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The current edition of the Billboard 200, Billboard’s namesake weekly ranking of the most-consumed albums and EPs in the United States, is dominated by Stray Kids. The South Korean boy band is back on top of the list with their latest offering, Maxident, which easily conquers the tally.
With Stray Kids back in charge of the Billboard 200 (for the second time in about six months), 2022 has already become the biggest year ever when looking at titles produced by South Korean artists reaching the No. 1 spot on the most important albums ranking in the largest music market in the world.
So far in 2022, four different albums by South Korean musical acts have topped the Billboard 200. That’s twice as many chart leaders by K-pop stars than in any other year, and there are still months to go before 2023 arrives.
Stray Kids nabbed the first No. 1 album this year among South Korean artists with Oddinary, which opened in first place in April. Oddinary became the group’s first champion, and it made them (at the time) the third K-pop act to reach the summit.
In late June, BTS earned another No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with Proof, a compilation that only features a handful of new songs. The group has now climbed to the peak position on the tally with six different collections, and the vast majority of No. 1s by South Korean stars came from the boy band.
In early October, Blackpink scored their first No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with Born Pink. Once their set opened as high as a title possibly can, 2022 instantly became the biggest year for South Korean musical acts reaching the peak of the albums chart. Born Pink gave Blackpink their first leader on the ranking, made them the first K-pop girl group to hit the top, and expanded the number of South Korean names who have shot to the uppermost space on the Billboard 200 to four (BTS, SuperM, Stray Kids, and Blackpink).
Now, Stray Kids have doubled their total number of not just No. 1 titles, but placements on the Billboard 200. So far, all of the band’s charting efforts (on this one list) have reached the top spot, and they may be able to keep that winning streak going.
In three different years, two albums by South Korean musicians have dominated the Billboard 200. In 2018, BTS landed a pair of wins with Love Yourself: Tear and Love Yourself: Answer. In 2019, the same band’s Map of the Soul: Persona also ruled, and they were joined in the chart-topping club by SuperM, whose self-titled effort also debuted in first place. 2020 saw BTS once again claim two rulers, with both Map of the Soul: 7 and Be running the show for a period of time.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2022/10/19/bts-blackpink-and-stray-kids-have-made-2022-a-historic-year-for-k-pop-artists-in-america/