Every BTS song ranked in order of greatness

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There are many reasons why BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. have become the world-conquering marvels they are today, but perhaps the most important one is the most basic of all – their music. The Korean group have packed in a lot of work since they debuted in 2013, experimenting a whole heap along the way. The Bangtan Boys have done it all – from lovesick serenades to dissecting society’s ills, from hip-hop hard-hitters (or ‘cyphers’) to ballads that tug on your heartstrings (not to mention the positive messages that they weave into each song).

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With 147 tracks at the core of their discography (we’re not counting Japanese releases or songs put up for free on their Soundcloud here), you might expect there to be some duds along the way. No one is perfect, and that goes for the Korean idols, too. Yet this journey through each track makes it very clear that they’ve not only been incredibly consistent over their first 13 years, but have also constantly levelled up in a way that most bands can only dream of.

‘INTERLUDE: WHAT ARE YOU DOING NOW’ (2014)

A lightly funky snippet, ‘What Are You Doing Now’ has a nice groove but, clocking in at just 41 seconds, doesn’t leave much of an impression.

‘INTRO: 2 COOL 4 SKOOL’ (2013)

BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’ first intro track, this one-minute-and-four-seconds track features record scratches and minimal vocals setting the tone for the ‘2 Cool 4 Skool’ album: “Teenagers in their 10s and 20s / Let’s talk about it easily.”

‘WHERE YOU FROM’ (2014) 

Suga’s delivery in the opening verse sounds weirdly like he’s about to burst into the Fresh Prince theme tune but, that aside, this song sails past without making much of a mark.

‘PATH’ (2013) 

“I thought I was alone but I’ve learned we are seven,” says Suga on this hidden track from ‘2 Cool 4 Skool’, an early hint of the gang mentality and fierce bond that would help keep BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. going and a smooth exorcism on their post-debut thoughts.

‘INTRO: O!RUL8,2?’ (2013)

This snippet of a song might convey a powerful message – make sure you live your life with no regrets – but there’s something about RM’s delivery that comes off a little cheesy.

‘OUTRO: LUV IN SKOOL’ (2013)

Soft falsettos soaring as the band close out their first ‘O!RUL8,2?’ album with an ode to a romance that just out of reach.

‘RAIN’ (2014)

There’s a hint of trip-hop to this dark and woozy cut, which keeps BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’ energy subdued as they depict a lethargic, listless existence of plodding around in the rain and absent-mindedly drifting around their house.

‘LET ME KNOW’ (2014)

“You take away the stars of my night, take away the sun of my day/And the only thing that eventually remained is the darkness of a cold cloud,” J-hope raps, tussling with a break-up. Like the cold, cloudy sky he describes, ‘Let Me Know’ is overcast and gloomy, a pathetic fallacy to match the emotions it contains.

‘OUTRO: DO YOU THINK IT MAKES SENSE?’ (2014)

“Does it make sense? Do you think it makes sense / That our love would change so easily like this,” the members sigh on the closing track to 2014 debut album ‘Dark&Wild’. Accompanied by melancholy R&B trappings, they sound desolate as they grieve for a relationship gone sour.

‘SECOND GRADE’ (2014)

‘Second Grade’ might boast a lot of gunshots woven into its layers but it’s far from the explosive track that this might suggest. Instead BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. reflect on entering their second year in the music industry over a snapping, bright beat.

‘INTRO: SKOOL LUV AFFAIR’ (2014)

‘Intro: Skool Luv Affair’ sees Bangtan’s rappers good-naturedly duke it out to decide how they should portray love. Hopefully? Through hip-hop? RM concludes on the latter as he mourns: “I made you smile and then you went to some jerk who makes you cry.”

‘CYPHER PT. 1’ (2013)

The group’s first rap line-only cypher puts takes on those who say BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’ MCs can’t be true hip-hop artists. “I’m usually generous but Imma murder your rappers / I’m going to cut you one by one then Imma murder you haters,” RM glowers over an understated beat.

