BTS Hit 'Dynamite' Worth $1.4 billion to South Korea

Members of South Korean K-pop group BTS appear during a press conference in Seoul, South Korea, on April 17, 2019. (AP)
Members of South Korean K-pop group BTS appear during a press conference in Seoul, South Korea, on April 17, 2019. (AP)
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BTS Hit 'Dynamite' Worth $1.4 billion to South Korea

Members of South Korean K-pop group BTS appear during a press conference in Seoul, South Korea, on April 17, 2019. (AP)
Members of South Korean K-pop group BTS appear during a press conference in Seoul, South Korea, on April 17, 2019. (AP)

K-pop sensation BTS's US-chart-topping single "Dynamite" could generate more than $1.4 billion for the South Korean economy and thousands of new jobs in the country, a government study claimed Monday.

The trailblazing septet cemented their prominence in the world's biggest music market last week, when the all-English track debuted at number one in the Billboard Hot 100.

The feat had previously eluded rapper Psy, whose Gangnam Style was a global megahit but peaked at number two in the US for seven weeks in the fall of 2012.

The study by South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and a government tourism institute projected that the track would generate 1.7 trillion won ($1.43 billion) of economic activity and nearly 8,000 new jobs.

As well as direct sales of more than 400 billion won, it would lead to nearly 600 billion won of cosmetics sales and almost 180 billion won in food and drinks, the study found.

The estimates were drawn from analyzing the sales of the BTS's label Big Hit Entertainment, along with statistics from South Korea's Customs, the central Bank of Korea and Google Trends data.

It excluded foreign tourism in the face of tight travel restrictions imposed by Seoul over the coronavirus pandemic.

"If we include the projected tourism revenue down the road... we expect the economic impact to be stronger," the ministry said.

K-pop -- along with K-drama soap operas -- has been one of South Korea's most successful cultural exports and is a key component of the "Korean Wave" that has swept Asia and beyond over the last two decades.



Unreleased Beyonce Music Stolen From Car in Atlanta

FILE - Beyonce, left, accepts the Innovator Award during the iHeartRadio Music Awards, April 1, 2024, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)
FILE - Beyonce, left, accepts the Innovator Award during the iHeartRadio Music Awards, April 1, 2024, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)
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Unreleased Beyonce Music Stolen From Car in Atlanta

FILE - Beyonce, left, accepts the Innovator Award during the iHeartRadio Music Awards, April 1, 2024, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)
FILE - Beyonce, left, accepts the Innovator Award during the iHeartRadio Music Awards, April 1, 2024, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)

Computer drives containing unreleased music by US superstar Beyonce and plans related to her concerts were stolen last week in Atlanta, police said Monday, with a suspect still at large.

The items were stolen from a rental car used by Beyonce's choreographer and a dancer on July 8, two days before the pop icon kicked off the Atlanta leg of her "Cowboy Carter" tour, a police incident report said, according to AFP.

Choreographer Christopher Grant, 37, told police that he returned to the car to find its rear-window smashed and their luggage stolen.

Inside were multiple jump drives that "contained water marked music, some un-released music, footage plans for the show, and past and future set list (sic)," the report said.

Also missing were an Apple MacBook, headphones and several items of luxury clothing.

Police investigated an area where the MacBook and headphones had pinged their location, but the report did not mention any items being recovered.

Atlanta Police said in an online statement that a warrant had been issued for an unnamed suspect's arrest, but that the suspect remained at large.

The "Cowboy Carter" tour kicked off in April after the global superstar took home her first "Album of the Year" Grammy for the 2024 album.

The sweeping country-themed work saw Beyonce stake out musical territory in a different genre from much of her previous discography.

The ambitious, historically rooted album also aimed to elevate and showcase the work of other Black artists in country music, whose rich contributions the industry has repeatedly sidelined.

As her stadium tour to promote the album winds down, Beyonce ended her four-night stint in Atlanta on Monday, with two final performances set for late July in Las Vegas.