ILLIT Tops K-POP Buzz Charts After Variety Appearance and 'Inkigayo' Win

K-POP girl group ILLIT pulled off a strong weekend at home and abroad, riding a variety show appearance and a music show win to the top of the industry's buzz rankings.

The group landed at No. 1 on both the domestic and global charts compiled by K-POPiT BOARD, a K-pop analytics index, in figures released Monday.

On the domestic side, ILLIT posted a Power Index (PWR_KR) of 74. Its global Power Index came in at 61. Both led their respective rankings. The Power Index is a composite score that pulls together music chart performance, social media activity, and news coverage from around the world.

The run, which stretched from the weekend through the 22nd, traces back largely to ILLIT's appearance on MBC's variety program "I AM THE TREND" on the 20th. The episode followed the members through a stretch of university festival stops and their downtime back at the dorm. Each member's off-stage routine drew its own pocket of attention online.

The broadcast pushed the group's MEDIA index, which tracks domestic media mentions, to a high of 99. A day later, on the 21st, ILLIT took the No. 1 trophy on SBS music show "Inkigayo." The win came well after the official promotional cycle for "It's Me," the title track from the group's fourth mini-album, had wrapped, a sign that the song is still finding listeners.

"It's Me," released on April 30, has held a top spot on major Korean streaming charts for nearly two months. As of the 22nd, the track sat at No. 3 on the TOP 100 of Melon, one of the country's main music platforms. The song has carried overseas as well, charting on Billboard's Global Songs chart for six consecutive weeks.

The momentum showed up on social platforms too. Between the 20th and the 21st, Instagram and TikTok hashtags tied to ILLIT jumped 46.2 percent, while mentions on X rose 47.1 percent.

The group also drew attention earlier in the month through a project release with labelmates. On the 12th, ILLIT joined LE SSERAFIM and KATSEYE, two other girl groups under HYBE labels, on the collaboration single "ICONIC BY MISTAKE." The track reached No. 22 on the U.K.'s Official Singles Top 100 for the June 19 to 25 tracking period, No. 25 on Spotify's Weekly Top Songs Global for June 12 to 18, and No. 26 on Weekly Top Songs USA. Alongside Billboard, those charts are among the clearest reads on mainstream pop demand.

ILLIT is set to release its second Japanese single, "I Got Your Back," on July 26.