BTS' Fan ARMY Donates $1 Million To Black Lives Matter, Raises Funds Within 24 Hours

KEY POINTS

BTS' fanbase has raised $1 million as a donation for the Black Lives Matter movement
The charity project was initially launched to match BTS and Big Hit Entertainment's $1 million donation
#MatchAMillion was directly spearheaded by One In Army, BTS' fan collective comprised of volunteers across the globe

BTS' fanbase, ARMY, has reportedly raised a million dollars for the Black Lives Matter movement.

Following BTS and Big Hit Entertainment’s $1 million donation, the K-pop band’s legion of followers also assembled to raise the same amount within just a span of 24 hours.

The pledge came after the K-pop group's fans’ recent efforts to take over the hashtag #whitelivesmatter, curbing white-supremacist messages with anti-racist posts. According to Variety, fans also flooded the Dallas Police Department’s iWatch Dallas app with K-pop content in place of protest footage.

On Wednesday (June 3), the fans’ move, which demonstrated their formidable social media power, was widely well-received online.

We as a fandom have successfully #MatchAMillion from BTS reported donation towards #BlackLivesMatter over the last 24 hours! We hope it can be great use toward a better future and more equal rights for black people. #ENDViolence

Thank you @OneInAnARMY for the initiatives 💜 pic.twitter.com/fNKEmReHza
— BTS Charts (@btschartdata) June 8, 2020

On top of this, the BTS ARMY’s aim to match the group's $1 million donation has definitely cemented their massive global following. The effort was accomplished within a day of BTS' donation announcement, reaching a whopping $1,026,531 of donations from 35,609 donors.

One In An Army, a fan collective comprised of volunteers across the globe with a united love for BTS, reportedly spearheaded the donation project for the ongoing racial movement. The fandom has already been organizing monthly charities in order to track donations with hopes of reaching their #MatchAMillion initiative.

The goal, which was launched on Saturday, met the million-dollar mark by Sunday night. And based on the fan collective and charity project donation tracker, the range of donations surpassed the $1 million goal around 8:45 p.m. EDT.

"Just like BTS, we were able to donate 1M dollars to help fund: bailouts for those arrested for protesting police brutality, black-led advocacy orgs fighting against systemic injustice, support for the physical and mental health of the black community," the project leaders tweeted after reaching the impressive sum.

Prior to the accomplishment, BTS sent off this year’s graduates via a virtual mini concert for YouTube’s “Dear Class of 2020” afterparty. The seven-membered act’s concert set list was comprised of a medley of their hit tracks such as “Boy With Luv,” “Spring Day” and “Mikrokosmos.”

Other star-studded guests of YouTube’s virtual graduation program were Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish, among others. Former president Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama also made an appearance, making joint welcoming addresses for the commencement ceremony.