Four K-pop idol acts have made the Global Artist Chart's top 10 list as announced on Feb. 21 by the U.K.-based International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) on its official website. (IFPI's official website)

By Yoon Seungjin

Four K-pop idol acts are among the top 10 on the annual Global Artist Chart of the U.K.-based International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI).

The list released on Feb. 21 saw SEVENTEEN finish at No. 2 behind chart topper Taylor Swift. Stray Kids was third, TOMORROW X TOGETHER (aka TXT) seventh and NewJeans eighth.

Debuting on the chart in 2021 at No. 9, SEVENTEEN continued its steady climb to finish No. 2 last year, the highest ranking for any K-pop act. The group's album sales last year exceeded 16 million units, proving the boy band's growing global popularity.

Stray Kids stood out among fourth-generation K-pop boy bands last year, claiming No. 3. The group's albums "5-Star" and "Rock-Star" last year each hit No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 main albums chart.

TXT at No. 7 and NewJeans at No. 8 also made their debuts on the chart. Both topped the Billboard 200 last year, with TXT doing so with its fifth EP "The Name Chapter: Temptation" and NewJeans with its second EP "Get Up."

IFPI said, "K-Pop stars SEVENTEEN and Stray Kids placed second and third respectively in the chart in a record year for Korean artists. IVE and NCT Dream also made their first appearances in the IFPI Global Artist Chart Top 20, at #12 and #15 respectively."

The IFPI's Global Artist Chart is considered an objective ranking of popularity of artists during a calendar year based on physical album sales, digital music downloads and audio and video streams.

scf2979@korea.kr