K-pop sensation Stray Kids has once again made music history by securing their seventh No. 1 position on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart with their latest album 'Karma.' The achievement marks another milestone for the South Korean boy group, which continues to dominate the American music charts with unprecedented consistency.
According to Billboard's chart preview released on Sunday, 'Karma' debuted at the top of the Billboard 200 this week, successfully dethroning Morgan Wallen's 'I'm the Problem' from the No. 1 spot. This latest victory represents the group's seventh chart-topper, following an impressive streak that includes 'Oddinary' and 'Maxident' in 2022, '5-Star' and 'Rock-Star' in 2023, and 'Ate' and 'Hop' in 2024.
With this remarkable achievement, Stray Kids has officially surpassed BTS for the most No. 1 albums among K-pop acts on the Billboard 200. The group has also cemented their place in Billboard history as the only act ever to see all seven of their albums debut at No. 1 on the prestigious chart, a feat that no other artist has accomplished in the chart's 69-year history.
Billboard emphasized the historic nature of this accomplishment, stating that when 'Hop' debuted at the top last year, Stray Kids became the first act to debut at No. 1 with their first six entries in the chart's nearly seven-decade history. With 'Karma's' arrival at the summit, they have extended that unprecedented record even further.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the United States using a comprehensive measurement system called equivalent album units. This metric combines physical album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA), and streaming equivalent albums (SEA) to provide a complete picture of an album's popularity across all consumption methods.
Stray Kids' 'Karma' earned an impressive total of 313,000 equivalent album units during its debut week. The breakdown of these numbers reveals the strong physical sales power of the group, with 296,000 units coming from traditional album sales—the highest physical sales figure in the group's career to date. The remaining units were comprised of 16,000 streaming equivalent albums and 1,000 track equivalent albums, demonstrating the group's broad appeal across different listening formats.
This latest success reinforces Stray Kids' position as one of the most commercially successful K-pop acts in the United States, proving their ability to consistently connect with American audiences and maintain their momentum in an increasingly competitive music landscape.
