BTS Rules the Night at the American Music Awards

At this year’s American Music Awards, one thing was abundantly clear: BTS owned the night.

The K-pop group — consisting of members Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V and Jungkook — not only won three of the awards show’s most prestigious honors but took the stage twice to deliver high-energy performances. Powered by their dedicated ARMY, BTS dominated the pop categories, winning artist of the year as well as favorite pop duo or group and favorite pop song for their disco-infused No. 1 hit “Butter.” BTS got up to accept the award each time they won, delivering gracious speeches to thank their fans, who they affectionally called their “universe.” In an especially heartwarming moment, after winning artist of the year, RM remarked that he “seriously forgot what he was going to say,” adding: “Yeah, I’m nervous. Yeah, baby.”

RM continued: “Nobody could have ever bet on us standing here receiving this award. Except y’all, ARMY. Except y’all. Seven boys from Korea, united by a love for music. Met the love and support from all the armies all over the world. This whole thing is a miracle. Seriously, we’ll never take this for granted.”

They delivered the second performance of the night with “My Universe,” marking the first time BTS and collaborator Coldplay had performed the song live and in-person together. Even host Cardi B couldn’t contain herself as she presented the performance, jumping up and down and squealing as she called the two acts “the biggest bands in the world.” But Cardi B’s excitement was no match for that of the crowd, whose excited yells were nearly enough to overpower the Microsoft Theater’s sound system. Dressed in coordinating outfits and jumping around the stage with Coldplay singer Chris Martin, BTS didn’t hold back their joy at being able to perform in front of an audience once again (throughout the pandemic, most of their performances have been delivered virtually from Korea). The performance was complete with a series of pyrotechnics, matched up with the track’s closing beats.

Though their first performance went off without a hitch, the group was hit with unexpected news on Saturday when Megan Thee Stallion announced that she had to drop out of their planned performance of the “Butter” remix “due to an unexpected personal matter.” However, the last-minute change didn’t seem to phase the group during the song, which closed out the three-hour-long show. Dressed entirely in yellow to match the track’s title, BTS danced under a yellow heart — that appeared to be dripping, just like butter — and delivered a smoothly choreographed number while attendees like Chlöe and New Kids on the Block grooved along.

Watch clips from BTS’ performances below.