Representative image for the ‘First-Half 2026 Wrap-Up’ released on the 9th via Data Lab, the music data analysis content from Melon. From left: the group IVE, AKMU, RESCENE. Provided by Melon
Melon released its first-half 2026 chart wrap-up. IVE and AKMU each held No. 1 on the weekly chart for six weeks, tying for the top spot.
On the 9th, the music platform Melon under Kakao Entertainment announced key records and trends of the Melon Chart for the first half of 2026 via Data Lab, its music data analysis content.
In Melon data, the artists who kept No. 1 on the weekly chart the longest in the first half were IVE and AKMU. IVE stayed at the top for six weeks with the double title track ‘BANG BANG’ from its second full-length album, and AKMU did so for six weeks with two tracks from its fourth full-length album, ‘Joy, Sorrow, Beautiful Heart’ and ‘Paradise of Rumors’. Among the artists who reached No. 1 on the weekly chart, the only boy group was CORTIS, and the current No. 1 is I.O.I, which resumed activities after 10 years.
Among 2026 releases, the song that spent the longest at No. 1 on the daily chart was the IVE track ‘BANG BANG’ at 40 days. The I.O.I track ‘Suddenly’ followed with 33 days as of June 30. AKMU placed two songs at No. 1 on the daily chart, spending a total of 41 days at the top as a single artist. The song that received the most ‘Likes’ from users in the first half was also the AKMU song ‘Joy, Sorrow, Beautiful Heart’ (84,891), followed by ‘Paradise of Rumors’ (82,642).
The group named by Melon Data Lab as the representative artist of the first half is RESCENE. The title track ‘LOVE ATTACK’ from its first mini album, released in August 2024, climbed to No. 5 on Melon TOP100 as of June 30 after two rounds of resurgence. The song first entered the daily chart in September 2024 at No. 904, then kept rising. As of the 8th, it reached No. 1.
This year’s resurgence began when ‘Geoje Yaho’ was mentioned on member Woni’s YouTube channel, which launched in February. From mid-May, the related meme shifted attention to the group and the song itself, increasing streams.
‘LOVE ATTACK’ re-entered the daily chart on May 27 at No. 98 after 338 days, rose to No. 9 within two weeks, and peaked at No. 5 on the daily chart.
