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K-pop racks up 134 billion minutes of Spotify streams with BTS, Blackpink leading the way

With more than eight billion streams, BTS holds the crown for most popular K-pop act on Spotify. — Pictures courtesy of Spotify
With more than eight billion streams, BTS holds the crown for most popular K-pop act on Spotify. — Pictures courtesy of Spotify

PETALING JAYA, Feb 24 — The world just can’t get enough of K-pop and fresh statistics released by Spotify prove just that.

From 2014 to January 2020, the number of K-pop listeners blew up by more than 1,800 per cent and ardent fans of the genre have racked up more than 134 billion minutes of streams to date.

The Spotify-curated playlist “K-pop Daebak” has also amassed a whopping 2.4 million followers with constant updates of the latest South Korean hits.

Boyband BTS currently holds the title of the platform’s most-streamed K-pop act with more than eight billion listens across their discography, which includes the newly-released album Map of the Soul: 7.

The talented septet's collaboration with American singer Halsey for Boy with Luv continues to hold strong as Spotify’s most popular K-pop track with over 380 million streams since it hit the airwaves in April 2019.

BTS is also Malaysia’s most-streamed K-pop artist, with Blackpink and EXO trailing closely behind at numbers two and three respectively.

Spotify Asia’s head of artist and label marketing Kossy Ng said the statistics are proof of South Korean pop culture’s ability to transcend language barriers and attract an international following.

“This is truly the first Asian music genre to resonate so well with a global audience. K-pop fans are among the most passionate and active, and K-pop fandom - the way fans function, communicate and connect with one another - is like no other.

“There’s no doubt that K-pop’s immense popularity will only continue to grow, and we’re excited to continue driving discovery and connecting K-pop artists to fans all over the world,” Ng said in a press release.

Malaysia clocked in at number eight on the list of top 10 countries with the highest number of K-pop streams, with the US, Indonesia, and the Philippines taking the top three spots.

Local music lovers showed big love for girl group Blackpink as they dominated the top 10 K-pop tracks in Malaysia, with Kill This Love, Ddu-du Ddu-du, As If It’s Your Last, Kiss and Make Up, and Solo by member Jennie taking up various spots on the list.

Check out the charts below for the full rankings.

Most-streamed K-pop artists on Spotify in Malaysia (from January 2014 - January 2020):

1. BTS

2. Blackpink

3. EXO

4. Big Bang

5. Twice

6. Red Velvet

7. iKON

8. Taeyeon

9. Seventeen

10. IU

The top ten K-pop tracks on Spotify in Malaysia (from January 2014 - January 2020):

1. Boy With Luv - BTS, Halsey

2. Kill This Love - Blackpink

3. Ddu-du Ddu-du - Blackpink

4. Solo - Jennie

5. Fake Love - BTS

6. As If It's Your Last - Blackpink

7. Stay With Me - Chanyeol, Punch

8. Way Back Home - Conor Maynard, Shaun, Sam Feldt

9. Kiss and Make Up - Blackpink, Dua Lipa

10. DNA - BTS

An infographic packed with numbers showing K-pop’s far-reaching popularity on Spotify. — Picture courtesy of Spotify
An infographic packed with numbers showing K-pop’s far-reaching popularity on Spotify. — Picture courtesy of Spotify

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