{
  "id": 14874707,
  "title": "BTS becomes 1st group to top 10 bil. Spotify streams in single year",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/16/bts-becomes-1st-group-to-top-10-bil-spotify-streams-in-single-year",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-16T05:12:03.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times-koreatimes",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/k-pop/20261016/bts-becomes-1st-group-to-top-10-bil-spotify-streams-in-single-year"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "BTS, the renowned K-pop supergroup, has achieved a historic milestone by amassing 10 billion streams on Spotify within a single year, according to their record label. This marks the first time a musical group has reached this staggering figure, surpassing the achievements of solo artists such as Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, and Bad Bunny, who have previously hit the 10 billion mark. BTS's streams on Spotify have more than doubled from 4.5 billion last year, thanks in large part to their fifth studio album, ARIRANG, which was released in March. This album has since amassed more than 5 billion streams, setting the record as the most-streamed album on Spotify among releases this year. ARIRANG holds special significance as it is the first full-group project from BTS in nearly four years, released after all its members fulfilled their mandatory military service and reunited. The album garnered immense attention, with over 110 million streams on its first day of release on March 20. Additionally, ARIRANG became the first album from a group to top the Billboard 200, the primary U.S. albums chart, for three consecutive weeks since Mumford & Sons' Babel in 2012.",
  "summary": "K-pop superband BTS has become the first group in the world to accumulate 10 billion streams on Spotify in a single year, the group's label said Friday. While solo acts such as Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande and Bad Bunny have achieved the milestone, it marks the first time for a group to top 10 billion streams on Spotify, according to BigHit Music. BTS saw Spotify streams for its songs more than…",
  "key_points": [
    "BTS becomes first K-pop group to reach 10 billion Spotify streams in a year.",
    "Their album ARIRANG alone has over 5 billion streams, setting a new record.",
    "ARIRANG is first full-group project from BTS in four years post-military service."
  ],
  "editors_take": "The group's massive streaming surge signals the successful return of the full lineup following their military service and cements their dominance over solo artists in the digital era.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yonhap News",
        "title": "BTS becomes 1st group to top 10 bln Spotify streams in single year",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/16/bts-becomes-1st-group-to-top-10-bln-spotify-streams-in-single-year",
        "published": "2026-10-16T04:16:19.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "BTS becomes 1st group to top 10 bil. Spotify streams in single year",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/16/bts-becomes-1st-group-to-top-10-bil-spotify-streams-in-single-year-14877946",
        "published": "2026-10-16T05:37:02.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}