27 Best BTS Moments of 2019

If you've been paying attention at all to social media, you've likely noticed that K-pop group BTS has had an extremely impressive 2019.

The seven members of BTS — who go by their stage names of RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, V, Jimin, and Jungkook — have been releasing music, creating meme fodder, and generally exploding every ARMY's mind on a daily basis for the past year. Now that 2019 is almost over, it's time to pay homage to another excellent year of being a fan of Bangtan Sonyeondan. (Fittingly, BTS will now wrap up 2019 and ring in the New Year with a live performance on Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve on Dec. 31.)

Below, we've compiled a list of some of the best BTS moments from 2019, so get ready to relive all the glory of the past year, and prepare for everything (including a new album!) that the Bangtan Boys might have in store for 2020.

When BTS Attended the Grammys and Presented an Award

BTS had a landmark moment at the storied U.S. award show when they presented the artist H.E.R. with Best R&B Album — they were the first K-pop group ever to present an award at the Grammys.

To sweeten the moment, their album Love Yourself: Tear was nominated for Best Recording Packaging. And though it lost to St. Vincent, ARMYs were still proud of the group's accomplishments. "Love yourself: tear didn't win the category, BUT STILL SHE IS NOMINATED FOR A GRAMMY AWARD (first ever korean album to get recognized) AND WE’RE FOREVER HONORED AND GRATEFUL FOR THAT," one fan summed it up best at the time. — PCD

When Jungkook Owned His "Hyung" Title With TXT

Jeon Jungkook will forever be the golden maknae of BTS but, this year, he also officially became a hyung. When TXT debuted under Big Hit in March, JK became a hyung (or older brother) for the quintet — and he owned his status in a heartbeat.

Just three days after their debut, TXT posted a pic with their sunbaenims (i.e. seniors) to Twitter and JK proudly retweeted it as "Jungkookie hyung" — a moment MOARMYs will never forget. — SDA

When the BTS Twitter Account Changed Their Name to "Sope" For April Fools' Day

BTS pulling an epic April Fools' Day prank? Now, that’s the content we signed up for. And if you add Sope to the equation, you needn’t say more.

To celebrate April Fools' Day, Suga and J-Hope — a.k.a. one of the best (and most chaotic) duos in Bangtan — decided to fully embrace their Sope-ness. The pair completely took over BTS’s Twitter account and added their own little touch to it. And by “little,” we mean large. The two not only changed the account’s name to read “SOPE," but they also updated the header, profile picture and even bio of the account — and did so while simultaneously pulling another prank on VLIVE. Talk about symbiosis. — SDA

When "Boy with Luv" Broke the Record for the Most-Viewed Video in 24 Hours

After a few teasers and much anticipation, BTS finally put out the music video for "Boy with Luv" on April 12. Featuring Halsey and the pink aesthetics of our dreams, ARMYs flocked to YouTube as soon as the clock struck midnight on Korean soil and, well, let’s just say YouTube felt that. "Boy with Luv" broke the record for the most-viewed video in 24 hours in YouTube history — officially dethroning BLACKPINK’s “Kill This Love,” which had reached the milestone a week prior.

But that wasn’t the only record "Boy with Luv" broke. The video also became the fastest video to reach 100 million views, achieving the feat in less than two days. According to YouTube’s rewind, as of right now "Boy with Luv" is the second most liked video of 2019 — just after Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes’s “Señorita.” But, hey, there are still a few days left in 2019 so anything is possible, right?

And speaking of YouTube feats, J-Hope and Becky G’s "Chicken Noodle Soup" also claimed one of the top 10 spots on YouTube's most liked videos of 2019.

When BTS Slayed Saturday Night Live

On April 13, BTS took the legendary SNL stage for the first time just a mere day after releasing Map of the Soul: Persona. Putting on explosive performances of the then-brand-new track “Boy with Luv” and the already-beloved “MIC Drop,” the boys basically annihilated the stage.

To this day, BTS’s performances are the most-watched videos from musical guests on SNL’s YouTube channel, with 23 and 13 million views each. The guys completely wowed the audience, and it’s no surprise many casual viewers became ARMY that same day. — SDA

When BTS Went to the BBMAs

Award shows with BTS are just better than award shows without BTS, and that was absolutely the case with the 2019 Billboard Music Awards, which featured so many iconic moments from the septet. Not only did they win Top Duo/Group, but BTS also seemed to be having a great time: Jin brought his beloved RJ, Taehyung spoke in English while his band members encouraged him, and they all performed "Boy With Luv" alongside Halsey.

