BTS say it's unfortunate how people only credit social media for their success

Recently, Yonhap News held an exclusive interview with the hot K-Pop group. One question during the interview asked the members to name the key point they believe played the vital role in their immense success. 

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RM replied, "I was given this question a number of times and I answered as the representative of the group more than 200 times. It gets more organized as I answer time after time and I think this is the most recent version. I want to give praise to producer Bang Si Hyuk's initiative. We started off as a hip-hop crew and Bang PDnim believed we needed someone who tells the stories needed in society. We were rappers who were capable of doing so and we also had members with performance skills."

He continued, "I think the keyword to BTS' success is 'sincerity + talent'. But many people focus only on how we communicated a lot via social media. What's more important is that as singers, we believe the quality of our music and performance needs to be good no matter what. We fulfilled that, and the messages and sincerity we wanted to share added to the consistent communication we had (on social media) were all pushed forward (and supported) by Bang PDnim. He gave us freedom and as players, we took on high risks and paid back with a high return. The effort of the agency and the artist was (equally) half-half, and I believe we are an ideal model for a partnership between an agency and artist."

SUGA added, "I was curious about this too so I've thought about it a lot. It's hard to portray it in one way but I think it all started with us telling the stories that no one else ever told." SUGA also said, "But what's more unfortunate is that when people analyze us, they think we've succeeded only due to social media. Recently, Kim Saeng Min, who was the MC at our fan meeting, complimented us on a podcast and said, 'They (BTS) are unbeatable because they're not only good but also hard workers. Hearing that, I came to think, 'He really felt what we've done', and I got touchy because it took 5 years for someone to notice this factor."

What do you think is the key factor behind BTS' success?