Blackpink now No. 1 female artist in the world by YouTube subscribers

Girl group Blackpink. [YG ENTERTAINMENT]

Blackpink has overtaken pop star Ariana Grande to become the female artist with the most YouTube subscribers in the world, the group’s agency YG Entertainment said on Friday.

The number of subscribers to Blackpink’s official YouTube channel had surpassed 42.3 million as of 8 a.m. Friday. That's more than famous pop stars such as Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry and Rihanna. Blackpink is one of the top five musical acts in the world in terms of YouTube subscribers, along with Justin Bieber, DJ Marshmello, Ed Sheeran and Eminem.

The number of subscribers to Blackpink’s YouTube channel, which had about 37.4 million before the release of “How You Like That,” increased by 5 million in about a month.

The group’s recent single “How You Like That” has been knocking down record after record since it was released on June 26, topping local and overseas music charts, including the iTunes chart in 64 regions.

Meanwhile, the group’s agency YG Entertainment announced on Thursday that a new track will drop in August, with a teaser poster posted on its social media accounts.

BY KIM YEON-AH [kim.yeonah@joongang.co.kr]