K-pop artists - statistics & facts

With an increasing global interest in K-pop, more and more K-pop artists are achieving superstardom both at home and abroad. From PSY’s “Gangnam Style” to BTS’s meteoric rise to global fame, album sales are at an all-time high, having increased a staggering 1,294 percent over the past decade. At home, it is one of the most popular music genres, while abroad it continues to establish itself as something more than merely a trend. According to a 2023 survey, half of respondents worldwide stated that K-pop was very popular in their respective countries. K-pop and its artists are increasingly present at high-profile international music festivals, award shows, and other events such as major fashion shows.

K-pop in 2023: A new generation of artists

With BTS on hiatus due to military enlistments, other popular artists have pulled ahead, selling tens of millions of albums within the span of just one year. Leading the charge were boy groups SEVENTEEN and Stray Kids, whose already established popularity soared to new heights in 2023. That year, 13-member boy group SEVENTEEN broke BTS’ seven-year streak, with their 10th EP, “FML”, becoming the best-selling album in South Korea, at over 5.5 million copies sold. The group sold a total of 16 million albums that year, including new releases and re-prints of older albums. Eight-member group Stray Kids took second place, with their album “5-STAR” selling around 5.3 million copies, and a total annual sale of nearly 11 million albums.

K-pop rules the soloist scene in South Korea

While groups are most common K-pop, other popular domestic genres such as ballads, trot, and original soundtracks (OSTs) tend to favor soloists. Despite this, groups have traditionally sold more albums in South Korea than soloists of any genre. Much of this is due to the general popularity of the K-pop genre. Album sales in South Korea have generally been led by K-pop, with other Korean genres receiving significantly less interest internationally. Another influencing factor is the pursuit of solo careers by members of already-popular K-pop groups. It has become an industry standard for one or more members of successful groups to debut solo several years into their careers while continuing to promote with their groups on the side. Due to their already established careers, they often dominate album sales by soloists, with their pre-existing fanbase waiting to buy any solo albums released by their idols. Although streaming charts have shown more genre variety in the past, becoming a top-selling solo artist outside of K-pop remains a challenge.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Statista Research Department, Apr 17, 2024

Key insights

Best-selling album 2023
"FML" by SEVENTEEN
Leading pop artist
NewJeans
Leading pop song
"Super Shy" by NewJeans
Get more insights

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