BTS concerts are biggest hit of 2019

K-pop megastar BTS is now the world’s highest-grossing artist of the year. Billboard announced on Thursday that BTS is the highest-grossing star of 2019 so far, thanks to the band’s international concert tour held in May.

According to Billboard, BTS earned a total of $51.7 million and sold 384,498 tickets over the course of its eight shows held in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Sao Paulo (Brazil) as reported to Billboard Boxscore. The six shows held in the United States earned $44 million and sold 300,000 tickets.

“These towering earnings mark the biggest one-month total of 2019 so far,” said Billboard.

“This swift sweep of the country is not only massively impressive for a foreign-language act in the U.S., but places BTS among the most powerful touring artists in the world.”

According to Billboard, BTS became the “single highest-grossing engagement” in the history of Rose Bowl with $16.6 million and 113,040 tickets during May 4 and 5. With these numbers, BTS outscored the previous records set by Taylor Swift, U2, Beyonce and Jay-Z, and Eminem and Rihanna.

Their shows in Chicago and New Jersey were the fifth highest-grossing engagements in both of the venues’ history.

BTS was followed on the Billboard Boxscore rankings by Metallica, Pink and the Spice Girls, as well as K-pop girl group Blackpink, which took the 29th slot.

By Yoon So-yeon