Jungkook of BTS is being hailed as “a new pop king” with his massive impact in the Western music market
“A new pop king prepares to take his throne”, this is how the UK’s prestigious music magazine, NME, which has a 71-year history, introduced Jungkook’s first solo album, “GOLDEN”, in a review published on November 3.
True to NME’s prediction, Jungkook is causing a “Jungkook Syndrome” in the global pop market with the tracks on “GOLDEN”.
Firstly, the male idol is reaping a rich harvest on various charts. The title track, “Standing Next to You”, entered the U.S. Billboard Hot 100;s latest chart (November 18) at 5th place. It also secured the top spot on Billboard’s “Global 200” and “Global (excluding the U.S.)” charts, which rank streaming and sales from over 200 countries/regions worldwide. In Spotify’s “Daily Top Song Global” chart on November 3, other songs from Jungkook’s album, including “Hate You”, “Yes or No”, and “Please Don’t Change (feat. DJ Snake)”, also successfully charted, indicating a global response to the new album itself.
In addition, “GOLDEN” climbed to 2nd place on the Billboard 200 main album chart and debuted at 3rd place on the album chart of the UK Official Charts, competing with Taylor Swift’s album “1989 (Taylor’s Version)”, which has been dominating major global charts.
Music experts point to Jungkook’s decision to fill the entire album with English lyrics as the first reason he could break through the U.S. music market. In an interview, Jungkook stated that he prepared this album with the goal of targeting the international music market, so all the songs on it are in English.
A mid-year report released by the music market analysis firm Luminaté in August confirms the power of “songs in English”. When analyzing the top 10,000 songs most played on U.S. music platforms in the first half of this year, those in English overwhelmingly dominated with 88.3%, followed by Spanish and Korean songs at 2nd and 3rd place, respectively.
While K-pop’s global popularity led to Korean songs taking the 3rd spot, their share remained minimal at 0.9%. The decision to overcome language barriers through “all-English lyrics” is cited as a key factor in Jungkook’s unprecedented success of a Korean solo artist’s album in the global music market.
The success of “GOLDEN” cannot be separated from its composition like a “pop music department store”. The album features a variety of music genres through its 11 tracks, including UK garage, Afropop, acoustic pop, and electronic dance.
Regarding the album, USA Today commented, “Jungkook manages to successfully meld oft-disparate genres including R&B, EDM, disco funk and pop ballads”. Meanwhile, Consequence of Sound, a U.S. music media outlet, praised Jungkook for knowing how to use “his greatest instrument: his voice”, as well as skillfully incorporating genre-specific characteristics.
In fact, it is known that Jungkook recorded 4 to 5 tracks from “GOLDEN” in just one week. This was possible due to his perfect interpretation of the songs, voice control tailored to each genre, and the flexibility to incorporate immediate feedback.
As a result, Jungkook’s high-quality and trendy music resonated seamlessly with listeners of diverse tastes. According to Spotify, the songs from “GOLDEN” set a new streaming record for a Korean solo artist’s album, with a total of 39,657,740 streams within a day of its release.
Jungkook’s appeal as a male solo artist should also be emphasized. In the current pop market, the presence of male solo dance artists is not significant. Looking at songs that have topped the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 from last year to the present, the dominance of female musicians such as Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, and Doja Cat is evident. In terms of genres, country, traditionally strong hip-hop, and R&B have been the main trends, led by Morgan Wallen, who topped the chart 16 times this year. Jungkook filled the void of a dance artist dominating the stage with overwhelming performance skills, alleviating the audience’s thirst for a “pop star”.
After the release of the new album, Jungkook has been showcasing stable live performances and high-quality performances, which has been described by the entertainment industry as “exuding 10 years of experience,” and “a legendary stage of a new pop star.” In particular, Jungkook’s performance on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” even reached the top spot on YouTube’s worldwide trending list on the 7th, gaining significant attention.
NME concludes, “So far, the 2020s have been lacking one huge male solo star that reigns over the pop world but, with ‘Golden’, BTS’ Jungkook proves he’s more than up to the task.”
