genre kpop
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Billboard Women In Music 2025’s lineup keeps on growing, with Tina Knowles, Becky G, Suki Waterhouse and more joining as presenters and honorees. Keep watching to see who else will be at Women in Music! Watch the live event on March 29 at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on the Billboard Women in Music 2025 […]
On Sunday (March 23), two days after a South Korean court ruled that ADOR, an imprint of K-pop giant HYBE, retains the right to manage the groundbreaking girl band NewJeans, the five-member act performed its first and possibly only concert in Hong Kong under a new moniker, NJZ — a result of its attempt to break free from the label. After debuting a new song, “Pit Stop,” the group announced to the sold-out crowd that it was going on hiatus “out of respect for the court’s decision.”
The pronouncement added another twist to a nearly year-long battle between HYBE-owned ADOR and its biggest act, who allege they were mistreated by the label. (ADOR disputes these claims.)
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It’s a fight that could have industry-wide ramifications. The country’s five largest pop music organizations argued at a press conference in February that if NewJeans/NJZ was allowed to break its contract with HYBE/ADOR, it could “break the K-pop industry from the inside,” according to Seoul newspaper Korea JoongAng Daily.
A separate lawsuit to determine if NewJeans/NJZ can legally terminate its contract with ADOR begins April 3, but if the court sides with HYBE/ADOR and the group refuses to make new music, industry insiders wonder whether a legal win would be a pyrrhic victory for HYBE.
HYBE/ADOR and NewJeans/NJZ declined to comment on the financial impacts of the disagreement. An ADOR spokesperson said only that its exclusive contract with NewJeans/NJZ is legally binding and called the group’s performance in Hong Kong as NJZ and its “unilateral announcement of a suspension of activities” regrettable. The members of NewJeans/NJZ filed an objection to the court ruling against its independent activities on Monday (March 24).
HYBE is the company behind one of the highest-selling K-pop acts of all time, BTS. When members of BTS took time away from the group for military service in recent years, the company sought to diversify beyond its tentpole artist with other acts — often through imprints like ADOR — and such acquisitions as Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings, Atlanta hip-hop label Quality Control and Latin music company Exile Music Group.
In its fiscal 2024, HYBE reported its highest revenue-generating year in its nearly 20-year history, having generated revenue of 2.25 trillion Korean won ($1.58 billion). But operating profit, a financial metric that subtracts operating costs like legal fees from a company’s gross profit, fell 38% from the prior fiscal year to 184 billion won ($128.7 million), a decline the company attributed to BTS’ temporary break, a shift in sales mix due to new debuts, and strategic investments in infrastructure and new businesses.
The controversy with ADOR and NewJeans/NJZ coincided with a steep decline in HYBE’s share price in 2024. HYBE stock was priced at 230,500 won ($172.33) on April 19, the day HYBE launched an investigation into whether ex-ADOR CEO Min Hee-Jin — who is a defendant in the lawsuit — usurped management of NewJeans/NJZ. Min was asked to resign, and in the weeks that followed, HYBE accused Min of trying to take ADOR independent and, with it, NewJeans/NJZ. On Sept. 23, after a YouTube video of the NewJeans/NJZ members demanding that Min be reinstated went viral, HYBE’s stock price plunged to a 52-week low of 158,000 Korean won ($112), down 31.5% from that April high.
While its share price has rebounded — on Tuesday (March 25), it was worth 240,000 Korean won ($163.49), 14.5% from a year ago — the dispute with NewJeans/NJZ may lead to sunk costs.
As with A&R across the music industry, the model for producing a K-pop supergroup is costly at the outset. It can cost between 1 billion Korean won ($681,000) to 10 billion won ($6.8 million) up front, according to a K-pop executive quoted in Korea JoongAng Daily. K-pop companies first pay off debt, then investors, before paying the artists. If the artists break their contract to go to another agency before ultimately turning a profit, the agency is left holding the bag, the executive told the paper. Bunnies, the official fan club of NewJeans/NJZ, criticized this statement, saying the group is seeking creative autonomy and a better deal.
