BINI among acts driving Southeast Asia’s shift from K-pop, Western pop: study

For a lower-billed Coachella act, it unexpectedly topped engagement.

BINI may no longer be just the Nation’s Girl Group. 

A Japanese research firm found it’s among the acts driving Southeast Asia’s growing shift toward local music—away from K-pop and Western pop.

An analysis from Tsurezure Lab on May 1 showed that across five countries—the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore—homegrown genres have steadily gained ground on streaming charts since 2023.

In the Philippines, OPM’s presence in Spotify’s Top 50 daily chart rose from 44% in 2023 to 63% in 2026. Over the same period, Western pop dropped from 29% to 14%, with K-pop also declining. Among the top streamed OPM artists was BINI.

Tsurezure noted that BINI’s hits “Pantropiko” and “Na Na Na” have posted massive streaming numbers locally—reflecting OPM’s evolution into a modern, Gen Z-driven mainstream. “A very interesting phenomenon is happening,” it said in Japanese.

The firm also highlighted BINI’s origins via a K-pop-style training system. (The group trained under ABS-CBN’s Star Hunt Academy in 2019 and debuted in 2021.) But now, it noted that BINI is competing directly with K-pop on local charts.

BINI’s domination only became more pronounced after its historic Coachella debut on April 10 and 17. Despite holding a “below mid-tier” slot, Tsurezure pointed out that BINI delivered one of the festival’s strongest performances in terms of engagement.

Analyzing Coachella’s official 204 Instagram Reels and 186 YouTube videos a week after the festival, the firm identified BINI as a leading act—with an “overwhelming response” that “could not be predicted at all.”

On Instagram Reels, it topped daily views with 4.89 million views, approaching about 55 million total overall. On YouTube, it placed sixth with 630,000 daily views.

Tsurezure attributed the surge to local media coverage of BINI’s Coachella appearance and strong fan support.

In terms of market size, Tsurezure noted that the Philippines’ recorded music industry is “not large,” at about 8.8 billion yen (₱3.4 billion). It pales in comparison with the United States’ 591.6 billion yen (₱233 billion), Japan’s 272.8 billion yen (₱107.4 billion), and Germany and the United Kingdom’s 130 billion yen (₱51.2 billion) each.

Yet BINI still ranked among the top acts of Coachella views—outperforming artists in larger markets. This suggests that in the digital era, cultural impact is no longer dictated by market size but by audience engagement.

“As long as you have a smartphone and an Internet connection, fans from any country can deliver their love for [the artist],” Tsurezure said in Japanese. “Therefore, these changes are not transient depending on the release of a specific artist, but are observed as a bottom flow that continues to be monotonous for three years.”

“A new wind is blowing from Southeast Asia,” it added.

BINI will perform on Japan’s Summer Sonic, the country’s biggest music festival, on August 14 (Tokyo) and 16 (Osaka). In June, it’s also embarking on a world tour in support of its new EP, “Signals”—covering Asia, North America, and Europe.