Play in this article ↓BTS MAP OF THE SOUL : PERSONA: Boy With Luv and Seven Songs About Joy
Published:
- Category: Album guide
- Artist: BTS
KPOP NO1 Editorial · Sources checked November 6, 2026
By 2019, BTS were playing stadiums. With MAP OF THE SOUL : PERSONA, released on April 12, 2019, they turned outward: to love, to the world, and to the people who'd brought them there. It's a short EP of seven songs, led by "Boy With Luv (Feat. Halsey)." It gave BTS their third No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in less than a year.
Here's the idea behind PERSONA, what BIGHIT says about each of the seven songs, and the official videos to open.
The idea: joy, love and reaching out
PERSONA opens the MAP OF THE SOUL series. As global stars who play stadiums and are loved by fans everywhere, BTS look to shape the future by reflecting on the power they've gained, shadows included. BIGHIT album page
The EP talks about the joy of finding love and reaches out to the world with the messages BTS want to share with their fans. BIGHIT adds that the group were especially curious about the stories of everyone who had helped them become who they are.
The series continued ten months later with MAP OF THE SOUL : 7, which turns inward to the shadow. Our MAP OF THE SOUL : 7 guide covers that second part.
Start with Boy With Luv
Boy With Luv (Feat. Halsey) is the lead single, track 2, with the singer Halsey as the featured artist. BIGHIT says the song is about how true strength and love come from finding joy in the little things in life, and from reaching out to the world. The music video went up on HYBE LABELS on April 12, 2019.
The video set a record at the time: it was the fastest YouTube video to pass 100 million views, in less than 38 hours. Yonhap via The Korea Times
Two weeks later, on April 27 (Korean time), BTS released a second cut for fans, the 'ARMY With Luv' version.
Official video · HYBE LABELS / YouTube
Watch the original on YouTube ↗
Archival photo: BTS performing "Fire" on the Love Yourself: Speak Yourself tour in Brazil, May 25, 2019, six weeks after PERSONA came out. Credit: Giulie Fr, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0. Linked from Wikimedia Commons at a smaller size; no other edits by KPOP NO.1.
"Who am I?": the Persona trailer
The EP opens with Intro : Persona, RM's solo piece. In it, BTS ask the fundamental question: "Who am I?" BIGHIT album page
The song was also the comeback trailer, released on March 28, 2019 (Korean time), two weeks before the EP.
Official video · HYBE LABELS / YouTube
Watch the original on YouTube ↗Our take: start the EP the way it starts. The trailer asks the question, and Boy With Luv answers it with joy in small things.
The 7 songs
Here's the official running order, with lengths and BIGHIT's own description of each song. BIGHIT album page
| # | Song | Length | BIGHIT's description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Intro : Persona | 2:54 | RM's solo piece, asking "Who am I?" |
| 2 | Boy With Luv (Feat. Halsey) | 3:49 | Lead single: strength and love in the little things |
| 3 | Mikrokosmos | 3:46 | Paints the world around oneself through human interest |
| 4 | Make It Right | 3:42 | A collaboration with Ed Sheeran |
| 5 | HOME | 4:00 | BTS find refuge from hardship and loneliness where their fans are |
| 6 | Jamais Vu | 3:46 | A unit song by j-hope, Jin and Jung Kook |
| 7 | Dionysus | 4:08 | A signature BTS hip hop track, ad-libs and powerful beats from start to finish |
Make It Right came back later in the year in a new version with Lauv. Its music video went up on October 18, 2019.
Official video · HYBE LABELS / YouTube
Watch the original on YouTube ↗Five of the seven songs carried over into MAP OF THE SOUL : 7. Its first five tracks are Intro : Persona, Boy With Luv, Make It Right, Jamais Vu and Dionysus; Mikrokosmos and HOME stay PERSONA-only. MAP OF THE SOUL : 7 album page
Three No. 1s in less than a year
PERSONA debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for the week of April 27, 2019. In the week ending April 19, it earned 230,000 equivalent album units in the U.S., including 196,000 in album sales. Billboard called it the band's career-best week. Yonhap via The Korea Times
It was BTS's third Billboard 200 No. 1 in nearly 11 months, after LOVE YOURSELF 轉 'Tear' and LOVE YOURSELF 結 'Answer'. Billboard said that made them the first group since the Beatles to earn three No. 1s in less than a year. The EP came in four collectible packages, which Billboard said likely helped.
PERSONA also topped the album chart in the UK. BTS became the first Korean artist to top the Official Albums Chart there, and Boy With Luv reached No. 13 on the Official Singles Chart, their best UK singles result at the time. The Korea Herald
Official PERSONA videos
Dates are the YouTube publication dates in Korean time.
| Type | Official video | Channel | Published, KST |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comeback trailer | PERSONA 'Persona' Comeback Trailer | HYBE LABELS | March 28, 2019 |
| Teaser | 'Boy With Luv (Feat. Halsey)' Official Teaser 1 | HYBE LABELS | April 8, 2019 |
| Teaser | 'Boy With Luv (feat. Halsey)' Official Teaser 2 | HYBE LABELS | April 11, 2019 |
| Music video | 'Boy With Luv (feat. Halsey)' Official MV | HYBE LABELS | April 12, 2019 |
| Music video | 'Boy With Luv' MV ('ARMY With Luv' ver.) | HYBE LABELS | April 27, 2019 |
| Music video | 'Make It Right (feat. Lauv)' Official MV | HYBE LABELS | October 18, 2019 |
Keep exploring
Want the chapter before PERSONA? Our LOVE YOURSELF 結 'Answer' guide covers the end of the LOVE YOURSELF series.
Next comes the MAP OF THE SOUL : 7 guide, then the pandemic-era BE.
New to BTS? Start with the BTS starter guide, or meet the fans in our ARMY fandom guide.
Sources
- BIGHIT MUSIC, MAP OF THE SOUL : PERSONA album page and MAP OF THE SOUL : 7 album page
- Yonhap via The Korea Times, "BTS on par with Beatles: having 3 Billboard No.1 albums in single year," April 22, 2019
- Yonhap via The Korea Herald, "BTS becomes 1st band since Beatles to score 3 Billboard No. 1 albums in single year," April 22, 2019
- Official YouTube channel: HYBE LABELS