BTS Earns Highest-Charting & First Top 40 Hot 100 Hit for a K-Pop Group With 'MIC Drop'

The song, featuring Desiigner, debuts at No. 28, besting BTS' first Hot 100 entry, the No. 67-peaking "DNA."

BTS breaks its own record for the highest-charting entry on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart for a K-pop group, as "MIC Drop," featuring Desiigner (and remixed by Steve Aoki), debuts at No. 28 (on the chart dated Dec. 16). It marks the K-pop kings' first top 40 Hot 100 entry and the first for any K-pop group.

The track claims the honor of highest-charting Hot 100 hit by a K-pop group from BTS' first (and only other) Hot 100 entry, "DNA," which reached No. 67 on the chart dated Oct. 14.

The seven-member South Korean boy band's new mostly Korean language single launches with 9.8 million first-week U.S. streams and 45,000 downloads sold, according to Nielsen Music. (The Hot 100 blends streaming, sales and radio airplay data.)

On the all-genre Digital Song Sales chart, "MIC Drop" enters at No. 4, besting the No. 37 peak of "DNA" for BTS' best rank on the survey. On Streaming Songs, "MIC Drop" debuts at No. 47. ("DNA" reached No. 38 on the streaming survey.)

Much more so than with "DNA," "MIC Drop" is receiving notable early play at pop radio, led by 53 plays in the week ending Dec. 3 on KJYO Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, which led the way in inroad-building U.S. play for "DNA" (as program director JJ Ryan discussed on the Billboard Chart Beat Podcast). "MIC Drop" was KJYO's 11th-most-played song in the week ending Dec. 3. XHTZ and KHTS, both in San Diego, follow with 31 and 24 plays for the song, respectively, in the tracking week.

Only one other K-pop act has charted higher than BTS on the Hot 100: South Korean rapper/singer PSY, led by his smash "Gangnam Style," which peaked at No. 2 for seven weeks in 2012. He added the No. 5 hit "Gentleman" in 2013 and the No. 26-peaking "Hangover" in 2014.

Helping spark first-week chart action for "MIC Drop," BTS performed the song on The Ellen DeGeneres Show Nov. 27. The act made its U.S. live-performance debut (with "DNA") on the American Music Awards Nov. 19.

K-pop fun fact: BTS now ties CL as the K-pop act with the second-most Hot 100 entries on the Hot 100, after PSY, the leader with four. CL charted as featured on PSY's "Daddy" (No. 97, 2015) and with her own "Lifted" (No. 94, 2016). Additionally, Wonder Girls have charted one song ("Nobody"; No. 76, 2009). 

BTS' new Hot 100 achievement follows prior chart firsts for the group. On the Billboard 200 dated Oct. 7, BTS earned the first-ever top 10 for a K-pop act, when its Love Yourself: Her debuted at No. 7 (its peak to date).

All Dec. 16-dated charts, including the Hot 100 and Billboard 200, will update tomorrow (Dec. 5) on Billboard.com.

Additional reporting by Jeff Benjamin