NCT Dream
$7M / 36.9K tickets / 4 shows
All-Genre Top 100 Rank: N/A
NCT Dream has reported shows with similarly stellar results on either side of the pond, having toured in North America and in Europe throughout 2023.
Top 10 Highest Grossing K-Pop Tours of 2023
Written by djfrosty on December 11, 2023
Last week, Billboard revealed its year-end Boxscore charts, ranking the top tours, venues and promoters of 2023. That coverage included analysis of the new wave of genre diverse artists crashing stadium stages, and in turn, our charts. This week, we are breaking down the year’s biggest tours, genre by genre. Today, we begin with K-pop, spotlighting artists who primarily perform in Korean.
Among all the genres we’re recapping this week, K-pop is the youngest, at least in terms of the global box office. In the last 10 years (excluding COVID-impacted years of 2020-21), there were no K-pop artists on the overall top 100 in 2012-14 and 2016, and the genre took up less than 1% of the overall gross in another three year-end periods.
BTS broke ground first, ending 2019 at No. 3 and helping spike the genre’s share from 0.3% to 4%. Off cycle as its members serve in the South Korean military (their last reported show was on April 16, 2022), that share backed down to 1.6% in 2022. But as the group’s international impact spreads further among its peers and reporting increases, the genre’s widespread popularity comes into fuller focus.
K-pop’s share of this year’s top 100 is up to an all-time high of 5.1% thanks to a long list of idol groups selling out venues in Asia, Europe, Latin America and the U.S.
Scroll to check out the top 10 highest grossing tours by K-pop artists, according to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore. All reported shows worldwide between Nov. 1, 2022 – Sept. 30, 2023, are eligible.
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Image Credit: Korea Pool/Getty Images -
LE SSERAFIM
Image Credit: The Chosunilbo JNS/Imazins/Getty Images $7.9M / 77.5K tickets / 9 shows
All-Genre Top 100 Rank: N/A
Building the group’s base in Asia, LE SSERAFIM posted seven-figure grosses in Seoul, Tokyo and Hong Kong, among other Japanese and Korean markets. Two shows at Tokyo’s Yoyoghi National Stadium earned $2.3 million and sold more than 24,000 tickets.
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ATEEZ
Image Credit: Paul Bergen/Redferns $13.9M / 103K tickets / 10 shows
All-Genre Top 100 Rank: N/A
Another globe-trotting K-pop group, ATEEZ played to sold-out audiences in Europe and North America, as well as shows in Latin America and Asia.
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Stray Kids
Image Credit: Gilbert Flores for Variety $16.1M / 114K tickets / 8 shows
All-Genre Top 100 Rank: N/A
Between mid-February and early April, Stray Kids sold more than 100,000 tickets from shows in Atlanta; Fort Worth, Texas; Los Angeles; and Sydney.
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ENHYPEN
Image Credit: Gabe Ginsberg/Getty Images $33M / 336K tickets / 19 shows
All-Genre Top 100 Rank: No. 81
Stretching across almost the entire tracking period, ENHYPEN bookended its year with shows in Japan. It started with 17,000 tickets sold over two night at Nippon Gaishi Hall in Nagoya on Nov. 1-2, 2022, and ended with more than 76,000 tickets at the Tokyo Dome on Sept. 13-14.
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SEVENTEEN
Image Credit: Julien De Rosa/AFP via Getty Images $43.3M / 440K tickets / 12 shows
All-Genre Top 100 Rank: No. 58
Between Japan, the Philippines, Indonesia and a hometown show in Seoul, South Korea, SEVENTEEN played stadiums in seven markets to accumulate more than $40 million in ticket sales. Tokyo was the financial highlight, with $16.8 million from four dates at the Tokyo Dome.
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TOMORROW X TOGETHER
Image Credit: Jung Yeon-Je/AFP via Getty Images $46.8M / 379K tickets / 27 shows
All-Genre Top 100 Rank: No. 54
Equally as strong in Los Angeles as in Osaka, TOMORROW X TOGETHER embarked on an international tour that brought in more than $40 million in ticket sales.
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TWICE
Image Credit: Christopher Polk for Billboard $54.2M / 345K tickets / 18 shows
All-Genre Top 100 Rank: No. 41
TWICE played shows in 18 markets around the world this year, and never grossed less than $2 million. The group was mostly in arenas, but went to stadiums in Atlanta, Los Angeles and New York.
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SUGA
Image Credit: Courtesy of BIGHIT MUSIC $57.1M / 318K tickets / 26 shows
All-Genre Top 100 Rank: No. 37
After breaking ground and setting Boxscore records as a member of BTS, SUGA struck out on his own with a solo arena tour in the U.S. and Asia. He earned more than $9 million in Los Angeles and the New York area, and sold more than 50,000 tickets in Seoul.
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BLACKPINK
Image Credit: Frazer Harrison/GI for Coachella $148.3M / 703K tickets / 29 shows
All-Genre Top 100 Rank: No. 10
BLACKPINK takes the lead among K-pop acts, standing tall as the only Asian-based artist in the all-genre top 10. Jennie, Lisa, Jisoo and Rosé started the year in American arenas before traveling to Europe, Mexico and Australia. They returned to the U.S. for stadium dates in New Jersey, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Notably, the group’s Asian shows were not reported.