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BTS And Nicki Minaj Blow Up The Internet With 'Idol'

If you're an American without teenagers, there's a chance you might not even be aware of the degree to which the Korean boy band BTS has become a worldwide pop juggernaut. But "Idol" — now a U.S. chart hit for the group and guest Nicki Minaj — promises to blow open a stateside crossover years in the making.

Need proof? This morning brings the video for "Idol," and it's an absolute explosion of the stuff a billion YouTube views are made of: relentless energy, dance moves that get their own hashtag (and their own not-so-subtle invitation to viral stardom via the #idolchallenge), and a guest feature from the omnipresent Minaj. The song itself doesn't break much new ground lyrically — it's an ode to individuality that just about anyone can dance to — but commercially? That video is about to be everywhere.

Got kids? Feel like pulling a prank on them? School doesn't let out for hours, which gives you more than enough runway to watch the "Idol" video dozens of times, tell them all about every detail the moment they walk in the door, and ruin BTS for them forever!

Love Yourself: Answer is out now via Big Hit.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Stephen Thompson is a writer, editor and reviewer for NPR Music, where he speaks into any microphone that will have him and appears as a frequent panelist on All Songs Considered. Since 2010, Thompson has been a fixture on the NPR roundtable podcast Pop Culture Happy Hour, which he created and developed with NPR correspondent Linda Holmes. In 2008, he and Bob Boilen created the NPR Music video series Tiny Desk Concerts, in which musicians perform at Boilen's desk. (To be more specific, Thompson had the idea, which took seconds, while Boilen created the series, which took years. Thompson will insist upon equal billing until the day he dies.)