Other celebrities at the show were also clearly starstruck — Joe Jonas even sang a little bit of "Cake by the Ocean" their way when the Jonas Brothers performed their medley. Same. — PCD

When Dior Hoseok Came Into Our Lives

In early May, just one day before BTS’s Love Yourself: Speak Yourself tour kicked off at Rose Bowl, we learned Dior’s Kim Jones had been tapped to make special stage outfits for the boys — but we for sure underestimated their impact.

From the very first moment Jung Hoseok (a.k.a. J-Hope) stepped onto the stage to perform “Tear” clad in the all-black outfit, complete with a sleek harness and silver-toned jewelry, ARMYs worldwide lost it. Throughout the tour, we saw multiple iterations of the ‘fit (with long sleeves, short sleeves and gloves, and in camouflage print) but its impact remained the same each time and, to be quite frank, we still aren’t quite over it. BTS officially wrapped up the tour in October, but we’re not losing hope (get it?) and praying we’ll get to see Dior Hoseok again. — SDA

When BTS Recreated an Iconic Beatles Moment on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

As BTS has grown in fame and accolades, they've been compared more and more to another record-breaking boy group: The Beatles. In the '90s, the Beatles equaled a record set by The Monkees for three albums to reach no. 1 on the Billboard charts within a year. With their album Map of the Soul: Persona, BTS became the latest group to meet that record.

So it makes sense then that when they visited Stephen Colbert on The Late Show, they paid homage to the Beatles by recreating the group's iconic 1964 performance on the Ed Sullivan Stage (the same stage Stephen's show is held on, not-so-coincidentally). Donning matching suits and appearing in black-and-white onscreen, BTS mimicked the Beatles' interview on a stage set up to look close to the original, while Stephen played the role of Ed Sullivan. The effect was powerful, especially when the fans (wearing period clothing) shrieked in delight at the performance of "Boy With Luv." — PCD

When BTS Sold Out Two Consecutive Shows at Wembley Stadium

As part of their sold-out world tour, in June, BTS became the first Korean act to ever perform at London’s legendary Wembley stadium where the septet sold out 60,000 seats two nights in a row. Those numbers are even more remarkable when you consider the thousands of fans that also tuned in for the concert through live streaming on VLIVE+ (though, to international ARMYs’ despair, only for day one).

A moment from the concert that will go down in BTS history is when ARMYs surprised the members with a sing-along of HYYH’s “Young Forever” during the encore. When fans in attendance started signing the familiar chorus in unison, the members couldn’t hold back their tears (and neither could ARMYs!) — SDA

When Jin Released His First Solo Single, "Tonight"

ARMYs were busy celebrating BTS’s sixth birthday when, in the midst of Festa, Jin dropped his first-ever produced song “이 밤” (which translates to "Tonight") and completely wrecked us all.

Released on Soundcloud and written with his pets in mind, "Tonight" is a soft ballad that mixes Jin’s beautiful voice with mellow guitar riffs. It’s been six months since the song came out, but it still makes us cry like day one — and the behind-the-scenes Bangtan Bomb doesn’t quite help with the tears. — SDA

When Jungkook Lip-Synced and Danced to Billie Eilish's "Bad Guy"

BTS earned the honor of most popular tweet of 2019 with a video from Jungkook where he lip-synced and danced to Billie Eilish's "bad guy." The tweet, captioned with a simple "duh," earned more than 1 million RTs and 2.4 million likes — which makes sense, considering both BTS and Billie Eilish had one of the most successful and impactful years of their careers in 2019.

“Jungkook and Billie Eilish, this is all I care about,” one fan wrote at the time, and where is the lie? BTS and Billie got to officially meet recently at Variety's Hitmakers event, and we were ready for a collab like yesterday. — PCD

When BTS World Entered Our Lives

In June, BTS expanded their digital footprint with a brand new mobile app game called BTS World. In the utopic game, fans played manager to Bangtan, sent back in time to assemble the seven members, train them up, and help them debut. The game easily hit no. 1 on the App Store as fans dressed up the boys and collected in-game photo cards as they leveled up. The game also was accompanied by an original soundtrack featuring collaborations with Charli XCX, Zara Larsson, and Juice Wrld.

But perhaps the most entertaining part was (and continues to be) BTS's storyline, and specifically, how jokingly rude the members could be to their manager. ARMYs will likely remember how difficult it was to convince certain people that their group should be called Bangtan (pretty sure fans know what they're talking about, Yunki!), but the resulting memes were worth the struggle. — PCD

When RM Joked With a Fan Who Failed Their Driver's Test

On a hot July day, RM just wanted to cheer up a fan who had failed their driver’s test, but he ended up creating one of ARMYs’ most beloved phrases: “at least this planet has namjoon.” Weverse might have a ton of exclusive content, but this quote will forever be one of the (if not the) best gems to come out of the platform. — SDA

When BTS Made a Heartwarming Video with UNICEF for International Friendship Day

BTS’s long-standing partnership with UNICEF reached a new level when they dropped this heartwarming video to celebrate International Day of Friendship.

