SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - NOVEMBER 30: BTS arrives at the Melon Music Awards 2019 at Gocheok Sky Dome on ... [+]
South Korean musical superstars BTS rule this week’s Hot 100 with their latest single “Butter,” which has no issue debuting atop the ranking of the most-consumed tunes in the U.S. The cut is the septet’s fourth champion on the tally, and perhaps even more impressively, it’s their fourth No. 1 in less than a full 12 months. That’s a demonstration of immediate popularity that only a handful of groups have managed in history, and one that no band has accomplished in more than half a century.
According to Billboard, BTS is just the fourth group to land their first four No. 1 Hot 100 hits in under a year, and they are in legendary company. The band joins The Beatles, The Supremes and The Jackson 5 in this showing.
The Beatles became the first musical act of any kind to rack up their first four Hot 100 champions in less than a year. In fact, they only needed one-third of an entire year, as the Fab Four scored a quartet of rulers in just four months. They accomplished this back in 1964, when the Hot 100 was just a few years old, and their performance would be matched soon thereafter.
Starting in 1964 and running into the first few months of 1965, The Supremes also pushed four singles to the top spot on the Hot 100, collecting their leaders during a time frame that lasted a little more than seven months.
In just under eight months, The Jackson 5 managed to do the same, reaching the Hot 100’s throne for the first four times in their career as a band. The group followed The Supremes by just five years. Since then, a handful of solo stars (Mariah Carey, Paula Abdul and Justin Timberlake) have done the same.
BTS first hit No. 1 on the Hot 100 during the chart week dated September 5, when their international smash “Dynamite” opened atop the list. That song scored one of the most impressive debuts in a while, and it ended up ruling over the ranking for three non-consecutive turns.
The seven-member vocal act returned to the summit just a few weeks after first reaching the penthouse as a featured act on Jawsh 685 and Jason Derulo’s "Savage Love (Laxed – Siren Beat)," which rose to No. 1 after it was re-released with the K-pop stars on board.
BTS collected a third Hot 100 No. 1 before 2020 wrapped with “Life Goes On,” which also debuted atop the ranking in December.
