Boy with Luv

BTS joined forces with Halsey for Boy with Luv, the lead single from their sixth extended play Map of the Soul: Persona, released on April 12, 2019. The track marks a stylistic departure from the group's earlier hip-hop sound, embracing a bright fusion of funk, nu-disco, bubblegum pop, and electropop. Its lyrics, co-written by members RM, Suga, and J-Hope alongside Melanie Fontana, Bang Si-hyuk, and Halsey, explore themes of mutual admiration and the joy found in small gestures of love. The title itself is a playful reworking of BTS's 2014 single Boy in Luv, signaling a more mature and optimistic perspective.

Upon release, the song shattered the 24-hour debut record on YouTube with 74.6 million views for its music video, directed by YongSeok Choi of Lumpens. The video's vibrant choreography and neon-lit sets became instantly recognizable, with the heart-hand gesture spreading widely on social media. Commercially, Boy with Luv became BTS's first top-ten entry on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 8, and topped the Gaon Digital Chart in South Korea for three consecutive weeks. It accumulated 21 wins on domestic music programs, a record for songs released after 2000 until BTS's own Dynamite surpassed it.

The song earned BTS their first Grammy nomination, in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category at the 2020 ceremony. It also won Best Collaboration and Best K-Pop at the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards, and Song of the Year at both the Mnet Asian Music Awards and the Melon Music Awards that same year. A Japanese-language version was issued on July 3, 2019, as part of the double A-side single Lights via Universal Music Japan. The RIAA certified the original Platinum in June 2019, and subsequent certifications in Australia (2x Platinum), South Korea (2x Platinum for streaming), and the UK (Silver) underscored its global reach.[edit]