BTS Features on Rolling Stone Covers in 16 Countries Simultaneously—Second Time in History

BTS will appear on the covers of Rolling Stone editions in 16 different countries around the world at the same time. Rolling Stone is an authoritative magazine in the popular culture industry with a 59-year history, and BTS is only the second artist in its history to grace global covers simultaneously.

This marks the second time such an achievement has occurred, following British singer-songwriter Harry Styles, who appeared on covers in 14 countries in 2022. For group artists and K-pop acts, BTS is the first to achieve this, with the number of countries now two more than in 2022. Industry analysts view this accomplishment as a symbolic indication of the shifting global status of Korean popular culture as a whole, suggesting that K-pop has moved beyond simply becoming part of mainstream music to taking a leading role in shaping the direction of popular music globally.

Rolling Stone plans to release magazines featuring all BTS members on their covers sequentially in the 16 countries starting next month. Starting on the 20th (local time), eight covers will be made available online over an eight-day period—one cover for each of the seven members and one group cover. A “box set” containing these specially produced covers will be sold for $125 (approximately 185,000 won).

Their latest album, “Arirang,” which was released on the 20th of last month, has sold 4,169,464 copies in its first week, breaking the record set by their previous album (3,370,000 copies). The album is also performing well on global charts, having topped Billboard’s main album chart, the Billboard 200, for three consecutive weeks—something no K-pop artist has achieved before.

Following the release of the new album, BTS has launched their “Arirang” world tour. Starting with a performance in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, last month, they will hold 85 concerts in 34 cities worldwide. This is expected to be the largest K-pop world tour in history, with 46 of the 85 concerts already sold out. The magazine will include interviews with BTS members about the production process of the new album, as well as their experiences serving in the military, the challenges they faced returning as a complete group, and their insights gained from solo activities.

Meanwhile, before the release of the new album, BTS suffered from the leakage of unreleased tracks and album covers. HYBE has requested the court to identify the internet users responsible for the leaks and is pursuing legal action based on claims of copyright infringement and financial damages.