The South Korean group BTS has become the first band in the world to surpass 10 billion streams on Spotify in a single year.
According to their agency, Big Hit Music, BTS achieved this milestone as of October 16, 2026. While solo artists like Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, and Bad Bunny have reached 10 billion streams in a year, BTS is the first group to do so.
This year's cumulative streams represent a 122% increase from last year's total of 4.5 billion. Notably, their fifth studio album, 'Arirang,' released in March, has garnered over 5 billion streams, accounting for nearly half of the total.
The change in streaming numbers around the album's release was significant. Prior to the album's debut, BTS's daily streams averaged around 23 million, but surged to approximately 130 million on the release day. All 14 tracks from 'Arirang' occupied the top 14 spots on Spotify's 'Daily Top Songs Global' chart. The title track, 'SWIM,' achieved around 14 million streams on its first day, setting the record for the highest first-day streams for a song released this year.
'Arirang' is BTS's first full album released as a complete group in nearly three years and nine months, following the members' military service and individual activities. The album encapsulates themes of identity, longing, and love. The title track 'SWIM' conveys a message of perseverance in the face of life's challenges.
'Arirang' also topped the Billboard 200 chart for three consecutive weeks in April, marking a historic achievement as the first K-pop album to do so and the first group album to maintain the top position for more than three weeks since Mumford & Sons' 'Babel' in 2012-2013.
Meanwhile, BTS was named 'Artist of the Year' at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards Japan, with the ceremony scheduled to take place on October 29 at Tokyo Dome.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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