K-pop moments and hashtags that made Twitter history
SOME people like to say, “Twitter is dead.” If you’re a K-pop fan, you know this isn’t true. I, for one, run three K-pop-related accounts, one of which is an hourly account for one of my favorite artists. I’ve been on Twitter since 2009 and I’ve been through so many of its important K-pop moments, from PSY’S (@psy_oppa) #Gangnamstyle in 2012 to the release of supergroup Superm’s (@superm) first mini-album in 2019.
PSY’S “Gangnam Style” and the #Gangnamstyle Worldwide Syndrome became viral in 2012. The song ranked No. 2 for seven consecutive weeks on Billboard Hot 100. On December 31, 2013, PSY performed at Times Square in New York.
Many other artists had historic moments on Twitter. Big Bang was the first K-pop artist to win Best Worldwide Act at MTV EMAS in 2011, and in 2012 Alive became the first K-pop album to chart on Billboard 200. Big Bang’s (@YG_GLOBALVIP) #BIGBANGMADE, the 2015-2016 MADE World Tour, attracted 1.5 million concertgoers.
In 2011, the SM Entertainment boy group Super Junior (@Sjofficial) made it to the “Top 10 Trending Topics on Twitter”. In 2012, Super Junior ranked No. 1 on Taiwan’s KKBOX for 121 consecutive weeks. In 2015, the group was named Best International Artist in the Teen Choice Awards.
In a press release, Twitter said #Wondergirls “paved the way for the new decade of K-pop as a pioneer.” Wonder Girls (@Wondergirls) was the first K-pop artist to enter the Billboard Hot 100, and their song “Nobody” topped the Year-end Chart of the Billboard Hot Single Sales in 2009. Reboot was named No. 1 in 10 Best K-pop Albums of 2015 by Billboard.
Another girl group, Girls’ Generation (@ Girlsgeneration), was the first foreign girl group to top Japan’s Oricon Chart in 2010 and was named Best K-pop Girl Group in the Past 10 Years by Billboard in 2017.
In 2012, 2NE1 became the first girl group to stage a world tour with “#2Ne1newevolution” and its song “Crush” set new records, including bestselling K-pop album and “Highest-charting K-pop album” on the Billboard 200 in 2014.
In 2013, boy group EXO (@weareoneexo) sold 1 million albums with XOXO (Hugs & Kisses). In 2017, the launch of the group’s official Twitter account with The War album led 11 million tweets in 48 hours and its song “Ko Ko Bop” was ranked No. 1 as “the most mentioned song.” In 2019, “Obsession” was named Best K-pop Song of the Year by Billboard.
In 2017, boy group BTS (@Bts_twt) became the first K-pop artist to reach 10 million followers on Twitter. In 2019, it won the BBMAS’ Top Social Artist Award for the third consecutive time. In 2020, BTS Army, the group’s massive fandom, drove #Matchamillion to support the #Blacklivesmatter movement. Recently, BTS’S Dynamite ranked No. 1 on “Billboard Hot 100.”
In 2015, GOT7 (@Got7official) ranked No. 2 on the 2015 Twitter Global Top Keywords (Music), and No. 1 among K-pop related trends. In 2018, the group’s fans were named #Twitterbestfandom at Soompi Awards. For seven consecutive years since their January 2014 debut, GOT7 has been a Top 3 Most Mentioned K-pop Artist. In 2016, TWICE’S (@JYPETWICE) song “Cheer Up” swept major K-pop awards and in 2017, the group became the first foreign female artist to achieve “Triple Crown on Oricon chart.” In 2019, they made news with the “#Twicedreamday Dome Tour”.
In 2019, BLACKPINK (@ygofficialblink) was the first K-pop girl group to perform at Coachella and the first girl group to be named to Forbes Asia’s “30 Under 30” list. In 2020, the launch of their Twitter account with the song “How You Like That” led 5 million tweets in 12 hours.
In 2019, Superm had the most sensational debut in K-pop history in the new supergroup format, with its members composed of artists from #SHINEE, #EXO, #NCT127 and #Wayv. The launch of their first minialbum was the first time Billboard 200 was topped by a K-pop artist debut album.