Fan Chant: Unpacking an Unprecedented Moment in K-Pop Chart History

The post Fan Chant: Unpacking an Unprecedented Moment in K-Pop Chart History appeared first on Consequence .

Welcome back to Fan Chant , a weekly column for K-pop fans, stans, and newbies alike. This week, it’s time to dig into some new chart data, with a focus on recent numbers from Stray Kids and Jimin. If you enjoy what you’re reading, feel free to subscribe to my companion newsletter to get Fan Chant delivered right to your inbox each week!

For the first time in history, the top two slots on the Billboard 200 albums chart are occupied by acts out of South Korea: Stray Kids and Jimin of BTS . At No. 1 and No. 2 respectively, these artists successfully beat out offerings from Eminem, Taylor Swift, Zach Bryan, and Morgan Wallen.

A decade ago, such an accomplishment would’ve felt shocking, and to understand how we got here, we have to look back. In 2018, BTS became the first K-pop band to debut an album in the top slot of the chart, which first launched in 1945. Love Yourself: Tear was, as many know, just the start of BTS’ relationship with No. 1 albums — in the years that followed, Love Yourself: Answer , Map of the Soul: Persona, Map of the Soul: 7 , and BE all followed suit.

Similarly, when “Dynamite” marked BTS as the first K-pop act to debut a song at No. 1 on the Hot 100, it was a hard-won milestone for the group, who still had to fight for airtime on the radio, a remaining factor in chart placement. It was only through the size and passion of the BTS fanbase that these thresholds of mainstream chart recognition were achieved; since then, Jimin and Jung Kook have also made history as the only two South Korean soloists to reach No. 1.

With BTS currently in the midst of their compulsory military service, the members have used this window of time to release individual projects, which is how we’ve arrived at MUSE , the sophomore solo effort from Jimin. If BTS is on something of a hiatus, the fanbase isn’t — the momentum, even without promotions or performances possible from Jimin, was enough to carry him all the way to the No. 2 slot.

While many believe BTS to have now transcended the label of K-pop, at the end of the day, they’re a pop group from South Korea who are largely responsible for introducing a massive slew of listeners to one of their home country’s biggest exports.

Meanwhile, there’s Stray Kids, who have been climbing step by step since their 2018 debut and experienced a massive surge in popularity in the last two years in particular. Gearing up to headline Lollapalooza, the band just notched a Guinness World Record — with their newest project, Ate , landing at No. 1, all five of Stray Kids’ charting albums from the past few years have debuted in that top slot.

This notable chart moment, with two South Korean acts sitting side by side (and definitively ahead of some of the biggest names in music), confirms one thing right off the bat that fans have known to be true for a while: Korean music is no longer on the come-up. It’s a powerful force of its own in the mainstream music world. Even if naysayers prefer to silo it off — why isn’t Jimin’s “Who” being played on the radio, again? — these numbers speak to the sheer sizes of the fanbases involved. There’s enough people interested in these acts to move this many units of each album, and that’s remarkable.

But even with these accomplishments continuing to break down doors in the industry, there’s no guarantees. So many factors have to coalesce for this kind of energy to be possible. One detail rising acts could take away from these wins is something Stray Kids and BTS have in common, which is the amount of involvement both acts have in their creative processes. For Stray Kids, that effort is led by 3RACHA, the in-house production team of Bang Chan, HAN, and Changbin; for BTS, every member is deeply involved with lyrics and production, both in group work and solo projects. Often, this personal touch can be a differentiating factor in a very crowded field of players.

There are countless other factors that have propelled both acts to the top that we could go back and forth on all day, but ultimately, this should feel like something of a win for everyone. In recent years, NewJeans, Blackpink, SuperM, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, TWICE, and ATEEZ have all joined the No. 1 club. This time, two Korean acts were able to shine side by side.

ICYMI: ATEEZ in LA

ATEEZ, photo courtesy of KQ Entertainment

Despite my high expectations, I still managed to be blown away by the performance ATEEZ put on at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. Read my recap of the “Towards the Light: Will to Power” tour here , and grab tickets for the remaining dates here .

Song Rec of the Week:

Unfortunately, the situationship anthem is my favorite song off the new Stray Kids album. We are who we are!

Fan Chant: Unpacking an Unprecedented Moment in K-Pop Chart History
Mary Siroky