It took less than 24 hours for BTS to leave its mark on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. The international superstars, and its dedicated fanbase, delivered viral gold for the late-night show.
Since Wednesday night's episode, the NBC show has been rolling out a collection of BTS-focused videos on YouTube, and the results have been nothing short of massive. In less than 24 hours, the five clips posted to the show’s official channel have already racked up over 10 million views combined. It highlights the group’s global appeal and the unmatched power of their fanbase, ARMY. Taken together, it proves that BTS spells easy success for late-night TV.
Here’s how each video is performing so far, ahead of BTS performing on Thursday night's episode of The Tonight Show:
*BTS Listens to "SWIM," "2.0" and "NORMAL" and Reveals the Meaning Behind Each Song — 1.5 million views
*BTS Reveals What They Really Missed About Each Other During Break, Talks ARIRANG World Tour — 3.5 million views
*BTS Answers Burning Fan Questions About Jin's Butt Theory, RM's Driving Skills and More — 1.5 million views
*BTS and Jimmy Surprise Unsuspecting Fans While They Sing "SWIM" — 1.7 million views
*BTS Performs "SWIM" at Guggenheim New York for The Tonight Show — 2.1 million views
It's a truly staggering total that doesn’t even account for additional views across other social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, or reuploads and fan-driven clips circulating elsewhere online. It also highlights just how organized and engaged BTS’ fanbase remains. ARMY isn’t just watching, but also amplifying content at a pace few artists can match in terms of fan dedication. Apparently, the controversy from Wednesday night's taping wasn't enough to turn fans away.
To put things in perspective, only a handful of Tonight Show videos on YouTube have crossed the 3 million-view mark over the past year. Those that do involved Taylor Swift, cast members from Stranger Things, and other l K-pop performances. BTS landing multiple videos in that range within hours proves their place in pop culture.
Of course, this isn’t new territory for BTS. Late-night TV has long benefited from the group’s appearances and ARMY's support, whether it’s their viral segments on The Late Late Show with James Corden, performances on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and Saturday Night Live, or recurring collaborations on The Tonight Show.
Few guests are a sure thing in late-night TV, especially across the different shows. But BTS just proved once again that they are the biggest draw in music, and any show will benefit from having them on air.