BTS performs as The Beatles at The Late Show.

The Beatles Story invites BTS to Liverpool

An increasing number of observers compare K-pop megastar BTS, which debuted in 2013, to The Beatles, an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960 and changed pop culture.

BTS is on a record-breaking streak over the past few years as the seven-member boy band’s latest album cruised to the third Billboard 200 No. 1 last month, becoming the first group to achieve such a feat since The Beatles.

The two bands have more in common. For one, The Beatles made history with its Shea Stadium concert in 1965, which was one of the most famous concert events of its era.

The stadium in New York was demolished in 2009 to become a part of the adjacent Citi Field where BTS held its first U.S. stadium concert last year.

Against this backdrop, Western media outlets liken the intense fandom, which BTS inspires, to that of The Beatles. Indeed, both groups have great followings, which are incredibly passionate.

They typically proclaim, “We have not seen boy-band fandom like this since The Beatles!” Last year, even the British public service broadcaster BBC praised BTS as “The Beatles for the 21st century.”

Interestingly, the K-pop act tried to mimic the “Fab Four” last week when BTS appeared at The Late Show to give a special performance of the “Boy With Luv” track in a musical tribute to The Beatles.

BTS members wore black suits to pay homage to The Beatles’ 1964 appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. In addition, the program itself was cast with retro black-and-white imagery.

The Beatles, which made its U.S. TV debut in the 1964 show, tallied three Billboard 200 No.1s in less than a year in the mid-1990s.

Thereafter, BTS became the first traditional group to achieve the feat in April when its mini album “Map of the Soul: Persona” bowed at No. 1 on the chart, which ranks the most popular albums in the United States.

The performance at The Late Show prompted The Beatles Story, the exhibition devoted to the lives and times of The Beatles, to invite BTS to the museum located in Liverpool, according to Korean newspapers.

BTS plans to visit London early next month to perform at the Wembley Stadium as a part of its globe-trotting concert tour named “Love Yourself: Speak Yourself” event.

Of note is that BTS leader RM once talked about the comparison between the idol group with The Beatles.

“It’s such a great honor to be mentioned alongside The Beatles, but BTS is just BTS,” RM said.

 

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