BTS’ Butter Hits 1.1B on YouTube as Normal Roars Back on Billboard

Big Hit Music’s commercial strategy for BTS continues to showcase how legacy digital assets and active new rollouts can reinforce each other. On July 27, the agency announced that the 2021 single Butter crossed 1.1 billion YouTube views. That milestone arrives alongside a massive chart rebound for the group’s latest single Normal, depicting how back-catalog longevity creates a sustained floor for frontline releases.

BTS’ Butter Tops Dynamite in 24-hour Viewership Record

The YouTube achievement makes BTS the first group in the platform’s history to secure seven individual videos with over 1B views. The other six songs in the billion-view club are: Dynamite, DNA, Fake Love, Idol, Boy with Luv, and MIC Drop.  

Co-written by band member RM alongside producers Rob Grimaldi and Ron Perry, Butter logged 108.2M views on YouTube in the first 24 hours, topping its earlier 24-hour record of 101.1M set by the band's 2020 single Dynamite. Notably, both Butter and Dynamite are English-language songs.

Additionally, Butter also charted for 10 non-consecutive weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100. Big Hit subsequently extended the song's earning window through targeted remixes, namely, Hotter, Sweeter, and Cooler, and a collaboration with rapper Megan Thee Stallion. 

What Drove Normal’s Streaming Surge?

Normal’s resurgence comes after a fresh, multi-channel marketing drive that combined legacy print media and high-impact digital releases. Print advertisements in notable publications like the San Francisco Chronicle on July 13, 2026, and the New York Post on July 14 set the stage for the official music video launch on July 17. The song was initially released exclusively on Spotify before moving into YouTube, where it also debuted the song’s live performance.

International markets responded almost instantly to that rollout. Outside the U.S., Normal earned significant traction. As per the Global Excl. U.S. chart, the song secured a new place at No. 2, after it previously peaked at No. 5 during the album’s May release. 

The current surge outside the U.S. owes to streaming volume, which increased 182% week-over-week to 22.8M. Additionally, non-U.S. track sales rebounded to 27,000 units, up from nominal figures in prior weeks. Meanwhile, the worldwide consumption, as noted by Billboard, reached 26.6M streams with 48,000 units sold in the latest tracking period.

From Butter to Normal: BTS Maintains Year-Round Momentum 

While Normal performs strongly, Swim has begun to ease on global charts. The lead track from BTS’ latest album moved from No. 2 to No. 5 on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart after concluding an eight-week run at No. 1. Meanwhile, ARIRANG returned to the Billboard 200 top 10, climbing 17 spots from No. 26 to No. 9, reportedly driven by the release of a vinyl picture disc edition. 

The joint success of Normal and Butter reaffirms the group’s long-term digital impact. It also highlights the sustained commercial value of the band, where new releases, catalog consumption, and collector-driven physical formats drive both sustained revenue and reach, translating into a long-term effect instead of short-term spikes.