BTS leader RM has addressed allegations levelled in opposition to the K-pop organization's fandom, also called the ARMY. They had been accused of manipulating tune charts to assist the organization keep their pinnacle spots. BTS fans, with the release of Butter and Permission to Dance, had been stated to be mass shopping for the songs and influencing the chart to maintain BTS on the pinnacle.
The organization held the pinnacle spot of the Billboard Hot 100 for ten consecutive weeks. While Butter ranked No. 1 for 9 weeks, Permission to Dance debuted on the first spot following its release and eventually dropped down.
Speaking with Billboard Magazine, BTS members were asked about the manipulation allegations. BTS leader RM said, "It’s a fair question. But if there is a conversation inside Billboard about what being No. 1 should represent, then it’s up to them to change the rules and make streaming weigh more on the ranking. Slamming us or our fans for getting to No. 1 with physical sales and downloads, I don’t know if that’s right ... It just feels like we’re easy targets because we’re a boy band, a K-pop act, and we have this high fan loyalty.”
The magazine also asked Shin Young-Jae, president of BTS’ label, Big Hit Music (an HYBE subsidiary), if 'HYBE itself organises fans in any chart manipulation.' He said with a chuckle, "Wouldn’t it be nice if we could mastermind such a thing? I get that there are market developments [related to BTS] that are head-scratchers for some people. But I don’t believe the U.S. market can be handily topped by downloads alone. We think the songs’ impact was shown in many ways, and we are proud of that achievement.”