The key facts
- BTS is the first group with more than 10 billion streams on Spotify in a year (data from BigHit Music)
- The figure more than doubled from 4.5 billion in 2025
- The album Arirang (March 20) has amassed over 5 billion streams and became the most-streamed release of 2026
A historic achievement on Spotify
The South Korean group BTS has become the first music group to surpass the 10 billion streams mark on Spotify in a single year. This was reported by the Yonhap agency, citing the group's label BigHit Music. Previously, only solo artists had reached this threshold — Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, and Bad Bunny.
More than doubling in a year
The number of streams more than doubled compared to 2025, when the group amassed 4.5 billion. The main driver was the fifth studio album Arirang, released on March 20. According to Yonhap, the album has amassed more than 5 billion streams on Spotify, becoming the most-streamed among 2026 releases. On its release day, it amassed over 110 million streams.
Album records and the group's positions
According to Spotify's news service, Arirang became the most-streamed K-pop album in the platform's history on March 20. In April, Spotify placed BTS 12th on its list of the most-streamed artists of all time based on data for that month.
Context: the return and global popularity
The achievement came after the group's return to full activity: all seven members completed their mandatory military service in South Korea. Having debuted in 2013, BTS has become one of the most successful K-pop groups in the world; among its achievements are number-one spots on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with the songs Dynamite and Butter.