NewJeans announced in February it wanted to go by a new name — NJZ — and member Pham Ngoc Han, who goes by Hanni, told CNN she hoped the new name would help the group turn “this rough period into something more exciting.” ADOR requested Billboard refer to the group as NewJeans, saying, “The Korean court … confirm[ed] ADOR’s status as the legitimate exclusive management agency of the NewJeans members and prevent the Artists from entering into advertising contracts independently without ADOR’s approval.”
The five women in the group — who perform as Minjin, Danielle, Haerin, Hyein and Hanni — formed NewJeans/NJZ in 2022, and they now range in age from 18 to 21. Several have said they are concerned the legal battle with ADOR would define their careers.
“We’ve known from the start that this journey wasn’t going to be easy and even though we accept the court’s ruling and this whole process, we had to speak up to protect the values that we believe in,” the members said at the end of their hour-long headlining performance in Hong Kong on Sunday, adding it’s a decision they “don’t regret at all.”
Between her starring role in The White Lotus and her new solo album earning a top 10 debut on the Billboard 200, one could argue that LISA from BLACKPINK is currently enjoying the “Best of Both Worlds.” In an interview with The Guardian published March 24, the K-pop star revealed that’s not the only thing […]
ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” rebounds for a record-extending 18th week at No. 1 on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart. The collaboration first inhabited the penthouse in November 2024.
Meanwhile, Lady Gaga and Mars’ “Die With a Smile” scores a 13th week atop the Billboard Global 200 chart, dating to its first frame at No. 1 last September.
Plus, Playboi Carti debuts two songs in the Global 200’s top 10 and one in the Global Excl. U.S. top 10 and Chappell Roan’s “The Giver” arrives in the Global 200’s top tier.
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The Billboard Global 200 and Global Excl. U.S. charts, which began in September 2020, rank songs based on streaming and sales activity culled from more than 200 territories around the world, as compiled by Luminate. The Global 200 is inclusive of worldwide data and the Global Excl. U.S. chart comprises data from territories excluding the United States.
Chart ranks are based on a weighted formula incorporating official-only streams on both subscription and ad-supported tiers of audio and video music services, as well as download sales, the latter of which reflect purchases from full-service digital music retailers from around the world, with sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites excluded from the charts’ calculations.
“APT.” rises from No. 2 on Global Excl. U.S. with 76.7 million streams (down 3% week-over-week) and 6,000 sold (down 12%) outside the U.S. March 14-20.
“Die With a Smile” drops to No. 2 after 11 weeks atop Global Excl. U.S. beginning last September; Doechii’s “Anxiety” jumps 7-3 for a new high; JENNIE’s “like JENNIE” backtracks to No. 4 from its No. 3 best; and Billie Eilish’s “Birds of a Feather” falls 4-5, after three weeks on top in August.
Playboi Carti’s “Evil J0rdan” debuts at No. 6 on Global Excl. U.S., led by 36.8 million streams outside the U.S. The rapper adds his fourth top 10 on the chart.
“Die With a Smile” continues atop the Global 200 with 102.1 million streams (down 12%) and 8,000 (down 19%) worldwide. At 13 weeks, the song ties for the third-longest No. 1 run since the chart began, matching Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers.” The only hits to lead longer: Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” (19 weeks) and Harry Styles’ “As It Was” (15).
Notably, “Die With a Smile” has drawn more than 100 million streams worldwide each week since the Global 200 chart dated Sept. 14, upping its record total on the latest list to 29 such weeks.
“APT.” holds at No. 2 on the Global 200, following 12 weeks at No. 1 starting in November, and Doechii’s “Anxiety” ascends 6-3 for a new best.
Playboi Carti’s “Evil J0rdan” and “Rather Lie,” featuring The Weeknd, debut at Nos. 4 and 6 on the Global 200 with 67.1 million and 54.1 million U.S. streams worldwide, respectively. Playboi Carti pushes his career count to six top 10s on the chart and The Weeknd to 15.
Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s “Luther” descends to No. 5 from its No. 3 Global 200 high.
Plus, Chappell Roan’s country track “The Giver” moseys onto the Global 200 at No. 10 with 40 million streams and 8,000 sold worldwide March 14-20, following its March 13 release. The singer-songwriter earns her second top 10, after “Good Luck, Babe!” hit No. 5 in September.
The Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts (dated March 29, 2025) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow, March 25. For both charts, the top 100 titles are available to all readers on Billboard.com, while the complete 200-title rankings are visible on Billboard Pro, Billboard’s subscription-based service. For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.
J-Hope‘s “Mona Lisa” tops this week’s new music poll. Music fans voted in a poll published Friday (March 21) on Billboard, choosing the BTS superstar’s latest solo song as their favorite new music release of the past week. “Mona Lisa” brought in nearly 90% of the vote, far surpassing other recent music releases. Among the […]
K-Pop supergroup NJZ, formerly known as NewJeans, announced during a show at ComplexCon Hong Kong on Sunday (March 23) night that “this might be our last performance for a little while.”
It was the first time NJZ appeared together since Friday (March 21), when a Seoul Court granted the band’s former management company Ador — whom they’ve been in a dispute with since mid-2024 — a preliminary injunction prohibiting the girl group from “organizing their own appearances and [conducting] any independent activities — from making music to signing advertising deals,” according to BBC.
After debuting a new song, “Pit Stop,” the five members (Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin and Hyein), visibly nervous, gathered onstage, stopped the music and took turns reading from a letter, addressing “their bunnies” in English and Korean.
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“This stage means so much to us and every single one of you who gives us strength just by being here,” Hanni and Dani read. “It is really hard for us to say this, but this might be our last performance for a little while. Out of respect for the court’s decision, we’ve decided to pause all our activities for now. It wasn’t an easy decision, but we believe this is something we need to do at this moment.
The speech (read in full below) came at the end of an hour-long headlining set in front of a sold-out crowd of more than 11,000 fans at the AsiaWorld Expo Arena, Hong Kong’s largest live music venue.
The performance that preceded the remarks focused on “solo stages” from the five group members as they covered R&B songs. It left many in the audience — who showed up to hear new music from their favorite artists — scratching their heads, as it was a departure from NJZ’s high-energy productions, polished choreography and vibrant stage presence. The covers ranged from TLC’s “No Scrubs” from Danielle; UPSAHL’s “Smile For The Camera” from Minji; “Dontcha” from Haerin; SWV’s “Use Your Heart” from Hyein; and Ghost Town DJ’s “My Boo” from Hanni.
In February, NewJeans announced they were changing their name to NJZ as they were added to the ComplexCon bill. BBC reports that the dispute over the group arises from Hybe, the parent company of Ador, allegedly forcing out NewJeans’ mentor, Min Hee-Jin. At a press conference in November, NewJeans announced their departure, saying Hybe and Ador had lost the right to represent them as artists. NJZ says they will challenge Friday’s decision.
This is the second year of ComplexCon, the global streetwear and pop culture festival, in China. In 2024, the event attracted more than 30,000 international attendees. The U.S. edition moved to Las Vegas in 2024 after eight years in Los Angeles. In 2025, over three days, the festival hosted 150 brands, 40 musicians and groups, and 400 creators across music, design, movies and sports.
NJZ had a merch booth inside the ComplexCon marketplace, which commanded a line of more than 2,000 people on Sunday alone. However, the booth was shuttered after it sold out of all new NJZ merchandise.
This year’s Complex LIVE! Concerts, which brought together South Korean, Japanese, Chinese and American hip-hop artists and DJs, featured the Hong Kong debuts of Quavo and Metro Boomin, who headlined the opening night.
Read Hanni and Dani’s full statement below.
“This stage means so much to us and every single one of you who gives us strength just by being here. It is really hard for us to say this, but this might be our last performance for a little while. Out of respect for the court’s decision, we’ve decided to pause all our activities for now. It wasn’t an easy decision, but we believe this is something we need to do at this moment.
Honestly, we’ve known from the start that this journey wasn’t going to be easy and even though we accept the court’s ruling and this whole process, we had to speak up to protect the values that we believe in, and that was a choice that we don’t regret at all. We surely believe that standing up for our dignity, our rights and everything we deeply care about is something we had to do, and that belief will not change.
We understand and know that today’s news might be disappointing or upsetting but it was not an easy decision for us to make either. But at the moment for us, it’s about protecting ourselves so that we can come back even stronger.
