BLACKPINK has clinched the crown as the most subscribed music artist, beating Ariana Grande!
The four-piece outfit surpassed international pop star Ariana Grande's number of subscribers on YouTube, becoming the world's No. 1 female music group to snag the status. According to YG Entertainment on Monday, BLACKPINK's subscribers on their official YouTube channel surpassed 42.3 million as of 8:00 a.m; hence, exceeding other female pop stars, such as Grande, Taylor Swift, Katie Perry, and Rihanna.
On the other hand, for the category for both male and female artists, BLACKPINK is one of the top five artists, alongside Justin Bieber, DJ Marshmallow, Ed Sheeran, and Eminem. This means, they are the only female music act to enter the top 5 list.
The number of YouTube channel subscribers is one of the criteria that objectively shows the popularity and recognition of a singer. YG Entertainment said, "In an era where new content is pouring out every day, the steady interest of loyal fandom, expectations, and confidence toward future content often lead to "subscribe.'"
The agency added, "In particular, it is a meaningful indicator when we think of YouTube as the main driver of the changing landscape of the global music market."
BLACKPINK is hitting the global charts, following their new song "How You Like That," released on the 26th of June. In particular, the number of subscribers to BLACKPINK's YouTube channel, which was about 37.4 million before the release of "How You Like That," increased by 5 million in about a month, showing explosive growth.
BLACKPINK's YouTube records, including them being dubbed as the "YouTube Queen," are unrivaled. The music video for "How You Like That" recorded 86.3 million views on the first day, officially listed in a total of five Guinness World Records categories, including "Most views of YouTube videos in 24 hours of release." Since then, it has surpassed 100 million views in about 32 hours, 200 million views in seven days, and 300 million views in 21 days, breaking the record for the shortest time in YouTube music video history.
Prior to this, the music video of BLACKPINK's existing hit songs such as "DDU-DU DDU-DU," which has surpassed 1.2 billion views and has maintained the title of the K-pop group's music video's highest number of views, "Bombaya" (900 million views), "Kill This Love" (900 million views), and "As If It's the Last" (800 million views) are being held in a parade.
This phenomenon is reflected in the global music charts as well. BLACKPINK, which is breaking the K-pop girl group's highest ranking in every song released, made history by ranking 20th and 33rd in the British Official Singles Top 100 and Billboard Hot 100, respectively, with "How You Like That."
Meanwhile, BLACKPINK will release their second single next month, with a featuring artist that remains a secret. So stay tuned!
