{"id":16659,"date":"2019-10-08T15:53:38","date_gmt":"2019-10-08T11:53:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/?p=16659"},"modified":"2019-10-08T15:53:38","modified_gmt":"2019-10-08T11:53:38","slug":"saudi-arabia-and-the-united-arab-emirates-are-menas-top-k-pop-fanatics-spotify-reveals-all-the-streaming-trends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/saudi-arabia-and-the-united-arab-emirates-are-menas-top-k-pop-fanatics-spotify-reveals-all-the-streaming-trends\/","title":{"rendered":"Saudi Arabia And The United Arab Emirates Are MENA&#8217;s Top K-Pop Fanatics: Spotify Reveals All The Streaming Trends"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Bright, fast and fun; K-Pop has witnessed increased popularity globally over the past few years, creating a subculture that amassed enormous fandoms of teenagers and young adults. This year however, the K-pop phenomenon has reached a fever pitch: On Spotify, more than\u00a0 80.3million K-pop playlists and 2.4million hours were spent streaming K-pop music, with fan-favourite artists such as BTS leading the charge and experiencing incredible popularity in the Middle East.<\/p>\n<p>The music genre\u2019s fast beat, choreographed dance routines, colourfully appealing visuals and its unique storytelling\u00a0 have made it one of the most streamed genres in the world. These traits have undoubtedly captivated fans across the region who have well and truly jumped on the K-Pop bandwagon. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco, for instance, are the top countries in the MENA region listening to music of this fast tempo\u00a0 genre.<\/p>\n<p>With their highly anticipated concert in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia this coming October 11th, as part of the \u2018Love Yourself: Speak Yourself\u2019 tour, it is of no surprise to see that the South Korean pop sensation <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/3Nrfpe0tUJi4K4DXYWgMUX?si=y7uormEERz-41w4f2Gfpqg\">BTS<\/a> topped the most streamed artist within this music genre in both the KSA and UAE. The group\u2019s record-breaking collaboration with American pop-star <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/26VFTg2z8YR0cCuwLzESi2?si=kh1SwUvlQT6rCVf-Y2XcFQ\">Halsey<\/a>, \u2018<a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/5KawlOMHjWeUjQtnuRs22c?si=eQtj2taMSOysLBBrAaM-TA\">Boy With Luv\u2019 <\/a>has received worldwide acclaim since its release in April this year, and being the number one most streamed K-pop song in KSA and the UAE, proves that fans in the region love it just as much as the rest of the world.<\/p>\n<p>To give fans the feeling of knowing the band even better, global sensation BTS also recently launched mobile simulation application, \u2018BTS World\u2019 where players can play along and become the group\u2019s manager. The seven-member boy-band\u2019s collaboration with <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/25uiPmTg16RbhZWAqwLBy5?si=dFQWSvdERHCnXptpwOBF4A\">Charli XCX<\/a>, \u2018<a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/4c1WgUnHXq2LEncGHKgj1I?si=mOaYSqvYTO61h1LV7T8xcw\">Dream Glow (BTS World Original Soundtrack) &#8211; Pt. 1<\/a>\u2019 which was unveiled this summer alongside the release of the app, came in third in the list of most streamed K-pop tracks on Spotify in KSA and the UAE and it is the first of three original songs that will be featured in \u2018BTS World\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>BTS have certainly taken over the Spotify world by holding an impressive record of six songs in the top 10 list of most streamed K-pop tracks in the UAE and four out of ten in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n<p>The second most streamed artist within the k-pop genre in Saudi Arabia and the Emirates is the four member girl-group <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/41MozSoPIsD1dJM0CLPjZF?si=FokSN940S7mpAME57Xotyw\">BLACKPINK<\/a>. After their successful album debut <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/0AcFaK32ui9rF2ySEdXrv4?si=VfqtzxykQL-w1vbqUlXQrg\">\u2018Square One\u2019<\/a>, released during the summer of 2016, they continued breaking-through the music scene with the launch of their <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/album\/2Pz8VAMiGc9UW1rrbBRDuO?si=Zpa-qWIpSvaWeYHPA6nUFg\">Kill This Love<\/a> EP. As a testament to their continued success, the \u2018<a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/0M98PvIvx7vZ8LDpzMw1hB?si=Qx123sTSQCm4wJPJmZ1sog\">Kill This Love<\/a>\u2019 track is the second most listened to k-pop song in both countries. Furthermore, the girl-group\u2019s 2018 collaboration with megastar <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/6M2wZ9GZgrQXHCFfjv46we?si=E37O0L8KQ0CC1At1wSDh7Q\">Dua Lipa<\/a>, \u2018<a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/7jr3iPu4O4bTCVwLMbdU2i?si=GXiagRBBQES7uWlzhr-3pw\">Kiss and Make Up<\/a>\u2019 has been a success since its release and till today fans in the Middle East are enjoying the upbeat rhythm of this song where it reached the top five in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWitnessing the massive popularity and demand that Korean pop music enjoys in the region is just mind-blowing! Despite the fact that K-pop is coming from a different culture and is in a different language, its catchy and engaging style has managed to mesmerize hundreds of thousands of people from Saudi Arabia and the UAE!&#8221; says Claudius Boller, Managing Director for Middle East and Africa at Spotify. \u201cAt Spotify, with more than 3 billion playlists, we are here to let everyone discover new and different music cultures from around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>For your K-pop cravings<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>From the latest K-pop tracks to Korean OSTs (dramatic and highly addictive love songs), there\u2019s a suitable playlist within Spotify\u2019s dedicated hub. First introduced in 2015, the <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/genre\/kpop-page\">K-pop hub<\/a> is as addictive as the music itself, leading to a significant increase in streams and sharing of Korean music on Spotify.<\/p>\n<p>Find out more about Spotify\u2019s K-pop streaming trends in Saudi Arabia and the UAE below.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Most streamed K-pop artists in Saudi Arabia <\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/3Nrfpe0tUJi4K4DXYWgMUX?si=y7uormEERz-41w4f2Gfpqg\">BTS<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/41MozSoPIsD1dJM0CLPjZF?si=FokSN940S7mpAME57Xotyw\">BLACKPINK<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/7n2Ycct7Beij7Dj7meI4X0?si=eMbdIPtDQMCXCidszghZNg\">TWICE<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/5qRSs6mvI17zrkJpOHkCoM?si=G1CHV8cyTvq0gDzBJLTyYQ\">iKON<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/2AfmfGFbe0A0WsTYm0SDTx?si=ceIV563ERTCfz3x37BMnAQ\">(G)I-DLE<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/2auC28zjQyVTsiZKNgPRGs?si=IvxhxqR4QPSkFCEfDuM6Xg\">RM<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/2dIgFjalVxs4ThymZ67YCE?si=yi1laAI-RoqCJikmeEhIZw\">Stray Kids<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/4TnGh5PKbSjpYqpIdlW5nz?si=WjJHDNDKQY6-Ow5L36d13g\">Monsta X<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/3cjEqqelV9zb4BYE3qDQ4O?si=K7PZZLB0Tgy7sy0om_Z-Dw\">EXO<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/2PSJ6YriU7JsFucxACpU7Y?si=hH7L8izARNyy0BphdcS-Zg\">CHUNG HA<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>Most streamed K-pop artists in the United Arab Emirates\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/3Nrfpe0tUJi4K4DXYWgMUX?si=y7uormEERz-41w4f2Gfpqg\">BTS<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/41MozSoPIsD1dJM0CLPjZF?si=FokSN940S7mpAME57Xotyw\">BLACKPINK<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/7n2Ycct7Beij7Dj7meI4X0?si=eMbdIPtDQMCXCidszghZNg\">TWICE<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/5qRSs6mvI17zrkJpOHkCoM?si=G1CHV8cyTvq0gDzBJLTyYQ\">iKON<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/2dIgFjalVxs4ThymZ67YCE?si=yi1laAI-RoqCJikmeEhIZw\">Stray Kids<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/2auC28zjQyVTsiZKNgPRGs?si=IvxhxqR4QPSkFCEfDuM6Xg\">RM<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/1z4g3DjTBBZKhvAroFlhOM?si=aQS2WGE9S5a6mXhZkK8nmQ\">Red Velvet<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/6nfDaffa50mKtEOwR8g4df?si=AUJvOEV0T4yxlPxAacKJeg\">GOT7<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/7nqOGRxlXj7N2JYbgNEjYH?si=0rKYrMs0Q8WxiquM45zmYA\">SEVENTEEN<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/artist\/3cjEqqelV9zb4BYE3qDQ4O?si=K7PZZLB0Tgy7sy0om_Z-Dw\">EXO<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>Most streamed K-pop tracks in Saudi Arabia <\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>BTS, Halsey &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/5KawlOMHjWeUjQtnuRs22c?si=CGWS6HZRSIuXODWfpFVQeg\">Boy With Luv (feat. Halsey)<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BLACKPINK &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/0M98PvIvx7vZ8LDpzMw1hB?si=Qx123sTSQCm4wJPJmZ1sog\">Kill This Love<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BTS, Charli XCX &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/4c1WgUnHXq2LEncGHKgj1I?si=mOaYSqvYTO61h1LV7T8xcw\">Dream