K-pop artists such as Blackpink and NCT have also enjoyed success in the United States, the largest music market in the world. All of their YouTube videos have easily topped 100 million views in quick order, reflecting their massive popularity, while keywords related to Hallyu and K-pop have also been frequently mentioned on social media. In this week's edition of 'Foreign Correspondents', we sit down with our panel of journalists to talk about the success of BTS and the rising global profile of K-pop.