There was a lot that we had to go through … things that really we only know about. But even [through] all that, there are so many things that we wanted to share with you guys and so many fun plans that we are excited to announce. But right now, though, it feels too hard to keep going at this pace, and as strong as we are trying to stay, it has honestly taken a bit of mental and emotional toll on us. However, this doesn’t mean that we are going to give up. We will keep pushing forward no matter what, and coming to Hong Kong and receiving all this love and support from you guys at ComplexCon gave us so much strength.
Right now, our hearts are a little bit worn out, and it feels a bit too hard to keep going at this pace. But that doesn’t mean we’re going to give up; we’re going to keep going. With this decision we’ve made, we’re respecting the court’s decision, and for now, it’s just us taking a step back to pause, take a breath and gather our hearts and ourselves before moving forward.
To everybody who has been believing in us and supporting us through everything from the bottom of our hearts, thank you, and we love you so, so, so, so much, and we can’t express how grateful we are, and we promise, no matter what the circumstances we will meet again soon.”
When Jennie posted the long-awaited trailer announcing her debut solo album, Ruby, she was on a plane heading to London. “It’s hard for me to stay longer than a week in one city,” she confesses — while in the car en route to yet another flight (this time from Los Angeles back home to Seoul).
Jennie chose the commanding “Zen” to soundtrack the album’s January trailer, particularly highlighting the lyric “In the dark I grew,” a sentiment that echoes throughout Ruby. “To me, that song is the core of this album,” she says. “So it only felt right to begin this journey with it.”
The album, which is entirely in English and arrived March 7, was preceded by singles “Mantra”; “Love Hangover,” with Dominic Fike; and “ExtraL,” with Doechii; and its other features — including genre-spanning artists such as Dua Lipa, Childish Gambino and Kali Uchis — further illustrate Jennie’s wide-ranging taste and global appeal. As a jet-setting artist with a devoted worldwide fan base firmly in place thanks to her role in history-making K-pop act Blackpink, Jennie is determined to build upon that on her own. (She released Ruby on her independent label, OddAtelier, in partnership with Columbia.) “It feels like my power as a superhero,” Billboard‘s 2025 Women in Music Global Force says. “It drives me to put more great things out there and work hard.”
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Join us at Billboard Women in Music 2025 — get your tickets here.
You already have a global fan base thanks to Blackpink. How did that benefit you on your solo journey?
If anything, I’m reintroducing myself to the world with this album. I’m throwing myself out there as if this was the very first time — that’s the commitment that I told myself. So I don’t think it changes so much for me.
You’ve adopted the middle name of Ruby Jane. How did that inspire the album title?
I was contemplating until the very end. I didn’t name [the album] Ruby because it’s a part of my name. To me, Ruby speaks to me as the curtain call of a play, where I’m opening this new chapter of… I don’t want to say new life; life is life, but a different stage in my life and I’m welcoming everyone in. I don’t necessarily see Jennie, Ruby, Jane as three different alter egos of mine. That’s just who I am, all in one.
Annakiki dress.
Songyi Yoon
You released a lyric breakdown of “Love Hangover” in Korean. Why was that important for you to do?
I love the fact that I’m Korean, so I’m just showing my appreciation and giving back the love that [my Korean fans] give me, and I wanted them to understand my music and myself better since this is an all-English album. And I know that they want to be more interactive with me in both languages.
What lyrics on Ruby best sum up how this journey has felt for you?
There’s a song that speaks to me in that sense called “Starlight,” and I think it’s a beautifully written song about how I felt for all this time. It’s a personal song.
Dua Lipa is featured on “Handlebars.” Tell me about that friendship.
I’ve known Dua for a very long time now. I went to her first show in Korea. We’re already good friends, [but] it was our first time doing a song together. That itself was a new experience for us to see each other in a different way, and we just had a great time.
Jacquemus top, David Koma pants, AREA hat.
Songyi Yoon
Between you two, who do you think travels more?
Honestly, we both work hard.
Behind the scenes, you have a strong team of women helping run your label. Why was that important to you?
I consider it to be important to work with people that you share good energy with, and I naturally started to gravitate toward empowering women. I’m still working hard to become one of those women that I look up to myself.
