The K-pop industry is known for its fierce competition and constant releases of new music. In March and April of 2023, many K-pop idols have dropped their latest songs, hoping to capture the attention of fans and listeners around the world. However, even after so many anticipated releases, one idol still stands out as the only K-pop soloist to have a song reach 100 million streams on Spotify in less than 30 days. That idol is none other than BTS’s Jungkook, who achieved this feat with his song “Left and Right” which was released in collaboration with American singer-songwriter Charlie Puth.
“Left and Right” is a catchy, upbeat pop song that focuses on memories of a past love and how consumed by thoughts of that former relationship one can become. The song showcases the vocal talents of both Puth and Jungkook, who harmonize beautifully throughout the track. The song was released through Atlantic Records on June 24, 2022, as the third single from Puth’s third studio album Charlie. An accompanying music video was released the same day as the song and shows Puth and Jungkook visiting a therapist’s office for help with their lovesickness.
The song was an instant hit, debuting at number one in India, the Philippines, and Vietnam; number two in Malaysia and Singapore; and number three in Hungary, Indonesia, and Taiwan. It also peaked at number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States and debuted at number five on the Billboard Global 200, earning Puth and Jungkook their first top-10 entries on the latter. The song also spent three consecutive weeks at number one on the Billboard Japan Hot Overseas chart. It has been certified Platinum in Canada and Gold in the US.
The song surpassed 100 million streams on Spotify within just 24 days of its release, making it the fastest K-pop solo song to achieve this milestone. The song currently has 588M streams on Spotify. All three of his songs that Jungkook has released on his Spotify profile – Stay Alive, Left & Right, and Dreamers, have surpassed at least 200M streams each.
The duet marks the second time Puth and Jungkook have collaborated, the first being their performance of “We Don’t Talk Anymore” at the Genie Music Awards in 2018.
Puth originally teased “Left and Right” as a solo track in February 2022 on TikTok. In April, he tweeted about a dream he had, of BTS featuring on the song, increasing speculation that a project between both parties was in the works. He began hinting at an upcoming collaboration with an unnamed artist through various clues in subsequent videos on the platform in June. During an interview at iHeartRadio’s Wango Tango on June 5th, Puth revealed he had indeed collaborated with a K-pop artist, but did not know when the song would be released; the collaborator remained unnamed at the time.
The collaboration was finally confirmed on June 23rd, when Puth posted a teaser image of himself and Jungkook on his social media accounts with the caption “Left and Right tomorrow”. The next day, he shared another teaser image with the release time of the song and tagged Jungkook’s Instagram account. The song received positive reviews from critics and fans alike, who praised its catchy melody, relatable lyrics, and the vocal chemistry between Puth and Jungkook.
“Left and Right” showcases the power of music to transcend language and cultural barriers. It is also a proof of Jungkook’s versatility and popularity as a solo artist, who can collaborate with anyone from any genre and create a hit song. Jungkook has once again proven himself to be a force to be reckoned with in the K-pop industry and beyond.
