First K-pop Act To Reach No.1 On The US Albums Chart (Record By BTS)

The Official Award Of A Certificate

BTS etched their name in K-pop history when they became the first act from the genre to reach No. 1 on the US Albums Chart, a landmark achievement certified by the K-Pop Records Library on March 27, 2025. Their album Love Yourself: Tear, released on May 18, 2018, under Big Hit Entertainment (now HYBE), topped the Billboard 200 on June 2, 2018, with 135,000 equivalent album units sold in its debut week, including 100,000 traditional sales, per Billboard. This triumph marked a seismic shift for K-pop’s presence in the United States.

Feat:

The seven-member group Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jungkook unleashed Love Yourself: Tear with its lead single “Fake Love,” which peaked at No. 10 on the Hot 100. The album’s 11 tracks, blending hip-hop and pop, resonated globally, earning 52,000 streaming units and 26,000 track sales alongside its physical haul, per Nielsen Music. Posts on X in 2018 buzzed with ARMY’s pride as BTS outdid PSY’s “BoA” (No. 127 in 2009)

The K-Pop Records Library awarded BTS a certificate, honoring their June 2, 2018, milestone as a historic breakthrough, paving the way for K-pop’s US chart dominance.