Who was the first K-pop act to top the Billboard Hot 100?
Quick answer
BTS became the first K-pop act, and the first all-South Korean act, to reach No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, with “Dynamite” in September 2020. The song, their first fully in English, debuted at the top of the chart.
BTS’s US No. 1 hits
| Song | Year |
|---|---|
| “Dynamite” | 2020 |
| “Savage Love” remix (with Jawsh 685 and Jason Derulo) | 2020 |
| “Life Goes On” | 2020, the first mostly Korean-language song to top the Hot 100 |
| “Butter” | 2021, spent 10 weeks at No. 1 |
| “Permission to Dance” | 2021 |
| “My Universe” (with Coldplay) | 2021 |
Before BTS, PSY’s viral hit “Gangnam Style” reached No. 2 in 2012.
The members
| Stage name | Real name |
|---|---|
| RM | Kim Nam-joon (leader) |
| Jin | Kim Seok-jin |
| Suga | Min Yoon-gi |
| J-Hope | Jung Ho-seok |
| Jimin | Park Ji-min |
| V | Kim Tae-hyung |
| Jungkook | Jeon Jung-kook |
The members completed their mandatory military service in South Korea between 2022 and 2025 and announced a full-group return.
Why BTS became so big
- ARMY, their huge, organized global fan base
- Songs about mental health, self-love and youth
- Heavy use of social media and online content
- Speaking at the United Nations in 2018, 2020 and 2021
The K-pop wave
K-pop (“Korean pop”) blends pop, hip-hop, R&B and electronic music with polished choreography. Groups such as BLACKPINK, Stray Kids and TWICE have also topped international charts, and solo stars like Jungkook and Rosé (with “APT.”) have had global hits.
For another record-setting act, see who is known as the King of Pop. Learning Korean words from K-pop? Here are tips on how to pronounce names.
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