Songs by BTS, Blackpink, Girls' Generation and NewJeans were listed on "The 250 Greatest Songs of the 21st Century So Far" playlist compiled not on popularity or airplay but "strictly musical brilliance and originality."

The list, unveiled on Wednesday, features 250 songs that the music magazine described as capturing "the full chaotic glory of 21st-century music, one song at a time" and shedding light on the versatility and global expansion of the music market.


"These songs range from Seoul to Spain to San Juan, from Vegas to Veracruz to Versailles, from Nigeria to Mexico to Colombia," wrote the magazine in the introduction. "There’s reggaeton and K-pop and drill and crunk, country and Afrobeats and emo and sirrieño [...] Wherever these songs come from, they remind you that we’re living in a time of wide-open possibilities and nonstop innovation."

The highest rank on the list by a K-pop song was BTS's "Spring Day" (2017) on No. 37, "a signature song for one of the century’s biggest pop acts" as dubbed by the magazine. Rolling Stone explained the song's authenticity in connection with the 2014 sinking of the Sewol Ferry and explained that the song's "sense of resilience and hope wrought from loss has a transcendent feel, soon to be mirrored in the band’s global takeover."

Although BTS never acknowledged that the song was related to the Sewol Ferry tragedy, Rolling Stone applauded the track for "the gathering power of their music like this one." The song, written by BTS members RM and Suga, is based on the two musicians' personal experience of being distanced from close friends but still waiting for the warm "Spring Day" of when they will reconcile.

Following BTS was Blackpink with its 2018 hit dance track "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" on No. 142.

"K-pop exploded in the U.S. during the 2010s, and few songs sound the way that insurgency felt as much as 'Ddu-Du Ddu-Du,'" wrote Rolling Stone. "Fueled by whirling trap snares and glitching synths, 'Ddu-Du Ddu-Du' showcases all four of the group’s members in thrilling fashion."

On No. 170 was Girls' Generation's "Gee" (2009), which was described as personifying a very Korean term referred to as "aegyo," which Rolling Stone described as "the use of cute, childlike mannerisms to charm others." The attribution to "Gee" focused more on the aesthetics than the quality or meaning of the music — rightly so for a K-pop song whose sole purpose is to be a catchy earworm to listeners.

"Not long after Girls’ Generation debuted in 2007, South Koreans gave them the honorific title of the Nation’s Girl Group," read the article. "Cute boys will come and go, but Girls’ Generation is forever!"

The youngest K-pop group to be named on the list was girl group NewJeans, whose 2022 hit dance track "Hype Boy" sat on No. 206 of the Rolling Stone list.

"A song so addictive that it enticed (what seemed like) the entire South Korean military to dance to it on TikTok, 'Hype Boy' celebrates youth culture and crushes with infectious charm," wrote the magazine. "The five teenagers harmonize beautifully, but 'Hype Boy' also showcases their individual voices in the barely three-minute song."

Also on the list are songs by pop stars Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Britney Spears and more. All of the songs are available on Spotify's playlist.

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]