BTS Successors Emerge as Stray Kids Records $185M Tour

Compared to the historic multi-million album benchmarks set by BTS over the past decade, Stray Kids, Seventeen, and Ateez are demonstrating extraordinary commercial momentum across global charts. According to Hankyoreh : English Edition, Stray Kids earned $185.7 million from 31 concerts in 2025, drawing 1.3 million attendees to secure the highest tour revenue among all K-pop acts.

Stray Kids, which debuted under JYP Entertainment in 2018, ranked second on the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry global artist chart behind Taylor Swift. The group's studio album "Karma" sold 3.49 million copies to claim the second position on the global album sales chart. On Aug. 7, the group released its mini album "This & That," which topped the Billboard 200 on the Aug. 22 chart to extend its streak to nine consecutive No. 1 albums, while the title track entered the Hot 100 at No. 38.

In-house production led by Bang Chan, Changbin, and Han under the name 3Racha powers the eight-member act, which is scheduled to perform at Japan National Stadium on Aug. 29 to 30. Meanwhile, Seventeen from Pledis Entertainment achieved 2.63 million sales in 2025 with its fifth studio album "Happy Burstday," ranking as the third-best-selling album globally on the IFPI chart. Seventeen's world tour generated $142.4 million across 964,000 attendees, sustained by Woozi's production and subunits such as V8, formed by members The8 and Vernon, who released an eponymous mini album in June.

KQ Entertainment's Ateez represents an independent agency success story, grossing $70 million from 400,000 concert attendees during its 2025 tour after becoming the first K-pop boy group to perform at Coachella in 2024. Ateez also claimed its third Billboard 200 No. 1 in June with "Golden Hour: Part. 5."

With emerging acts Riize and rookie team Cortis expanding their audience reach, the race to claim international market supremacy remains intensely competitive. These major acts will continue to test their commercial endurance as their international stadium tours and major album releases roll out through the remainder of the year.