Artists under Big Hit Music, spearheaded by the group BTS, are making strong moves in the U.S. market.
At the center of this sensation is BTS. BTS has entered the second chapter of their "BTS WORLD TOUR 'ARIRANG'" North American tour. Their two-night concert held on August 1–2 (local time) at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey drew a crowd of approximately 157,000 concertgoers. Previously, the first leg of their North American tour—held in Tampa, El Paso, Stanford, and Las Vegas in the U.S., as well as Mexico City in Mexico—drew about 840,000 attendees.
BTS has generated such massive economic impact that a new term, "BTSnomics," has been coined.
Citing remarks by Michael Mariano, head of economic development at Tourism Economics, prominent British newspaper The Guardian projected that the ripple effect of the New Jersey concert would be comparable to or even exceed that of the "2026 FIFA World Cup™." The group is evaluated as having established themselves as artists whose influence goes beyond touching audiences through music and performances to moving entire cities.
"BTS THE CITY ARIRANG," held in Las Vegas and New York, also received rave reviews from citizens and fans. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority stated, "Aside from the Super Bowl and Formula 1, BTS is the first act to trigger a 'city-wide activation' where the entire city moved for a single artist."
Following BTS, Tomorrow X Together (TXT) is also expanding its presence. Yeonjun, who released his second mini-album "NO LABELS: PART 02" last July, is receiving a steady stream of casting calls.
On the 5th, Yeonjun appeared on ABC's flagship morning news program "Good Morning America" for its "Summer Concert Series." He is the second K-pop solo artist in history to appear on the show, following BTS member Jung Kook. In addition, he became the first Korean artist to be included in the lineup for "Z100's Summer Bash Presented By Wells Fargo," an outdoor concert hosted by Z100, a radio station operated by iHeartMedia.
Cortis, who has been debuted for less than a year, is also drawing keen attention for their performance. Their identity as a "young creator crew" and their uniquely textured sound are evaluated as satisfying the needs of music fans starved for freshness. They were the only K-pop boy group to make Billboard's "21 Under 21" list announced last month.
Cortis is also making a mark through live performances. On the 1st of this month, they led mass sing-alongs with a crowd of about 50,000 at the major U.S. music festival "Lollapalooza Chicago." On the 4th, they kicked off their first North American tour in Toronto, Canada. Following Toronto, they are scheduled to visit New York, Atlanta, Irving, Los Angeles, and San Francisco in succession. The "2026 CORTIS TOUR <PUT YOUR PHONE DOWN>" spans 14 shows across 9 cities in South Korea, Japan, and North America, with all seats selling out early.
(Reported by Kang Kyung-yoon, SBS C&M)
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