Rookie group CORTIS, widely hailed as “Rookies of the Year,” has completely captured fans’ hearts through its year-end performances.
CORTIS (Martin, James, Juhun, Sunghyun, and Gunho) appeared on the 2025 SBS Gayo Daejeon on the 25th, where they performed “GO!”, the intro track from their debut album that has fueled a global dance challenge craze. The five members commanded the vast Gocheok Sky Dome with overwhelming stage presence and confident performance skills. Throughout the performance, loud audience sing-alongs echoed across the venue, highlighting the song’s rise as a global hit.
To celebrate the year-end season, the group also prepared a special cover stage exclusively for their fandom, COER. They reimagined “Jingle Bell Rock” in a hip-hop style, adding self-written rap verses by the members, further showcasing CORTIS’s distinct musical identity.
Leveraging year-end broadcasts and award-show stages, CORTIS has rapidly elevated its global profile. According to the latest data as of December 24, the group’s monthly listeners on Spotify—measured over the past 28 days—are approaching 8 million. Notably, the group has broken its own record for 13 consecutive days (December 12–24). Riding this momentum, cumulative streams for their debut album “COLOR OUTSIDE THE LINES” and the intro track “GO!” have surpassed 268.39 million and 93.44 million streams, respectively, placing them on the brink of yet another 100-million-stream milestone.
Social media metrics reflecting public popularity have also surged dramatically. On December 23, CORTIS’s official Instagram account surpassed 8 million followers. This marks an increase of 1 million followers in just 17 days after reaching 7 million on December 6. Industry observers attribute this rapid growth to the buzz generated by their performances and fan-cam videos from major award shows, including the 2025 MAMA Awards and the 10th Anniversary Asia Artist Awards 2025 (AAA 2025).
CORTIS is scheduled to appear on several major year-end programs, including Nippon TV’s “Announcement! Most Listened-to Songs of the Year ~ Annual Music Awards 2025 ~” on the 29th, “2025 Music Bank Global Festival in Japan” on the 30th, and the “MBC Gayo Daejejeon” on the 31st, signaling continued growth momentum.
Meanwhile, CORTIS has been selected as the headliner for the NBA Crossover Concert Series, set to take place on February 12 next year (local time) at the Los Angeles Convention Center. They are the first K-pop artists ever to headline the event. The group has also been named to Pandora’s “Artists to Watch 2026: The Pandora Ten” and featured on several “Best of K-pop of the Year” lists released by major international media outlets and global music platforms, further cementing their rising status in the global market.
Written by Mun Wan Sik
Translated by Lee So Yun