‘OUTRO: PROPOSE’ (2014)

“I’ll become a rhythm, I’ll become a song / And I’ll sing myself for you,” Jin promises on this soothing piece of pop. As the title hints, it’s a track full of love, telling its recipient that “you’re the only one for me”.

‘WAR OF HORMONE’ (2014)

Ah to be young and fuelled by lust. ‘War Of Hormone’ finds the BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. of 2014 with eyes wide and tongues lolling, drooling over a woman’s “hair, body, waist, legs, even other unspeakable parts”. Lyrics like that caught the band some heat for objectifying women (for which they apologised and promised to learn from), but it’s still worth a listen, if just to hear a tiny Jungkook proudly proclaiming: “Yes I’m a bad boy so I like bad girl.”

‘SKIT’ (2020)

For three minutes, BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. take us into a personal conversation where they react to scoring their first Billboard Number One with ‘Dynamite’. It’s a cheerful interruption on ‘Be’, their fifth full-length album – a documentation of a monumental achievement for the group that feels casual but special. It contextualises the time in which they made ‘Be’, but as a track to be played on repeat out of that context, it has less staying power.

‘INTRO: THE MOST BEAUTIFUL MOMENT IN LIFE’ (2015)

Suga leads this intro track, describing a scene on a basketball court as a place for him to exorcise his anxieties. “What I’m shooting at the rim/Are my countless thoughts and worries about life,” he pants over a beat designed to replicate a bouncing ball.

‘LOVE IS NOT OVER’ (2015)

Like ‘Hold Me Tight’ from the same album, ‘Love Is Not Over’ sees BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’ singers refusing to let go of a lover, begging them to come back to them by declaring: “Without you, I don’t think I can be.”

‘COULD YOU TURN OFF YOUR CELLPHONE’ (2014)

“Give me a mention face to face / I don’t need a like,” plead BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. on this assessment of technology and the rise of social media’s effect on society. “Sometimes I miss the time when we used to look at each other’s face and talk.”

‘LOOK HERE’ (2014)

‘Look Here’ finds young BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. showing off their soft, sultry falsettos with alluring ease, and it’s all set to a gently trotting guitar twang. “Look here, don’t run away,” they command, voices dropped to a hush.

‘PALDOGANGSAN’ (2013)

BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. pay tribute to the dialects of their hometowns on this vibrant hip-hop track, building a song that sparkles with playfulness. Yet they also have a unifying message to share: “Look up, we are all/Looking at the same sky.”

‘MOVING ON’ (2015)

Written about moving from the dorm they shared as young artists to a new house after their debut, ‘Moving On’ is wistful and sweet, full of memories and past worries. “Goodbye to this place that we grew attached to,” they sing. “Let’s move now to a higher place.”

‘INTRO: WHAT AM I TO YOU’ (2014)

Strings fly on this bright opener to  ‘Dark&Wild’, making it seem as though the record will be full of lovestruck tunes. It might start off that way, but by the intro’s end that’s certainly not the case, a frustrated RM spitting: “Blowing hot and cold, stop confusing a person’s feelings.”

‘HOLD ME TIGHT’ (2015)

Lost love crops up a lot in Bangtan’s back catalogue and it makes its presence known here, the band clinging onto a relationship that’s on its last legs. “Your cold face tells me everything rather than words / I can see a break up rising over me like a high tide,” Suga says through effects that amplify the distance between him and his partner, his voice coming in and out of focus.

‘LIKE’ (2013)

Early BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. might have been characterised by big hip-hop sounds but ‘Like’ is an exception to that. It’s full of caramel melodies and a softly lilting vocal hook, cushioning a tale of heartache in the social media age.

‘OUTRO: CIRCLE ROOM CYPHER’ (2013)

BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’ first-ever cypher is a delight – it feels like a moment that wasn’t meant to be included on their debut album, like you’re eavesdropping on a bunch of young friends embroiled in a friendly rap battle. J-hope, Suga and RM already prove they’ve got the power of smart wordplay, but most iconic of all is Jin’s verse.