This story appears in the March 22, 2025, issue of Billboard.
J-Hope has delivered his latest piece of art. The BTS superstar unveiled his newest single, “Mona Lisa,” on Friday (March 21). In a statement, the singer’s label, BIG HIT, described the new song as exuding his “smooth, laid-back charm… expand[ing] his musical spectrum, solidifying his status as one of the most dynamic and sought-after global […]
Hours into their Billboard Women in Music photo shoot, the members of aespa are goofing off. High-pitched giggles reverberate through the studio as Winter, Karina, Ningning and Giselle tickle one another’s sides, talk in silly voices and play with the straps on their leathery stage outfits.
It’s mesmerizing to watch the four early-20-somethings be so, well, real, not just because they’re one of K-pop’s most polished acts — which they demonstrate by immediately snapping back into place once the photographer is ready again — but also because aespa has a particular penchant for the surreal. The SM Entertainment group debuted in 2020 with K-pop’s first lineup to feature both human and virtual members, pairing each girl with an artificial intelligence (AI) avatar as part of a cyberpunk musical metaverse marked by dark, 808-laced hyperpop and edgy-chic outfits.
Join us at Billboard Women in Music 2025 — get your tickets here.
Ever since, the act has leveraged its niche into unprecedented crossover success — in November, mini-album Whiplash made it the first K-pop girl group to have six projects reach the Billboard 200 top 50, and it just wrapped its second global arena tour — and a reputation for being one of the genre’s “most adventurous and contemporary” groups, as its “Over You” collaborator Jacob Collier put it to Billboard in January.
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But going forward, 2025’s Billboard Women in Music Group of the Year also wants to focus on something potentially even more subversive: showing that beneath the personas, its members are just those real-life girls blowing off steam between camera flashes. “We’re not actual AI; we do have days where we don’t feel the best,” Giselle says once the foursome has squeezed together on a couch. “Our storyline can be fun to keep up with, but I want fans to look up to aespa for our human traits, too.”
Karina
Abi Polinsky
Why do you think aespa has made a name as trendsetters?
Giselle: There’s always going to be trends, but we don’t follow them because we can’t. We have our own story to tell that was set from the start.
Winter: We usually talk about ourselves more than love [in our lyrics]. We’re the main characters of our stories.
Karina: We’re honest. Of course, you have to be professional and present your best self, but we also try to show the not-perfect side. We’re not trying to filter everything or over-mask ourselves.
Giselle
Abi Polinsky
What’s next in aespa’s evolution?
Ningning: We did start out with our avatar concept, but now we’re also trying really hard to explore different concepts and themes. In the future, there may be moments where the fans don’t see the avatars.
Karina: We want aespa to be a really stylish group, not only in fashion and music, but also in terms of versatility and excelling in every genre. I also want all our members to shine individually when we’re together and even when we’re not together.
From left: Ningning, Karina, Giselle, and Winter of aespa photographed on February 10, 2025 in New York.
Abi Polinsky
Who are your favorite artists/dream collaborators at the moment?
Ningning: Doechii. I’d just really like to meet her.
Winter: Billie Eilish. She’s so good at expressing her honest feelings through her music.
Karina: Olivia Dean. Whenever I need to find composure, I listen to her.
Giselle: SZA. Her music is so hard to get sick of — and very relatable.
Winter
Abi Polinsky
As a girl group, how do you support one another?
Ningning: We’re all from different countries and environments, but we’ve been doing this for five years. They’re always there for me. Working with this mindset that we’re in this together makes it easier to handle challenging situations and emotions.
Winter: I don’t think we could’ve made it through this alone. We’ve had to overcome certain obstacles, but with each other’s support, we were able to move forward. (Karina giggles as Giselle starts poking her affectionately.) These girls are all very precious to me.
Ningning
Abi Polinsky
This story appears in the March 22, 2025, issue of Billboard.
Hours into their Billboard Women in Music photo shoot, the members of aespa are goofing off. High-pitched giggles reverberate through the studio as Winter, Karina, Ningning and Giselle tickle one another’s sides, talk in silly voices and play with the straps on their leathery stage outfits. It’s mesmerizing to watch the four early-20-somethings be so, […]