BTS Holds Billboard 200 No. 1 Spot With Arirang

BTS has achieved a historic milestone on the U.S. Charts, with their fifth full-length album, ARIRANG, securing the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 for two consecutive weeks. This achievement makes them the first K-pop act to top the Billboard 200 for two straight weeks.

The album’s sustained dominance is highlighted by its ability to hold the top position even as high-profile releases entered the chart. Specifically, ARIRANG maintained its lead over Kanye West’s Bully, which debuted at No. 2 on the albums chart.

Chart Performance and Record-Breaking Metrics

The Billboard 200 chart, dated April 4, 2026, saw ARIRANG debut at No. 1, marking the group’s seventh leader on this chart. The album opened with 641,000 equivalent album units, representing the largest opening week for an album by a group since the chart began measuring by units in December 2014.

A significant portion of this success was driven by pure album sales, which accounted for 532,000 units. This figure represents the biggest sales week for an album by a group in more than a decade and stands as the highest sales record in the history of BTS, earning them their seventh No. 1 on the Top Album Sales chart.

The album’s consumption was further bolstered by streaming. Streaming equivalent albums (SEA) reached 95,000 units, which corresponds to 99.1 million on-demand streams. ARIRANG also debuted at No. 1 on the Top Streaming Albums chart.

Billboard noted that BTS recorded the highest album units since Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl, which debuted with approximately 4 million units in 2025.

Context and Global Reach

The success of ARIRANG follows the group’s military discharge and serves as a reaffirmation of their global presence. Before securing the top spot in the U.S., the album also achieved success on the U.K. Official Albums Chart Top 100.

ARIRANG joins a list of previous No. 1 albums for the group, which include:

• Proof (2022)
• BE (2020)
• MAP OF THE SOUL : 7 (2020)
• MAP OF THE SOUL : PERSONA (2019)
• Love Yourself ‘Answer’ (2018)
• Love Yourself ‘Tear’ (2018)

The album’s impact extends across multiple charts; it has appeared on four different Billboard charts and held the No. 1 position on two of them.

Competitive Landscape

In its debut week, ARIRANG surpassed other major releases, including Luke Combs’ The Way I Am and Morgan Wallen’s I’m The Problem. Luke Combs eventually captured his seventh top 10 set as The Way I Am bowed at No. 2 on the April 4 chart.

The subsequent week saw the group maintain their lead against Kanye West’s Bully, further cementing the album’s commercial strength in the U.S. Market.