Group becomes first in over a decade to hold No. 1 spot for three straight weeks as global momentum continues
BTS has secured the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 for a third consecutive week with “Arirang,” becoming the first group to do so in more than a decade.
According to chart preview data published by Billboard on Monday, the group’s fifth album has topped the April 18 chart, extending its run at the summit to three weeks. Billboard releases preview data earlier in the week, with official charts dated to the following Saturday.
It is the first time in more than a decade that a group has spent three consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the albums chart. The last band to do so was Mumford & Sons in 2012, with “Babel,” which went topped the chart for five weeks.
BTS is also the only ever Korean act to maintain the top position for three weeks.
The Billboard 200 ranks albums based on total equivalent units, a metric that combines physical and digital album sales, streaming activity converted into album units and track downloads converted into album units.
“Arirang” recorded 124,000 equivalent album units this week. Of the total, 71,000 units came from pure album sales, allowing the album to top Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart for a third consecutive week. Streaming equivalent units accounted for 50,000, while track equivalent units totaled 3,000.
The album has maintained strong momentum since its debut. In its opening week, “Arirang” recorded 532,000 in pure sales — the highest weekly total for a group album since Billboard began separately reporting units in December 2014.
Its performance extends beyond the US. The album has held No. 1 for three consecutive weeks on Spotify’s Weekly Top Albums chart (April 3-9), reclaimed the top spot on Germany’s Official Top 100 Albums chart on April 10, and continues to rank high across major markets. It placed No. 2 on France’s SNEP albums chart and Australia’s ARIA Top 50 Albums, while ranking No. 2 and No. 3 on Japan’s Oricon weekly digital and combined album charts, respectively.
"Swim," from the latest BTS album, fell one place to No. 2 on Billboards main singles chart.
The group’s global success is also translating into strong tour demand. BTS drew a combined 132,000 fans to its concerts held April 9, 11 and 12 at Goyang Stadium in Gyeonggi Province.
The group will next head to Tokyo before continuing its world tour across North America, Europe, South America and Asia. The tour spans 34 cities with a total of 85 shows — the largest number of performances on a single tour by a K-pop act.
jaaykim@heraldcorp.com
