K-pop continues its viewer domination on YouTube. Blackpink’s new single, “How You Like That“, has now shattered YouTube’s 24-hour viewing record, outperforming second place BTS by more than 7 million views. It tallied more than 82 million views during the 24-hour span of the video’s release.
YouTube views in the first 24 hours are generally regarded as veritable indications of one’s rising popularity. However, last September YouTube had to drastically change their methodology after an Indian rapper Badshah allegedly inflated his views via paid advertisements. Since then YouTube Music Charts no longer counts paid ad views within the 24-hour count to better reflect fan engagement.
This isn’t Blackpink’s first time hitting this digital milestone. Blackpink’s last single “Kill This Love” also became YouTube’s most watched in 24 hours during the music video’s release. This accolade was previously held by American pop stars like Taylor Swift with “Me!” featuring Brendon Urie and Ariana Grande with “Thank U, Next.” Seven of the top 10 spots on YouTube’s 24-hour viewing record are now held by K-pop acts, namely BTS, Twice and Blackpink.
Blackpink is an all-girl group consisting of four members: Jennie, Rose, Lisa and Jisoo. They first rose to international prominence in mid-2018 with their single “Ddu-Du Ddu-Du” which became the most watched K-pop YouTube music video within 24 hours.
The girl group is managed by South Korea’s YG Entertainment. The music label is responsible for some of K-pop’s biggest acts like idol group Big Bang and Psy, the latter having the first YouTube video, Gangnam Style, to break a billion views. YG Entertainment is founded by Yang Hyun-Shik who rose to fame as a member of Seo Taiji and the Boys in the 1990s.