Jimin of BTS has opened up about his feelings towards the group’s success and popularity.

Over the past year, the K-pop juggernauts have released three English-language hits – ‘Dynamite’, ‘Butter’ and ‘Permission To Dance’ – all of which have reached Number One on the Billboard 100. In a recent interview with Weverse Magazine, member Jimin spoke about his views this success and how it has affected him.

“At some point, it stopped feeling real,” said the 25-year-old singer, who went on to express his gratitude for how fans have continued to support them. “The reactions from fans, the cover videos they uploaded and the dance challenges they did – I’m just so thankful for that. It lit up my life,” said Jimin.

“We made those songs with a good purpose in mind, so just hearing people say they enjoyed listening to them was fulfilling, and that was our original goal,” he added. “‘Permission to Dance,’ in particular, was the perfect message for right now, so I think I got a lot of comfort from it, too.”

Jimin’s thoughts about ‘Permission To Dance’ echoes a similar sentiment expressed by BTS’ leader RM. In a previous interview, RM shared that it “felt amazing” to give in to the vibe of the song, and revealed that recording it was “one of the few times” where he felt like he was just having fun.

Meanwhile, BTS’ Suga has commented on how labels treat artists, saying pushing them too hard is destroying the music industry. The rapper praised the group’s label Big Hit Music for “listen[ing] to the artist’s opinions”, and noted that artists aren’t always able to work to the same rate as when they first debuted.