KUALA LUMPUR, July 22 — Spotify has revealed its 2025 Global Impact List for the first half of the year, spotlighting a new wave in K-pop: the rise of soloists over groups on the global stage.
A total of 14 Korean acts made the cut, including BTS members Jin and J-Hope, Blackpink’s Jennie, Rose and Jisoo, along with Ive, Le Sserafim, NCT’s Ten, Tomorrow X Together, GOT7, Seventeen, Meovv, BoyNextDoor and G-Dragon, according to The Korea Herald.
The list ranks the 30 most-streamed tracks by Korean artists outside South Korea between January 1 and June 30 — and solo acts are leading the charge.
“One of the most notable trends is the rise of solo K-pop acts,” Spotify said, noting that 19 of the top 30 songs and nine of the top 10 tracks were by solo performers.
Spotify added that the list reflects “a shift in K-pop from group-centred storytelling to more personal narratives and individual artistic identity.”
Jennie’s Like Jennie, from her March solo album Ruby, topped the chart, followed by Jin’s Don’t Say You Love Me from his May mini album Echo.
All nine of Jennie’s featured tracks came from Ruby, while Jisoo’s Earthquake and Your Love placed eighth and 27th respectively. Rose’s soundtrack single Messy ranked 14th.
J-Hope scored four entries: Mona Lisa (No. 4), Sweet Dreams (No. 6), LV Bag (No. 10), and Killin’ It Girl (No. 16).
Other solo entries included NCT Ten’s Stunner, RM and Tablo’s Stop The Rain, and G-Dragon’s Too Bad.
Le Sserafim’s Hot led the group entries at No. 9, with additional placements for Ive, TXT, GOT7, Seventeen, Meovv and BoyNextDoor.
Spotify also highlighted the growing impact of collaborations and OSTs, pointing to team-ups with Doechii, Dua Lipa and Anderson Paak, and the fast rise of Netflix’s Kpop Demon Hunters track Your Idol.
