Originally a hip hop group, they expanded their musical style to incorporate a wide range of genres, while their lyrics have focused on subjects including mental health, the troubles of school-age youth and coming of age, loss, the journey towards self-love, individualism, and the consequences of fame and recognition.

Follow-up releases "Savage Love", "Life Goes On", "Butter", and "Permission to Dance" made them the fastest act to earn four US number-one singles since Justin Timberlake in 2006.

They are the first non-English-speaking and Asian act to sell out concerts at Wembley Stadium and the Rose Bowl (Love Yourself World Tour, 2019), and were named the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry's (IFPI) Global Recording Artist of the Year for both 2020 and 2021.

[19] Nevertheless, according to Kathy Sprinkel in her book on BTS, that single was "spotlighting young people's anxiety in the face of lofty parental expectations, sent shock waves through the K-pop ranks.

and "No More Dreams" were "expressions of rebellion against the establishment that tapped into Korean teenagers' frustrations with the country's educational system" and, he stated, helped them build a fan base among young people in North America and Europe.

[54][55] Thematically, the EP focused more on the serious and speculative aspects of youth, touching on the pursuit of success, loneliness, affection for their origins, and the suffering of the younger generation due to unfavorable conditions in current society.

With 300,000 presold copies,[62] it included three new singles: "Epilogue: Young Forever", "Fire", and "Save Me",[37][63] which debuted in the top three spots on the Billboard World Digital Charts.

[87] Later that year, BTS embarked on their "Love Yourself" album series, with theme of the enlightenment of self-love through the "起承轉結" (Korean: 기승전결; RR: Giseungjeongyeol) narrative sequence of "beginning, development, turn, and conclusion.

[98] A remix of "Mic Drop" from the album, featuring Desiigner, was released as a single and peaked at number 28, the first time a K-pop group had cracked the top forty.

Both Big Hit and the group pledged money to promote the campaign, and BTS sold special "Love Myself" merchandise and set up dedicated booths at concert venues.

[118] BTS promoted Tear's May 18, 2018, release with an appearance at the 25th Billboard Music Awards two days later,[119] where they made their initial BBMA performance with their single, "Fake Love".

[141] In early November 2018, a popular Japanese music show cancelled BTS's performance, citing a T-shirt a member wore the year before, bearing a photograph of a mushroom cloud following the bombing of Nagasaki.

[142] In the same month, the Jewish human rights organization Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) stated that BTS owed an apology for that shirt, and for clothing and flags with Nazi symbolism.

[143] Big Hit Entertainment issued an apology, explaining that the images were not intended to be hurtful to the victims of Nazism or atomic bombings and that the group and management would take steps to prevent future mistakes.

[146][147] John Lie, in his scholarly article on BTS, opined that the Nazi incident showed that the group is not tightly controlled, as are other K-pop ensembles, whose every move seems scripted, and that the members have opinions and are not afraid to express them.

[149][150] They were also listed as one of the 50 most influential people by Bloomberg for their "willingness to address social issues, mental health, and politics, despite being in a genre often painted as bubble gum pop".

[154] Their EP, Map of the Soul: Persona, was released on April 12 with the single "Boy with Luv" (Korean: 작은 것들을 위한 시; RR: Jageun geotdeureul wihan si), featuring American singer Halsey.

[194][195] In January 2020, BTS released "Black Swan" along with a choreography art film performed by MN Dance Company of Slovenia as the first single from their album Map of the Soul: 7.

[231] On October 10 and 11, BTS hosted a two-day virtual pay-per-view concert at KSPO Dome in Seoul, called Map of the Soul ON:E, which drew 993,000 viewers from 191 countries and territories.

[261][262] The band held three limited-capacity concerts at Seoul Olympic Stadium on March 10, 12 and 13—the largest music gatherings[a] approved by the South Korean government since the pandemic restrictions were imposed—with a total audience of 45,000 people.

[277] On August 24, Billboard magazine reported that BTS would be performing in Busan on October 15 in a benefit concert in support of the city's efforts to have a World Exposition in 2030, participating under the banner Yet to Come.

[278][279] In spite of the announcement of the October 2022 benefit concert, Hybe Corporation's stock prices dropped to below its original IPO amid continuing market speculation about the implications of the upcoming mandatory military enlistment of the band's members.

The members will sign these agreements sequentially, considering their military service, after a board resolution with Big Hit Music, solidifying their commitment to future projects starting from 2025 onwards.

[300] BTS have cited Seo Taiji and Boys,[301] Nas, Eminem, Kanye West, Drake, Post Malone, Charlie Puth, and Danger as musical inspirations.

[303] "Hip Hop Phile" which was released when BTS's hip-hop concept was at its height, pays homage to the artists who influenced them, including the South Korean group Epik High, Jay-Z, Biggie, CL Smooth, and others.

RM stated that BTS tries to avoid a preaching or reprimanding tone in their songs "because that's not the way that we want to spread our message ... We're born with different lives, but you cannot choose some things.

[357] Youna Kim and Maud Quessard all read the currency of soft power as including culture, political values, and foreign policy, which applies to BTS's ability to be co-optive in their approach to spreading their message of harmony, acceptance, and addressing life's setbacks via their broad appeal on the international stage.

[358][359] That same year they performed in Paris before an audience of 400, including President Moon Jae-in and other officials, at the 2018 Korea-France Friendship Concert, a summit celebrating the friendly relations between France and South Korea.

As a result, the fandom regularly embraces activism on charitable causes and socio-political issues such as refugee crises, racial discrimination, children's rights, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

[392] As the first male pop group ever to collaborate with Dior, BTS sported ensembles from Kim Jones' Pre-Fall 2019 collection at their concert at Stade de France.