BTS member V (Kim Taehyung) continues to impress with his hit song Friends, which has been selected as one of the 'Best K-Pop of 2024' by both Amazon Music and Apple Music.

On November 22, Friends was added to Amazon Music's prestigious 'Best of 2024 K-Pop' playlist, featuring 50 standout songs of the year.

Just days earlier, on November 19, Friends was also included in Apple Music's 'BEST of 2024 K-Pop World' playlist.

To top it off, on November 23, Friends won the 'Best Solo & Featuring' category in the third season of Tokyo FM's K-Star Chart 2024.

Released on March 15 as a digital single, Friends has reached impressive milestones, surpassing 425 million streams on Spotify by November 23.

The track made a strong debut, landing at No. 65 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 on the Billboard Global 200. It also hit No. 3 on the Billboard Global (excluding the U.S.) chart.

Friends continued to make waves on the UK charts, debuting at No. 13 on the Official Chart and staying in the Top 40 for two weeks. On the UK's Official Big Top 40, it debuted at No. 3 after just two days, staying on the chart for five weeks.

Friends made history by reaching No. 1 on iTunes worldwide, including in Europe, and became the first song of 2024 to top iTunes in 100 countries. It is currently holding the No. 1 spot in 102 countries.

On Spotify, Friends debuted at No. 7 on the global chart and topped the 2024 mid-year K-pop report for solo tracks with the most streams. It also became the longest-charting K-pop solo song on Spotify's global charts, cementing V's success as a solo artist.

The music video for Friends has been a huge hit as well, topping YouTube’s World Trending Music chart for 14 days in a row. It also reached No. 1 on Tidal’s 'Top Videos' chart in 23 countries, making V the first K-pop artist to top Tidal's Top Video chart in the U.S.

Looking ahead, V will release a duet titled Winter Ahead (with PARK HYO SHIN) on November 29, collaborating with the famous vocalist Park Hyo Shin.

On December 6, V will also release a reimagined version of the classic White Christmas in a duet with Bing Crosby, drawing even more excitement from fans.

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ChoA, former member of the girl group Crayon Pop, has bravely shared her ongoing battle with cervical cancer and her emotional journey.

On January 28, ChoA posted a heartfelt update on her social media, explaining her struggles. "I usually laugh, talk, and live my life as usual, but there are moments when I suddenly face a reality that isn’t like before, and it gets tough," she shared.

She went on to say, "Recently, something difficult happened, and in the past, I would have had a drink with my husband to shake it off. I really miss being able to do that."

ChoA admitted that she still can’t fully believe her diagnosis. "When I face the reality I’ve been avoiding, my heart that I’ve built up breaks down," she said. "But the life I’m living now, which I’m still enjoying, is something that someone else might be wishing for. I try to gather my thoughts again with gratitude."

She also expressed hope for the future, saying, "Lately, I dream of a day five years from now when I’ll be declared cancer-free and be able to have a drink with my husband after putting the kids to bed, after all the struggles. It’s been almost two years, so I believe the day I get that clean bill of health will come soon."

ChoA married a businessman in 2021, six years older than her. In October 2023, she revealed her cervical cancer diagnosis, sharing that she had been diagnosed during a routine check-up in her first year of marriage.

Despite everything, ChoA remains hopeful, noting that the cancer was smaller than expected during surgery, and she was able to preserve her fertility—a step closer to her dream of becoming a mother.

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