Stray Kids (JYP Entertainment)

At the 2024 Billboard Music Awards held Thursday in Las Vegas, artists like Stray Kids, Jungkook and Seventeen highlighted K-pop’s global popularity through performances but fell short of winning outside of K-pop categories.

This year marked the second edition of K-pop-specific awards introduced by the BMAs, including Top Global K-pop Artist, Top K-pop Album and Top Global K-pop Song.

Stray Kids, a boy group under JYP Entertainment, won the Top Global K-pop Artist award, adding to their trophy from last year in the Top K-pop Album category. The group also delivered an electrifying performance of their hits “Chk Chk Boom” and “Jjam” during the event.

Jungkook (Big Hit Music)

Stray Kids were also nominated in major categories such as Top Duo/Group, where they competed against global acts like Blink-182, Coldplay and Linkin Park, with the award going to Mexican band Fuerza Regida.

Among other K-pop acts, BTS’ Jungkook stood out as the artist with the most nominations, including Top Song Sales Artist, Top Selling Song, Top Global K-pop Artist, Top K-pop Album and Top Global K-pop Song.

Seventeen (Pledis Entertainment)

Jungkook won in two categories -- Top K-pop Album with his solo debut “Golden” and Top Global K-pop Song for the lead track “Standing Next to You.” This marked his second consecutive win in the latter category, following last year’s triumph with his pre-release single “Seven.”

The Top Song Sales Artist award went to country rapper Shaboozey.

BTS, as a group, failed to secure a win in any nominated categories this year.

Seventeen, also present at the awards, performed its new track “Love, Money, Fame” and won in the Top K-pop Tour category.

“Some may find it disconcerting to see so many awards confined to the K-pop categories. However, the establishment of these divisions highlights the genre’s popularity and functions as a showcase for K-pop artists on a global platform. Performances by Stray Kids and Seventeen, among others, were a testament to that,” said music critic Kim Do-heon.

“The Billboard Music Awards don’t hold the same prestige as some other ceremonies, as winners are determined entirely by fan votes. While it’s not the most authoritative awards show, it offers a valuable stage for artists to engage with fans worldwide,” Kim said.

Following Thursday's awards, Billboard released their year-end charts Friday, with Stray Kids recognized as the best K-pop group of 2024. The group made history by placing highest-ever for a K-pop act at No. 73 on Billboard’s Top Artist chart.

On the Billboard 200 annual chart, the band’s albums “Rock-Star” and “Ate” claimed the No. 123 and No. 139, respectively. In the Top Album Sales category, “Rock-Star” secured No. 4 and “Ate” No. 9, both being the highest-charting Korean albums of the year.