BTS, Im Young-woong, and BLACKPINK Compete for August’s KM Chart K-MUSIC Crown

The K-pop industry is buzzing ahead of the August competition. The global standard K-pop chart “KM Chart” has launched a popularity survey to determine which major artists will battle it out for this summer’s K-MUSIC title, including BTS, Im Young-woong, and BLACKPINK. KM Chart will conduct the 2025 August K-MUSIC popularity survey until the 24th. This survey covers six categories: K-MUSIC (music tracks), ARTIST (artists), HOT CHOICE (popularity awards) for men and women, and ROOKIE (rising star awards) for men and women, with candidates selected based on both public appeal and media attention. The K-MUSIC category includes a total of 50 songs, such as Young-tak’s “Jushi-go,” Jungkook (BTS)’s “Standing Next to You,” PLAVE’s “Dash,” Lee Chan-won’s “Haneul Travel,” Jin (BTS)’s “Don’t Say You Love Me,” Im Young-woong’s “Ongi,” and BLACKPINK’s “Jump,” featuring a balanced mix of hit tracks that dominate major music charts. For the ARTIST category, 30 influential artists (groups) have been chosen, including Im Young-woong, Lee Chan-won, BTS’ RM, Jin, V, Jungkook, J-Hope, G-Dragon, Stray Kids, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, BOYNEXTDOOR, ENHYPEN, SHINee, Highlight, and PLAVE. The HOT CHOICE category reflects the public’s perceived popularity, with 30 men’s candidates including Lee Chan-won, Im Young-woong, A-TIME, NCT DREAM, and Kang Daniel, and 30 women’s candidates including Hwasa (MAMAMOO), Dreamcatcher, ITZY, LE SSERAFIM, and Rosé (BLACKPINK). The ROOKIE category serves as a battleground for new artists, with 10 men’s candidates including AHOPE, NOWZ, CLOSE YOUR EYES, NEXZ, RIIZE, and NEWBIT, and 10 women’s candidates including Hearts2Hearts, ILLIT, UNIS, BABYMONSTER, BABY DON’T CRY, and IIF. Voting is available through the apps “My1Pick” and “IdolChamp,” with votes from each app weighted equally at 50% each. After the popularity survey concludes, the final results will be announced by combining fan voting outcomes, jury evaluations, and objective metrics such as KM Chart data scores.