Live viewers 18.4 million, No. 1 in 24 countries/regions, top 10 in 80 countries/regions, 2.6 billion social mentions, surge in Korea-related online keywords..
The world witnessed BTS's return. The online space was flooded with keywords related to BTS, and BTS demonstrated overwhelming buzz and influence across all metrics. Moreover, their comeback was not simply the release of a new song but became an opportunity to introduce Korean culture around the world.
BTS released their fifth studio album Arirang on the 20th and held BTS comeback live: ARIRANG (BTS THE COMEBACK LIVE | ARIRANG) around Gwanghwamun Square on the 21st. According to Netflix's announcement on the 25th, which live-streamed the performance, the event was watched by as many as 18.4 million viewers in a single day. The BTS comeback live video posted on Netflix after the event entered the weekly charts at No. 1 in 24 countries/regions. It was included in the top 10 in 80 countries/regions. The weekly rankings were calculated based on cumulative views from Monday through Sunday U.S. time. BTS's comeback live topped the weekly rankings with only two days of data.
Online reaction was also intense. Netflix reported that social mentions related to BTS before and after the performance reached as many as 2.62 billion. This is more than double the previous record for Netflix's live projects (Jake Paul vs Anthony Joshua/1.25 billion), making it the highest figure to date. It is significant in that fandoms around the world shared the same hashtags and messages in real time, expanding the ripple effect.
Interest in Korean culture and Seoul landmarks exploded following BTS's fifth studio album Arirang and the Gwanghwamun Square performance. This was confirmed by increases in related keyword mentions. Social listening analysis showed that from March 17 to 23, English mentions of Gyeongbokgung, Sungnyemun, gugak, the bell of King Seongdeok, and King Sejong increased significantly online. In particular, about 80–90% of mentions in the past 30 days were concentrated around the period before and after BTS's comeback.
Mentions of King Sejong surged by about 630% compared with the previous day as of the 21st. This is presumed to be due to the influence of Gwanghwamun Square, the venue for BTS comeback live: ARIRANG. In addition, linked to BTS's new release, unfamiliar keywords among global audiences such as the bell of King Seongdeok and Kim Koo, the Baekbeom, also received concentrated attention in a short period.
Meanwhile, BTS successfully completed the event Spotify X BTS: SWIMSIDE in collaboration with global audio and music streaming platform Spotify on the 24th. They will appear as a group on NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, which airs at 12:35 p.m. on the 26th–27th.
[Photo] BigHit Music/Netflix
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