Part of the #ENDviolence campaign, BTS and UNICEF teamed up to raise awareness about bullying, especially in schools, by showcasing the power of love and kindness. — SDA

When BTS Member Jungkook's Solo Song "Euphoria" Was on the HBO Series Euphoria

2019's best crossover happened during the season finale of Euphoria on HBO, when a romantic moment between Kat (Barbie Ferreira) and her crush Ethan was soundtracked by Jungkook's solo "Euphoria." The moment was extremely perfect, and we (and the rest of social media) have to say hats off to whoever is coordinating music on the series.

Barbie herself mentioned the cute scene in an interview with them. back in September. “I thought that was key,” Barbie said. “Jungkook’s iconic solo, ‘Euphoria,’ and Euphoria? It was so precious; a little K-pop, a little fandom.” — PCD

When V Released "Winter Bear"

Jin wasn't the only member to release solo songs this year. In August, Kim Taehyung (known by his performer name V) released the soft lullaby "Winter Bear" for free (on Soundcloud and YouTube) with an accompanying music video he directed using footage from the band's travels on tour in the U.S. and in Europe.

"Winter Bear" was Tae's first song written entirely in English, and his baritone voice sounds so lovely singling poetic lines like, "Imagine your face, say hello to me/Then all the bad days, they’re nothing to me." What a treat. — PCD

When the "Crazy for Myself" Lyric From "HOME" Became a Meme

This year, BTS took their first-ever "extended period of rest and relaxation," and that meant ARMYs were left to their own devices for a few weeks. It was a lawless time filled with endless "BTS as X, Y, and Z" threads (a personal favorite was "BTS as lawyers/legal professionals").

But that break also yielded a very cute meme in which a snippet of Taehyung singing his "crazy for myself" lyric from "HOME" was superimposed over everything from the Peppa Pig cartoon to Harry Potter to SpongeBob SquarePants. For a short while, it was the most wholesomely fun thing on the internet. — PCD

When BTS Fans Boycotted the VMAs and Made Their Own Award Show

The BTS ARMY is a force to be reckoned with. Need proof? Look no further than the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards, which the fandom boycotted (likely in response to the addition of a K-Pop category) by creating their own show, the BTS Music Video Awards. On Twitter, a photoshopped purple carpet featured guests like the Queen and the BTS Mattel dolls, while on the event's website, fans could vote in a plethora of original categories to give awards to different BTS songs, videos, outfits, and favorite moments.

As creators of the project, the account @Highlight_Army explained how the event went down, tweeting, "It started as a way to speak out against gatekeepers in the industry, but become a beautiful ARMY x BTS memory!" — PCD

When BTS Joined TikTok

This year, two internet phenomenons came together: BTS and TikTok. BTS opened up their official TikTok channel on September 25, and it was off to the races as BTS became the fastest account to reach 1 million followers in TikTok history. The account currently has over 6 million followers as of mid-December.

In its first few months, BTS released nine original videos, including the members introducing themselves, taking on the "Chicken Noodle Soup" dance challenge, and getting up to some scary Halloween hijinks. We can't wait to see what they bring to TikTok in 2020. — PCD

When Jimin Rocked a Ponytail

For a good chunk of 2019, ARMYs expected to see Jungkook (who had been sporting a longer hairdo before going back to his classic coconut cut) rocking a ponytail — but our expectations were completely flipped when the Park Jimin did it first.

In October, the Japanese DVD of BTS World Tour: Love Yourself entered our world and with it came a clip of platinum-haired Jimin rocking a mini high pony. The video itself might only be seconds long, but the impression it left on ARMYs will certainly last forever. — SDA

When "House of BTS" Opened Up Shop

BTS are no strangers to pop-up shops. During their recent Love Yourself: Speak Yourself world tour, the septet opened pop-up stores in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, London, and Paris to coincide with their tour stops. But "House of BTS" took things to another level.

Expanding across four floors and featuring interactive installations — including a giant version of those cute mini dolls — "House of BTS" opened in Seoul in October and it’s basically a juggernaut version of any BTS pop-up that came before.

In the store, ARMYs can find endless merch divided by eras; and if you’re planning a trip to South Korea soon, you might still be able to grab something as it will remain open until January. Iterations of "House of BTS" are already open in three cities in Japan and this month, the pop-up arrived in Mexico City as well. — SDA

When RM Got Emotional at the Final "Love Yourself" Tour Date

In October, BTS wrapped up their Love Yourself: Speak Yourself tour for good in Seoul — and, with it, the Love Yourself trilogy series. To commemorate the momentous occasion, RM once again demonstrated why he’s such a good leader with a soul-stirring speech that even brought him to tears.