Glow (BTS World Original Soundtrack) &#8211; Pt. 1<\/a><\/li>\n<li>iKON &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/6qAzAmPBUpGrk7XADZHR5k?si=BOnTZEYCSzCevSrS_1FOHQ\">LOVE SCENARIO<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BLACKPINK, Dua Lipa &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/7jr3iPu4O4bTCVwLMbdU2i?si=GXiagRBBQES7uWlzhr-3pw\">Kiss and Make Up<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BTS &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/3aW0ds4A4tSQDIp75FqWTo?si=8oFcRUokRS-8W54LH1Gr6w\">FAKE LOVE<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BTS, Lil Nas X, RM &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/6woeVu3fVMflqen1t4N6pg?si=RwoD4AOsQ0y-6KhH1h0yJQ\">Old Town Road (feat. RM of BTS) &#8211; Seoul Town Road Remix<\/a><\/li>\n<li>TWICE &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/60zxdAqWtdDu0vYsbXViA7?si=eFdO0muySYqFKSb37XhvxA\">FANCY<\/a><\/li>\n<li>JENNIE &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/2XIaetAZTyR7oQfHh8DZ2B?si=6Cg_Ttw4RxOFuteZMf5ZNQ\">SOLO<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BLACKPINK &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/7b8YOVV5quZcSKEijDgyWB?si=q83z7pzeRnSwpxaKMbGt0Q\">DDU-DU DDU-DU<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>Most streamed K-pop tracks in the United Arab Emirates\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>BTS, Halsey &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/5KawlOMHjWeUjQtnuRs22c?si=CGWS6HZRSIuXODWfpFVQeg\">Boy With Luv (feat. Halsey)<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BLACKPINK &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/0M98PvIvx7vZ8LDpzMw1hB?si=Qx123sTSQCm4wJPJmZ1sog\">Kill This Love<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BTS, Charli XCX &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/4c1WgUnHXq2LEncGHKgj1I?si=mOaYSqvYTO61h1LV7T8xcw\">Dream Glow (BTS World Original Soundtrack) &#8211; Pt. 1<\/a><\/li>\n<li>iKON &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/6qAzAmPBUpGrk7XADZHR5k?si=BOnTZEYCSzCevSrS_1FOHQ\">LOVE SCENARIO<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BLACKPINK, Dua Lipa &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/7jr3iPu4O4bTCVwLMbdU2i?si=GXiagRBBQES7uWlzhr-3pw\">Kiss and Make Up<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BTS, Zara Larsson &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/5XkyZyKMdFungjDb9cUKc3?si=83XhcnDBRmKnSsMiYYhIqA\">A Brand New Day (BTS World Original Soundtrack) [Pt. 2]<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BTS &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/3aW0ds4A4tSQDIp75FqWTo?si=8oFcRUokRS-8W54LH1Gr6w\">FAKE LOVE<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BLACKPINK &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/7b8YOVV5quZcSKEijDgyWB?si=q83z7pzeRnSwpxaKMbGt0Q\">DDU-DU DDU-DU<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BTS &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/6KUE0HSSudAp9AOycaF6SH?si=2oYRIVxsTfSau8o0eDJPGQ\">Make It Right<\/a><\/li>\n<li>BTS &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/5EgYDyMDCi8X0zDydTF7Rb?si=ObZah7NDTGSAfx1AvTMPxQ\">Heartbeat (BTS World Original Soundtrack)<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-16660\" src=\"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/1-5.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"240\" height=\"175\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bright, fast and fun; K-Pop has witnessed increased popularity globally over the past few years, creating a subculture that amassed enormous fandoms of teenagers and young adults. This year however, the K-pop phenomenon has reached a fever pitch: On Spotify, more than\u00a0 80.3million K-pop playlists and 2.4million hours were spent streaming K-pop music, with fan-favourite [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16660,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16659","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16659","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16659"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16659\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16661,"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16659\/revisions\/16661"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16660"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16659"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16659"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.middleeastevents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16659"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}