Virtual Idols “KPop Demon Hunters” and “Savage Boys” Dominate Spotify and Billboard… First K-Pop Groups to Top U.S. Charts

The virtual idols from Netflix’s animated series “KPop Demon Hunters” have seized control of global music charts, setting a new milestone in K-pop history. “Your Idol,” sung by the male villain group Savage Boys in the film, reached number 1 on Spotify’s U.S. daily chart, achieving the historic feat of becoming the first K-pop group to top Spotify’s U.S. chart—surpassing BTS’s “Dynamite,” which previously held the third position. “Golden,” performed by the female group KPop Demon Hunters from the same series, also reached number 2 on that same chart. Even more historic results appeared in the latest charts released by Billboard in the U.S. A total of seven tracks from the film’s OST entered Billboard’s main singles chart, the Hot 100, at the same time. Leading the way were KPop Demon Hunters’ “Golden” (position 23) and Savage Boys’ “Your Idol” (position 31), followed by “How It’s Done” (position 42), “Soda Pop” (position 49), “What It Sounds Like” (position 55), “Free” (position 58), and “Take Down” (position 64). This marks the first time an animated OST has achieved such a result since Disney’s animated film “Encanto” in 2022. The entire OST album reached position 3 on the Billboard 200, becoming the highest-ranking animated soundtrack of the year. Over the past two weeks, the OST tracks accumulated 77 million streams, the highest weekly streaming figure for a soundtrack since “Bobby” in 2023. On Spotify’s global chart, “Golden” reached position 2 and “Your Idol” reached position 4. KPop Demon Hunters attracted 13.9 million monthly listeners, while Savage Boys drew 11.4 million monthly listeners—figures that place them on par with world-renowned artists such as Billie Eilish, Shania Twain, Lady Gaga, and Bruno Mars. The film debuted on June 20 and became Netflix’s most-watched global movie just two weeks after release, amassing 33 million views during that period. It entered the top 10 in all 93 countries tracked, topped the charts in 33 nations, and received a 95% critic rating and a 90% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Netflix plans to officially submit the OST track “Golden” as a candidate for the Best Original Song award at the 96th Academy Awards. Unusually, Academy’s official social media account posted a comment saying, “KPop Demon Hunters didn’t just save the world—they saved my Spotify too.”