"While the concept of LOVE YOURSELF: SPEAK YOURSELF finishes here, since the journey, the road, of finding how to love ourselves doesn't finish here, in the future too, let's hold hands as we are now, and be together as we work out how to love ourselves," he told ARMYs. And that day, we knew just how much it hurts to see Namjoon cry. — SDA

When BTS's Grammys Outfits Literally Ended Up in a Museum

Obviously BTS fans know that the seven members take their style very seriously — whether they're headed to the airport or walking the red carpet — and in 2019, that taste was rewarded.

In November, it was announced that the Grammy Museum was adding their 2019 Grammys fits to its rotating "On the Red Carpet" Exhibition. In case you forgot, at this year's Grammys on Feb. 10, the boys rocked matching suits designed by Korean designers JayBaek Couture and Kim Seo Ryong. Those classic clothes will be immortalized for a little while longer in the museum, alongside ones from Amy Winehouse, Michelle Obama, and more. Good company. — PCD

When ARMYs Charted BTS’s Entire Discography — Not Once, But Thrice

The ARMY’s power continues to be undeniable and, this year alone, they have charted BTS’s entire Korean discography on U.S. iTunes — not once, not twice, but three times. Back in April, when Map of the Soul: Persona dropped, ARMYs celebrated by charting BTS’s entire catalogue. And, true, it may have shown on U.S. iTunes the most, but ARMYs worldwide also joined in.

On two occasions in November, after the E! People's Choice Awards and when the Grammys announced its 2020 nominations, BTS’s discography entered the charts again. ARMYs did so as a way to show support for the boys — and we couldn’t think of a better form of protest. — SDA

When BTS Became The First Act to Win All Daesangs at MMA and MAMA

2019 was arguably BTS’s biggest year to date, and the year-end awards perfectly prove that. Though the boys might have not scored a Grammy nomination this year, they swept both the Melon Music Awards and Mnet Asian Music Awards — two of South Korea’s main music awards.

And when we say swept, we mean it. Apart from putting on jaw-drapping performances that were equal parts majestic and nostalgic, the Bangtan Boys scored all daesangs (i.e. main category awards or grand prizes) at both events — becoming the first group in history to do so.

“2019 was a year fought furiously with hard work. Last year at MAMA, the members bawled, and we raced through the year with the thought that we should do well; that we should do our best. Thank you so much for the great amount of love you've given us,” Suga said during his MAMA acceptance speech, according to fan translator @doyou_bangtan. “It's like that, looking back — even if, at the time, it's so difficult and the world feels like it's about to collapse — when time passes, it becomes a moment which you can look back on with a smile. We, through the past year, have become stronger; everyone, thank you, ARMYs.” — SDA

When Suga and Halsey Released the Gorgeous "Suga's Interlude"

To close off an already impressive year, Halsey and Suga released their second official collaboration (following "Boy With Luv") in the form of "Suga's Interlude" on December 6, the same day they appeared together at the Jingle Ball in Los Angeles.

Halsey shared she had chosen to include Yoongi in her album project because of his “introspective” and “intelligent perspective” on fame. Mixing English and Korean, the emotional song deals with the pressures of fame, balancing your private and public personas, and chasing your dreams. The song might have only come out this past month, but it’s for sure one of our highlights of 2019. — SDA

When ARMYs Remembered Their Own 2019 With BTS

As the end of the year approaches, Teen Vogue isn't the only one feeling nostalgic for all BTS has accomplished. In December, ARMYs began sharing their favorite memories about BTS from the past year along with the many ways the group had impacted their own lives.

Using #2019withBTS, fans shared their struggles and experiences from 2019 in light of their love for BTS. "Honestly 2019 was really hard for me harder than any other year I went through a lot of stress and saddness. This year i found these 7 amazing boys in feburary 21st 2019. When ever i fell into a pit of saddness these 7 boys always pulled me out of it," a fan wrote. Another added, "I used to have no desire in the future, but after meeting them, I have the enthusiasm and motivation to move forward, they introduced me to your self love, refuse bullying, looking for identity, even I want to thank those who have taught me many things."

As BTS just keeps getting bigger, let's celebrate a 2020 filled with even more historic and delightful moments from Bangtan Sonyeondan.

Let us slide into your DMs. Sign up for the Teen Vogue daily email.

Want more from Teen Vogue? Check this out: BTS Has Returned From Their Extended Break, Reportedly to Film a Reality Show