K-pop boy bands find themselves on Billboard’s main charts

BTS [BIG HIT MUSIC]

A cluster of K-pop boy bands have landed on Billboard’s main charts.

“My Universe” (2021), a collaborative single by BTS and British rock band Coldplay, remained on the Billboard’s Hot 100 chart for 16th consecutive week. The single ranked No. 94 this week according to Billboard on Thursday.

On the Billboard Global 200 chart, the song ranked No. 30, while BTS’s other songs “Butter” (2021) ranked No. 45, “Dynamite” (2020) ranked No. 68 and “Permission to Dance” (2021) climbed the chart to No. 128. The chart was established last September to rank the top songs globally based on digital sales and online streaming in over 200 regions worldwide.

On the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart, “My Universe” ranked No. 16, “Butter” No. 26, “Dynamite” No. 37 and “Permission to Dance” No. 74.

The band’s fourth full-length album “Map of the Soul : 7” released in February 2020 ranked No. 166 on the Billboard 200 and succeeded in remaining on the chart for the 93rd week. The album also ranked No. 32 on the Top Album Sales chart and No. 2 on the World Albums chart.

Boy band NCT and its subunit NCT 127 also remained on the Billboard 200 chart for the fourth straight week.

NCT 127’s third album “Sticker” ranked No. 196 on the Billboard 200, remaining on the chart for a 17th consecutive week. According to SM Entertainment, “Sticker” has remained on the chart longer than any other release from a K-pop artist in 2021.

NCT’s third album “Universe,” released on Dec. 14, ranked No. 133 on the chart. The album also topped the World Albums chart for the fourth consecutive week.

Comprised of 23 members, NCT is a mega boy band with four smaller subunits — NCT U, NCT Dream, NCT 127 and WayV. The group debuted in 2016 with subunit NCT U.

BY LEE JAE-LIM [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]