BTS’s V Achieves Milestone: ‘Layover’ Becomes First K-pop Solo Album with All Tracks Surpassing 100 Million Streams on Spotify
BTS member V’s first solo album, ‘Layover,’ has set a new record. Every track on the album has surpassed 100 million streams on Spotify, making V the first K-pop solo artist to achieve this milestone.
Record-Breaking Streams on Spotify
As of May 24th, the ‘Slow Dancing (Piano Ver.)’ track from V’s debut solo album ‘Layover’ has recorded 100.47 million streams on Spotify. This achievement makes ‘Layover’ the first K-pop solo artist album to have all its tracks surpass 100 million streams, reaching this feat in just 258 days since its release, the shortest time for any K-pop album.
‘Layover’ includes six tracks in total: the title track ‘Slow Dancing,’ along with ‘Rainy Days,’ ‘Blue,’ ‘Love Me Again,’ ‘For Us,’ and the bonus track ‘Slow Dancing (Piano Ver.).’
As of May 25th, the streaming numbers on Spotify for the album’s tracks are as follows: ‘Love Me Again’ at 586 million, ‘Slow Dancing’ at 360 million, ‘Rainy Days’ at 247.46 million, ‘For Us’ at 103.3 million, and ‘Blue’ at 100.75 million.
Critical Acclaim and International Recognition
Based on pop R&B genres, ‘Layover’ maximizes V’s unique sensibility, clearly showcasing his distinct style as a solo artist rather than as a member of a group. Critics have praised the album for its delicate musical expression that highlights V’s personal artistry.
The album has received international acclaim, being selected as one of the ’30 Best Albums of 2023′ by the renowned British magazine TimeOut, which lauded it as a masterpiece. It also ranked second in Billboard’s ’25 Best K-pop Albums of 2023,’ with Billboard noting the significant distinction between this album and BTS’s other works, emphasizing V’s individual star quality.
Furthermore, at the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards, an event hosted by the American online radio broadcaster iHeartRadio to honor the most played artists and songs of the year, ‘Layover’ was named ‘Favorite Debut Album.’ Rolling Stone also selected ‘Rainy Days’ from ‘Layover’ as one of the ‘100 Best Songs of 2023,’ ranking it the highest among K-pop solo tracks at 58th place.
