Seoul — BTS Dynamite’s colourful outfits from their music video have been auctioned off for a whopping USD162,000 (SGD215,000).
Yusaku Maezawa, a Japanese art collector and HIKAKIN, a YouTuber got their hands on the six getups after they became the highest bidder at the Julien’s Auctions event on Sunday. Billboard quoted a press release as saying that the ensembles sold for eight times the amount they were estimated to bring in.
According to a report by Malay Mail on February 3, another top-selling item at the auction was a signed self-portrait of Snoop Dogg’s dog likeness commemorating the 25th anniversary of his album Doggy Style in 2019, which went for RM388,560 (SGD127, 835).
Besides that, other notable music memorabilia sold last weekend included Britney Spears’ childhood ballerina leotard, a signed bass guitar and handwritten note from Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx, a blue boiler suit and long beige linen kimono coat worn by The Who’s Peter Townshend on stage in 2019, and a signed postcard and music sheet from Swedish band Abba.
Funds collected from the auctioned-off memorabilia will go to the non-profit organisation MusiCares, which is currently providing a safety net for music industry professionals who have been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.
BTS, also known as Bangtan Sonyeondan (Bangtan Boys) consists of seven members, RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook. Their ages range from 23 to 28 years old. The boyband debuted under Big Hit Entertainment in Seoul in 2013. Each BTS member co-writes and co-produces their own music and their music style includes a wide range of genres.
BTS released their debut single album 2 Cool 4 Skool in 2013 followed by US Billboard 200 entries; The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Part 2 (2015), The Most Beautiful Moment In Life: Young Forever (2016 and Wings (2016). Wings was the first BTS album to sell one million copies in South Korea.
In 2017, BTS gained popularity internationally, breaking records and was the first Korean group to receive a certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) with their single Mic Drop.