The track, the title song from the group’s seventh mini album “BE,” released in November 2020, reached 1 billion cumulative plays on the global audio and music streaming platform as of March 21. It became BTS’ sixth song to cross the 1 billion-stream threshold.
The group previously hit 1 billion streams with “FAKE LOVE,” “Boy With Luv,” “Dynamite,” “Butter” and “My Universe.” “Life Goes On” is notable for reaching the milestone with lyrics primarily in Korean.
The achievement drew added attention as it coincided with the strong performance of BTS’ new release “ARIRANG,” unveiled March 20. As all tracks from “ARIRANG” showed strength on Spotify’s “Daily Top Songs Global” chart, “Life Goes On” also re-entered the rankings as of March 21, nearly five years after its release.
“Life Goes On” delivers a message of comfort — “still, life goes on” — in the face of circumstances that force people to stop. Upon release, it topped Billboard’s main singles chart, the Hot 100, dated Dec. 5, 2020, sparking global attention. Billboard said it was the only song in the chart’s 62-year history to reach No. 1 with lyrics centered on Korean.
The music video, which Jungkook helped direct, has also drawn steady interest. The video shows the members in everyday moments and singing in a calm mood, conveying warmth to fans. Jungkook expressed the disappointment and longing of not being able to meet fans in person due to COVID-19.
BTS released “ARIRANG” on March 20. Its title track, “SWIM,” ranked No. 1 on Spotify’s “Daily Top Songs Global” chart for two consecutive days, dated March 20-21. In South Korea, it also topped daily charts dated March 22 on major music platforms including Melon, Genie and Bugs.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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