Stray Kids capitalizes on a market where streaming drives 69% of revenue.
Stray Kids Hit No. 2 on IFPI's 2025 Global Artist Chart
The South Korean group is the only K-pop act in the top ten, finishing ahead of Drake and The Weeknd
Highlights
- Stray Kids ranked No. 2 on the IFPI Global Artist Chart 2025, their highest position to date and the top spot among K-pop acts, trailing only Taylor Swift who won the title for a record sixth time.
- The group's 2025 output, including album Karma, mixtape Do It, and Japanese EP Hollow, along with their dominATE world tour, drove their climb on a chart that measures an artist's entire catalog across physical sales, downloads, and streams.
- Seventeen ranked No. 14 in 2025, their fifth consecutive appearance on the chart, a streak only they and BTS have achieved in the chart's history.
K-pop band Stray Kids ranked second on the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry's Global Artist Chart for 2025, the group's highest position to date and the top spot among K-pop acts this year. Only Taylor Swift, who claimed No. 1 for the fourth consecutive year and won the IFPI's Biggest-Selling Global Artist of the Year award for a record sixth time, ranked above them.
The Seoul-based group has now appeared on the IFPI chart four consecutive years, climbing from No. 7 when they debuted on the list in 2022, rising to No. 3 in 2023, slipping to No. 5 in 2024, and now reaching their peak at No. 2. They were the only K-pop act in the top ten this year. Seventeen, who had ranked above Stray Kids in both 2023 and 2024, came in at No. 14 in 2025, their fifth consecutive year on the chart, a streak only they and BTS have managed. BTS topped the chart in both 2020 and 2021.
The IFPI, a Britain-based record industry body, calculates its rankings by weighing physical sales, digital downloads, and streaming data across an artist's entire catalog, not just their most recent releases. That methodology rewards sustained international presence over a single year's output.
IFPI
How Stray Kids Climbed the Global Music Charts
Stray Kids had a strong 2025 on multiple fronts. The group released their fourth full-length Korean album Karma, the mixtape Do It, and their third Japanese EP Hollow last year. Karma broke domestic sales records and extended their streak of consecutive No. 1 debuts on the US Billboard 200 to eight releases, a record no other act has matched. Their World Tour dominATE drew stadium crowds across Asia, Europe, and North America, keeping the group in front of a global audience through much of the year.
Fellow K-pop band Seventeen, managed by Pledis Entertainment, also had a milestone year. The group released its fifth full-length album Happy Burstday in May 2025, timed to their 10th anniversary. Despite slipping from No. 3 in 2024 to No. 14 this year, their five consecutive appearances on the chart put them in rare company alongside BTS.
Taylor Swift's continued dominance at No. 1 is its own story. She has now won the IFPI's top artist award as many times as all other artists combined over the past ten years, a stretch that includes her 2025 album The Life of a Showgirl and the documentary of her Eras Tour, The End of an Era.
The group's next major event is a fan meeting, STAY in Our Little House, scheduled across four dates (March 28-29 and April 4-5, 2026) at Inspire Arena in Incheon. The final day of each weekend will also be streamed globally through Beyond LIVE.
Author
Diya Mukherjee is a Content Writer at Outlook Respawn with a postgraduate background in media. She has a passion for writing content and is enthusiastic about exploring cultures, literature, global affairs, and pop culture.
Related Articles
