A fictional K-pop boy band from a Netflix animated feature has achieved what few real-world Korean acts have – to top the US Spotify chart.
Your Idol, a song by a boy band in the film Saja Boys claimed the No. 1 spot on Spotify’s Daily Top Songs chart in the US on Friday.
This makes them the highest-charting K-pop group, albeit an animated one, in US Spotify history – surpassing Korean boy band sensation BTS, whose song Dynamite peaked at No. 3 during its record-breaking run in 2020.
Your Idol is only the fourth K-pop song ever to reach the summit, following BTS member Jungkook’s Seven, fellow BTS member Jimin’s Who, and Blackpink member Rosé’s APT.
Saja Boys’ Your Idol is an original soundtrack (OST) song from the animated Netflix film KPop Demon Hunters, currently the most streamed movie on the global over-the-top (OTT) platform.
KPop Demon Hunters is currently the most streamed movie on Netflix globally (Courtfesy of Netflix) KPop Demon Hunters has been a smash for Netflix since its June 20 release, globally, clocking up more than 33 million views in just two weeks.
Set in a world where a chart-topping girl group, Huntr/x, defends humanity against Saja Boys, demons in disguise, KPop Demon Hunters follows the dual narrative of the female superstar band and their arch enemies, Saja Boys – later revealed to hail from the underworld.
The film is the latest effort by Netflix to tap into the global K-content wave, blending anime, idol culture and musical fantasy.
THREE OTHER SONGS ALSO FORMIDABLE
Three other songs from the animated musical film also charted highly on Spotify.
Saja Boys, demons in disguise, are arch rivals of Huntrix, a female superstar band in the Nextflix film KPop Demon Hunters (Courtesy of Netflix) Golden and How It’s Done, both sung by Huntr/x, ranked No. 2 and No. 8, respectively. Golden surpassed Blackpink as the highest-charting female K-pop group.
Soda Pop, another Saja Boys track, came in at No. 10.
The music’s success is helping redefine the boundaries of the K-pop universe, which has increasingly found resonance beyond conventional artist formats and into virtual and fictional domains.
The OST’s commercial performance has been equally formidable in the album charts.
KPop Demon Hunters’ full soundtrack entered the Billboard 200 at No. 8.
Golden is sung by Huntrix, a female superstar band in the Nextflix film KPop Demon Hunters (Courtesy of Netflix) Several tracks, including Your Idol and Golden, entered the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK’s Official Singles Chart Top 100.
HEAVYWEIGHT PRODUCTION TEAM
Produced by Sony Pictures Animation, KPop Demon Hunters was directed by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans and was based on a story by Ms. Kang.
Industry officials attribute the sonic polish of the soundtrack to the heavyweight production team behind it.
Top producers, including Teddy Park, who has worked with Blackpink and boy band Bigbang, and BTS collaborator Lindgren, were part of the team that created the album.
The project also included contributions from Kush, Vince, and other composers from The Black Label.
Huntrix, a female superstar band in the Nextflix film KPop Demon Hunters (Courtesy of Netflix) Saja Boys’ vocals were supplied by a roster of famous artists, including Kevin Woo, formerly a member of U-KISS; Andrew Choi, a finalist from K-pop Star season 2; The Black Label’s Danny Chung; and samUIL Lee, who has worked on albums for Riize and Seventeen.
The popularity of KPop Demon Hunters comes as global mega-stars BTS are returning as a full-member group after a four-year hiatus.
Members Jin, RM, V, Jimin, J-Hope, Jungkook and Suga last week announced their comeback during a livestream on Weverse, an online fan platform operated by BTS management company HYBE Co.
The seven-member boy band is returning with a new album in spring 2026, followed by a full-scale world tour – their first since their 2022 anthology album Proof and the “Yet to Come” concert in Busan.
Write to In-Soo Nam at isnam@hankyung.com Jennifer Nicholson-Breen edited this article.