‘21ST CENTURY GIRLS’ (2016)

Snapping beats clatter together on this plea to a generation of women to accept who they are and not succumb to the pressures of Korea’s image-focused society. “You’re beautiful enough / Don’t worry, don’t worry,” Suga sings.

‘TOMORROW’ (2014)

It’s easy to get discouraged when you’re trying to make your dreams reality and to feel like you’re stuck in a rut when it doesn’t seem like you’re progressing fast enough. “I have a long way to go but why am I running in place?” BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ask on ‘Tomorrow’, the song driven by a stuttering, looped sample that emphasises that feeling of being stuck and unable to move forward.

‘MISS RIGHT’ (2014)

This smooth 2014 song finds BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. serenading their dream girls. It’s cute, if a little cheesy, but you have to admit the line “You’re someone who only exists in the movies” is pretty swoon-worthy.

‘HIP HOP PHILE’ (2014)

BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. pay homage to raps greats, from fellow Koreans Epik High to New York legends such as Jay-Z and The Notorious B.I.G. “If loving this culture was a sin / I would have died a hundred times,” Suga notes.

‘A SUPPLEMENTARY STORY: YOU NEVER WALK ALONE’ (2017)

The atmospheric closer to the ‘You Never Walk Alone’ repackage slowly and softly transforms from a rumination on the struggles BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. face into an offer of a companion through hard times. “This road may be long and rough but / Will you stay with me?” they ask. “We may fall and sometimes get hurt but / Will you stay with me?”

‘AM I WRONG’ (2016)

Class divisions rear their heads on this track, which samples Keb Mo’s 1994 single of the same name. “We’re all dogs and pigs/We become dogs because we’re angry,” they spit at one point, referencing a comment once made by Korean government figures about the less privileged classes.

‘MAKE IT RIGHT’ (2019)

This Ed Sheeran co-write stands as a testament to BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’ global stature by 2019: they’d come so far that that one of the world’s biggest musicians penned a track for them. There’s just a little too much Sheeran in this mix, though, his signature sound distracting from the group’s usual dominance.

‘THE PLANET’ (2023)

Bright and breezy it might be, but this theme song for animated series Bastions isn’t one of BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’ most memorable songs. A fine track to get you in the zone for some cartoon binging, but not much more beyond that.

‘BAD DECISIONS’ (2022)

“Let’s make some bad decisions / I want you, ooh, baby, all of the time,” BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’ vocal line coo on this Benny Blanco and Snoop Dogg team-up. It’s a light piece of loved-up synth-pop – pleasant enough, but not a world-beater by any means.

‘CYPHER PT. 2: TRIPTYCH’ (2014)

BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. ’ cyphers improved over time. The best bit here comes when Suga offers their critics some career advice: “You think you can do music? Just go look for a part-time job.” Burn.

‘MA CITY’ (2015)

On ‘Ma City’, the seven members share their memories of their hometowns, fondly remembering the places they were raised. That is until you get to Suga’s verse, when he declares of Daegu: “There’s nothing much to boast about.” Ouch.

‘LOST’ (2016)

A tale of perseverance set to lightly glittering synth-pop, ‘Lost’ sees BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. vow: “No matter how much I wander / I want to believe in my path.” The glittering instrumentation around them acts like guiding lights to the road they need to be on.

‘WE ON’ (2013)

BTS BTS K-POP GROUP BTS is a seven–member South Korean boy group known for their powerful performances, self-produced music, and global impact across pop and hip-hop. began taking on their haters pretty early in their career. “Whatever they say / I’m here for my music,” RM purrs on this 2013 track, having easily located the determination to carry on.

‘CONVERSE HIGH’ (2015)

“If I had only one day / I will go see the person who created Converse Highs / Then I’ll tell that person you saved t