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K-Pop Group Blackpink Breaks YouTube Record For Biggest Video Premiere

This article is more than 3 years old.
Updated Jun 26, 2020, 04:50pm EDT

TOPLINE

K-pop girl group Blackpink broke YouTube’s record for the most-viewed music video premiere of all time with their new single “How You Like That.”

KEY FACTS

1.65 million people watched the music video at the time it was published on Friday, shattering records (per BBC); now it has been viewed nearly 50 million times.

The single is the group’s first in a year (though they collaborated with Lady Gaga on “Sour Candy,” released last month).

The YouTube record was previously held by fellow K-pop group BTS for their February single “On,” whose premiere attracted 1.54 million viewers; the ivideo now has over 204 million views.

“How You Like That”  vacillates between English and Korean lyrics and the video features the pop quartet in elaborate costumes, settings and dance routines. 

“This might sound grand, but we wanted to give a hopeful message,” Blackpink said in an email to Time about the new single.

Blackpink holds a number of superlatives: YouTube’s most subscribed-to music group, highest-grossing tour by a female K-pop group and first K-pop group to hit a billion YouTube views, according to Time


Crucial Quote

“In whatever dark times or situations we encounter, we want everyone to have the strength and confidence to be able to rise up again,” Blackpink stated in an email to Time


Tangent

K-pop stans are not only showing up en masse for music video premieres, but also in support of Black Lives Matter and liberal political causes. They drowned out racists by flooding #WhiteLivesMatter hashtag with content featuring K-pop idols in allyship with the Black Lives Matter movement. They also allegedly registered for Trump’s Tulsa rally to ensure empty seats in the arena, which Rep, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) applauded


Further Reading

BLACKPINK on the Message of New Single 'How You Like That' (Time)

Trump Campaign Claims ‘Tens Of Thousands’ Of TikTokers And K-Pop Stans Used ‘Bogus Numbers’ To Register For Tulsa Rally (Forbes)

K-Pop Fans Drown Out Racists By Co-Opting #WhiteLivesMatter On Twitter And Instagram (Forbes)

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