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The world had impatiently awaited the release of Jungkook's GOLDEN, his debut solo album. The set is already among the most prominent debuts ever, not just in his own nation but also internationally. After much anticipation, Jungkook, the seventh and last member of the juggernaut K-pop boy group BTS, finally made his official solo debut on November 3, 2023.
GOLDEN is an all-English album featuring Western musicians Jack Harlow, Major Lazer, Latto, and DJ Snake, setting it apart from the releases of his BTS comrades. It's an obvious attempt to target the Western market, maybe in an attempt to emulate BTS' two English-language hits, Dynamite and Butter, which peaked at number one.
The B-sides of GOLDEN are all enjoyable pop tunes individually, but when listened to concurrently, they transport the listener on a harmonious path. Driving inspiration from pop singers like Justin Timberlake, Usher, Justin Bieber, and Ed Sheeran's trademark sounds to create songs like Yes or No and Somebody, several of the album's tunes seem like they were meticulously created to be ideal for radio play.
Needless to say, the debut solo album of BTS' youngest member went on to dominate the music world and own 2023.
From reigning at #1 on Billboard charts to bagging all the prestigious awards—Jungkook claimed 2023 as his own
1) Dominating Billboard charts for weeks
Aptly enough, Jungkook's pre-release song Seven, featuring Latto, released on July 14, 2023, spends its whole run at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts (dated September 9). When the song originally came out, it shot to the top of the charts for a BTS soloist. The track is part of his debut solo album GOLDEN and reigned at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for seven consecutive weeks.
Additionally, his second pre-release track, 3D (Feat. Jack Harlow), from his solo album GOLDEN topped Billboard's Digital Song Sales chart for two weeks. On the other hand, Seven has spent 13 weeks at the top of both charts. It held steady at No. 8 on the Global 200 chart and No. 3 on the Global Excl. US chart as of October 19.
3D, the album's first single and opener, is a bare-bones pop R&B song that expresses the pain of having a partisan desire for someone who is unachievable and contains two rap verses by Jack Harlow. The number has a sophisticated melody that defines the pace for the remainder of the album by virtue of Jungkook's deft use of a soft soprano and breathy vocals.
2) Winning at the BBMA, VMAs, and EMAs 2023
On September 12, 2023, BTS’ Jungkook made history by being the first male Korean soloist to win the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) in the 'Song of Summer' category with his brand-new debut song, Seven (feat. Latto). Then, on November 6, 2023, the singer became the most honored Korean solo artist in the history of the MTV Europe Music Awards (EMAs).
At the 2023 MTV EMAs, the Standing Next to You singer took home the Best K-Pop and Best Song with Seven (feat. Latto) awards on November 6, 2023, KST. In the course of the decade, he established himself as the first and only solo K-pop singer to be awarded a Billboard Music Award in this decade. The artist won the 2023 Billboard Music Award for "Top Global K-pop Song."
It's important to remember that BTS Jungkook is the second K-pop solo artist to be honored with a Billboard Music Award (BBMA) after PSY, who took home the trophy for 'Top Streaming Song' in 2013 with his composition Gangnam Style.
3) Shattering Spotify charts and historic records
Over the course of all the credits given to him, BTS' Jungkook reached the remarkable milestone of 4 billion Spotify plays. His enviable position as the first K-pop soloist to achieve such unprecedented streaming heights is cemented by this revolutionary triumph. The GOLDEN crooner is a music superstar who has had a huge impact on molding the industry and is recognized for being the first soloist from the K-pop arena to accomplish this monumental feat.
In addition, Spotify users streamed BTS' Jungkook solo tune Seven for one billion listens on October 30, 2023. The hit song achieved this new benchmark in just 108 days, making it the fastest song to do so.
The previous record held by Miley Cyrus's song Flowers, which arrived at the same spot in 112 days, was surpassed by the BTS maknae. Importantly, with this accomplishment, Jungkook became the first artist in the world and the first in K-pop to reach this milestone.
4) Riding high on the iTunes Charts
The release of BTS Jungkook's solo record, which has eleven tracks, swiftly secured eight out of ten slots on the US iTunes Chart within three hours after its debut, which was a first for iTunes on November 3. Previously, with his second solo track, 3D (feat. Jack Harlow), the BTS member topped the iTunes Top Songs lists in 100 different countries, according to HYBE.
Following its release on Friday, the single 3D (feat. Jack Harlow) shot to the top of the iTunes charts in several nations, including the US, UK, Japan, Canada, and Italy. In many countries, both the instrumental and alternative versions of 3D peaked at No. 2 and No. 3 on iTunes' Top Songs rankings.
Previously, within one hour and six minutes after the song's debut, Jungkook's solo single Seven (feat. Latto) made him the fastest K-pop artist to top US iTunes, which is wonderful news for fans of BTS. The single that belongs to his solo album GOLDEN was released on July 14, as a debut solo track. Furthermore, since the musician broke the record for the song Take Two by his own group, BTS, this accomplishment is even more extraordinary.
The album's third hit and title tune, Standing Next to You, is unquestionably its crowning achievement and ranks at #28 on the iTunes US chart even after more than a month of its release. The funky, disco-pop song from the 1980s about being capable of getting through anything with a partner showcases the singer's amazing vocal range before descending into a jazzy outro.
5) Setting unprecedented records in his own country
Being the first-ever Korean standalone artist to have an enormous capture on the Hanteo chart was a tremendous accomplishment for BTS Jungkook. During the first week of his solo album launch, the vocalist of GOLDEN sold over 2.4 million album copies (2,438,483).
Layover, the debut album by BTS' Kim Taehyung, aka V, which sold over 1.6 million (1,672,138) copies on the day of launch and over 2.1 million (2,101,974) copies in its first week, had formerly held this record.
It is pertinent to bear in mind that on November 3, 2023, Jungkook achieved this goal and joined his bandmates. Aside from the golden maknae, the only other K-pop solo musicians to sell more than a million album copies on Hanteo on the debut day of their individual release debuts were BTS members Jimin (FACE), V, aka Taehyung (LAYOVER), and SUGA, aka Min Yoongi (D-DAY).
6) Rewriting Guinness World Records one at a time
With his latest achievement on the official MENA charts, BTS member Jungkook made a distinction by being the first musician to have multiple No. 1 smashes on his solo tracks. His hit songs Seven, 3D, and Standing Next to You all contributed to his reaching this incredible success in terms of Guinness World Records.
The noteworthy accomplishments of 2023 were published by Guinness World Records on December 13, 2023. The song Seven by Jungkook became the most streamed music (male) on Spotify in a single week. The BTS maknae has officially achieved a new benchmark for the "Fastest Time to Reach 1 Billion Streams" on Spotify with his solo tune Seven, according to Guinness World Records.
With his most recent victory, Jungkook extended his already formidable record count, bringing his total number of Guinness World Records to five. Furthermore, the Standing Next To You singer was officially inducted into the Guinness World Records in May 2023 for being the fastest K-pop solo artist to cross 1 billion Spotify streams across all credits.
With little over two months since the release of his debut solo album, the 26-year-old BTS vocalist has accomplished a great deal as a solo artist apart from his group. Jungkook is currently serving his mandatory military enlistment and will return in late 2025 along with his other bandmates.
