Sophia Michaels
It’s hard to go around the internet without running into BTS. The K-pop group went from nobodies a few years ago to now being arguably the most popular boy band worldwide.
Given how famous BTS is, it’s not surprising that all of its members are quite popular themselves. They all seem to attract a similar amount of attention, so a lot of people might be wondering: Who exactly is the least popular member out of all of them?
Let’s look at what we know to find out the answer.
BTS and its members often rank at the top on various lists
Being the least popular member in BTS is probably not the worst thing in the world seeing as BTS is consistently at the top of both the K-pop industry as well as the international music scene.
For example, every month, the Korean Business Research Institute releases a ranking of K-pop groups based on how much buzz they have been generating. In December 2019, BTS is number one, which isn’t surprising because they have been number one for the past 19 months.
Meanwhile, Market Watch also reported earlier this year that BTS isn’t just popular among K-pop groups, they have even sold more albums in the U.S. than mainstream American artists like Ariana Grande, the Jonas Brothers, and Billie Eilish. When BTS performed at the Rose Bowl Stadium, they also sold 100,000 more tickets than Taylor Swift did.
At this point, there’s no point in denying how big of a presence BTS has.
BTS’s Jungkook and Jimin are the most popular members
When it comes to the members individually, the most popular ones are Jungkook and Jimin.
Jungkook seems to be the most popular among international fans since he topped the list of the most popular K-pop stars on Tumblr in 2019. Jimin came in at second place.
However, according to Gallup’s surveys the most preferred Korean idols of 2019 among the Korean public, Jimin actually ranked as number one. The second highest BTS member on the list was Jungkook, who came in at third place.
BTS’s J-Hope is the least popular member
In both Tumblr and Gallup’s findings, rapper J-Hope ranked last among the BTS members. On Tumblr’s list, he was simply in seventh place after all the other guys. Yet, on Gallup’s list, he did not make the top 20 while everyone else in BTS did.
There isn’t really one specific reason why J-Hope is often in the last place. Some fans have speculated that it could be because does not fit the definition of what is conventionally attractive in both East Asia and Western countries.
Others also said that, because J-Hope has a bubbly and energetic personality, it could rub some folks the wrong way. One person on Quora even noted that his behavior in some interviews could be interpreted, especially by non-BTS fans, as “cringey” or “annoying.”
In any case, it’s important to note that J-Hope is still wildly popular all around. He has released several solo tracks that have sold tens of thousands of copies around the world and been well-received by fans. His latest release, the song “Chicken Noodle Soup” featuring Becky G, charted at number one in the U.S. World chart and currently has over 124 million views on YouTube.
A lot of BTS fans also like J-Hope (who they affectionately call “Hobi”) because of his sweet and charming personality. He used to struggle a lot mentally before BTS debuted in 2013, but he has since become the happy face of BTS. J-Hope always calls himself his fans’ “hope” because he wants to be the bright light in people’s darkest days.
Written by: CheatSheet
