Original publication date: March 28, 2025.
For eight months, Jimin’s solo single “Who” camped inside the Billboard Hot 100—an unprecedented feat for an Asian native soloist. Unlike other acts, Jimin didn’t have the legacy go-to-western-market tools utilized to make Western market penetration easier in his arsenal. He has no major U.S. label, no radio push, and no high-profile Western features. Jimin stayed afloat for 33 weeks with the most elite of forces even billion-dollar labels can’t manufacture, his artistry and his fans.
‘Who’ is the longest-charting solo song by a Korean and Asian native soloist. Given that all other tracks by Asian Native Acts that are demonstrating some endurance are collaborations with giant musical acts, Who will most likely keep the more significant record – the longest charting SOLO song by an Asian native act in Billboard Hot 100.
Released while Jimin was serving in the South Korean military, the track had no active promotion aside from a single pre-recorded appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
ONE-MAN CAVALRY
Western Collaboration is a common marketing tactic as it helps an artist expand to a different to a larger audience. And there is nothing wrong with that but even that Jimin passed on.
In contrast, BLACKPINK’s Rosé partnered with Bruno Mars for ‘APT.’ Mars fielded in 35 songs in Billboard hot 100, 9 of which are number hits and accumulated more than 750 weeks inside the chart. Outside of ‘APT’, the only other song in Rose’s first album was toxic till the end for a week at #90.
Jennie saw her most successful Hot 100 success via a collaboration with The Weekend with ‘One Of The Girls’. The Weeknd is an even bigger chart monster with 117 songs inside billboard hot 100 and an accumulated 1,128 weeks.
But Jimin broke records solo—twice. First with ‘Like Crazy,’ a foreign-language track that debuted at No. 1 on the Hot 100, it broke a 62-year drought for an Asian Soloist in the summit but also the only the second foreign language song to debut at the top. The first was ‘Life Goes On’ by his own group BTS.
Now it’s ‘Who,’ an English song developed from Jimin’s own idea and direction.
AN UNLIKELY CHAMPION IN A RIGGED ARENA
The Billboard Hot 100 is a reflection not just of streaming, but of radio and sales. And radio, as insiders know, is deeply influenced by music executives and label power. While technically illegal, the practice of payola continues in shadowy forms—executives influencing rotations, boosting favored tracks, and shutting out independents.
Benny Blanco once revealed how a song could be pushed to No. 1 with a single phone call.
And yet, Billboard has spent all its energy limiting the influence of fans on the chart instead of executives’. These multi-million-dollar labels have bulldozed everything from independent artists to entire cultural movements.
Columbia executive Ron Perry reportedly had to personally meet with the station managers of radio stations to get BTS’s “Dynamite” on the air. Jimin’s Who got nothing but two weeks of radio support after a month from its release before relying entirely on streaming to stay afloat. ‘Who’ relied solely on the organic support of real listeners. Just one pre-recorded U.S. performance, zero paid playlisting and yet it defied gravity.
So many artists have spoken about how a label could easily push a song to radio with a single phone call. Yet, Billboard has spent all its energy limiting the influence of fans on the chart instead of executives’.
APEX ARTISTRY
Jimin’s dominance didn’t stop at U.S. borders:
- 28 weeks on the UK Official Singles Chart (longest for an Asian native act post-reform)
- 34 weeks on Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S.
- 33 weeks on Billboard Streaming Songs
- 39 weeks on the Billboard Artist 100
- His album *Muse* has charted for 34 weeks on Billboard 200 and World Albums
He also became the first Asian native soloist to top the Billboard Artist 100—another milestone ignored by the broader industry.
With ‘Who,’ Jimin also became the only artist in Billboard history to simultaneously hold the longest-charting Hot 100 song as both a soloist and as part of a group—tying BTS’s ‘Dynamite.’
SOLIVAGANT JOURNEY
By the time ‘Who’ dropped, Jimin was already serving in the military. He wasn’t promoted. His only so-called tactic was remixes but given that all other acts release the same amount or more remixes, the playing field is even. No PR campaign. No interviews. No late-night circuit. Just one Fallon performance—recorded in advance.
Yet ‘Who’ broke records. It outlasted hits with full-label support. Because what Jimin has is something the industry can’t manufacture: loyalty.
‘Who’ represents more than just a record-breaking single. It’s a cultural shift. A fan-led uprising in a business dominated by conglomerates.
Jimin’s chart success isn’t just impressive—it’s disruptive. It proves that the traditional model of radio deals, playlist manipulation, and promotional spending isn’t the only path to the top.
Streaming services like Spotify have started charging to “boost” songs. Illusion of objectivity be damned. Billboard continues to adjust its formula to suit label-favored artists. Meanwhile, Jimin—and BTS—remain largely untouched by these tactics.
The industry has noticed. And they’re uncomfortable.
THE REBEL AMONG REBELS
He was never supposed to be the one.
Jimin, the soft-spoken outlier with the crescent eye smile, came in with the shortest training period, nearly cut from the lineup, quietly carrying the least writing credits in a group full of lyrical giants. He was the dancer, the angelic voice, the gentle soul—not the threat. Not the rebel.
But as they say, it’s always the quiet ones.
And Jimin didn’t just flip the script—he rewrote the whole damn thing.
From the background to the blueprint, he went from barely having a line to owning every line. Concept. Direction. Production. Sound. Vision.
Zero to 200 in a blink.
He became the alpha and the omega of his own artistry—without noise, without warning, and without anyone fully understanding how he did it. That’s what makes him dangerous. That’s what makes him fascinating. You never see it coming, and when it hits, you’re left wondering how he pulled it off—and why it hits so hard.
The truth is, someone else will eventually break his records. Someone will chart longer, stream bigger, top higher.
But they’ll never be first.
They’ll never be the one who did it quietly, unexpectedly, with no blueprint and no handouts. They’ll never be the one who planted their flag on unfamiliar ground and raised it on his own.
That honor belongs to Jimin.
The unlikely genius.
The rebel among rebels.
The soft smile that set the world on fire.
