BTS has achieved another big success in the UK since returning from their military service. Their song “Arirang” is now officially certified Gold, adding to their long list of records in the UK. This achievement comes after a strong few months for the album. It started at No. 1 on the UK charts and remained popular for a long time.
How BTS’s ARIRANG Earned Its UK Gold Certification
Arirang became popular right after it was released on March 20. Big Hit Music said the album sold 3.98 million copies on its first day, and later reports estimated it at more than 10 million equivalent sales worldwide with 2.5 billion streams within the year. In the UK, it opened at No. 1, held at No. 5 on the Official Albums Chart for four straight weeks, and also reached the top 3 on the UK Vinyl Albums Chart.
This makes the Gold certification feel like a huge success. Since reuniting after military service, BTS has quickly returned to the top of the charts in major countries. In the UK specifically, their popularity has remained strong. A big part of the album’s success comes from the music itself. ARIRANG blends traditional Korean elements, including haegeum textures, with polished house, pop, and stadium-scale production. This unique blend gave their comeback a strong sense of style, rather than just relying on being popular
Is this the first country to gold-certify their album?
. Beyond its recent Gold certification in the United Kingdom, the album has already achieved significant milestones across major international markets at record-breaking speeds.
In France, ARIRANG reached Platinum status in just over a month after being certified Gold only six days post-release, marking the group’s fourth Platinum-certified album in the region. Meanwhile, in Japan, the album’s performance has been even more explosive; it earned a “Triple Platinum” certification from the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) after surpassing 750,000 shipments in 11 days.
