"Swim" (stylized in all caps) is a song by South Korean boy band BTS. It was released on March 20, 2026, as the lead single of the group's sixth Korean-language studio album Arirang. It is produced by Tyler Spry and Leclair, and written by James Essien, Sean Foreman, Tyler Spry, Jamison Baken, Ryan Tedder, RM, Kirsten Allyssa Spencer, Derrick Milano, and Pdogg.
Background and release On January 4, 2026, BigHit Music announced BTS's comeback after a four-year hiatus during which they completed their mandatory military service and released solo work. The title of the album, Arirang, was revealed on January 15, referencing the Korean folk song of the same name. On March 3, BTS revealed the album's track listing and production credits, with the seventh track "Swim" highlighted in black, indicating the song is the lead single from the album. Before the release of the album, Hybe's official YouTube channel released two teasers for the song and its music video.
"Swim" was released as the lead single from Arirang on March 20, 2026. On March 23, BTS released the instrumental version. On March 27, the remix album for "Swim", titled Keep Swimming, was released. The nine-track album includes the original and instrumental versions of "Swim", as well as seven remixes reflecting each member's musical taste. In the United States, "Swim" was also sold by Target as a four-inch "tiny vinyl" with the song "Normal" on the b-side.
Composition and lyrics "Swim" has been described as alternative pop and synth-pop. The song is in common time in the key of C-sharp major with a tempo of 92 to 96 beats per minute. BTS' vocal range span from C♯3 to E4. The lyrics are entirely in English. BTS member RM, who is the main songwriter of "Swim", said: "I wrote the lyrics and I tried to express the confusion that we all had before [and] after the military... and we want to just keep swimming." RM said the track has a "clean and smooth allure", and has compared it to Pyongyang naengmyeon.
In a statement, BTS wrote: "[It's] a song that mirrors life itself. [We] hope it resonates with many people as they move through each day, taking each moment as it comes, splashing along and continuing to swim forward. The more you listen, the warmer it feels, so [we] hope it becomes a source of strength as people go through their lives. Also, just like the folk song 'Arirang,' which has been passed from mouth to mouth and stayed with people through generations, [we] hope 'Swim' will remain close to people's hearts for a long time to come."
Promotion
BTS partnered with Spotify for fan immersive event inspired by the nautical theme of the track "Swim". The group released a short-form mini documentary titled "Keep Swimming". The project shows the life and philosophy of prominent individuals in different fields such as director Park Chan-wook and fashion designer Nora Noh.
"Swim" was part of the setlist of the Spotify x BTS: Swimside held at Pier 17 in the New York City For its television debut, BTS performed the song at the Guggenheim Museum for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on March 25, 2026. A live performance video at Sunhyewon, a historic hanok, was published on BTS official YouTube channel. "Swim" was included in the setlist of BTS's Arirang World Tour (2026–2027) which began on April 9.
Music video The music video for "Swim" was released on YouTube on March 20, 2026. Directed by Tanu Muiño and featuring actress Lili Reinhart alongside BTS, it was filmed against the ocean backdrop of Lisbon and sees the group working on a sailing ship. The music video surpassed 5 million views within an hour, while trending at #1 in 70 countries.
The music video begins with Lili Reinhart strolling through a display of ship models in a museum while examining her compass. When the music starts, the scene transitions to the members steering a massive ship across the ocean. Reinhart later wakes up and explores different areas of the ship. The video concludes with Reinhart overlooking the ocean with a smile before ripping off her necklace engraved with the word "swim".
Copyright lawsuit In July 2026, several songwriters filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Central District of California against Hybe, Hybe America, Big Hit Music, Hybe Music Services, Artist Publishing Group, and several credited songwriters of "Swim". According to the complaint, the plaintiffs alleged that the song copied protected elements from an unpublished demo they had written in 2025. The complaint sought damages and other relief, including an injunction against further exploitation of the song or, alternatively, songwriting credit and a share of the song's profits. RM, although credited as a songwriter on "Swim", was not named as a defendant.
Big Hit Music denied the allegations, stating that "Swim" is an original work and that the complaint contained only the plaintiffs' unilateral claims. The company said it would respond through the legal process. As of July 2026, the lawsuit remained pending and no court had ruled on the allegations.
Accolades + Award and Nomination for "Swim" Award Show Year Category Result American Music Awards 2026 Song of the Summer The Fact Music Awards 2026 Best Music – Spring MTV Video Music Awards 2026 Song of the Year Best K-Pop MTV Video Music Awards Japan 2026 Video Of The Year Best Group Video-International Rockbjörnen 2026 Foreign Song of the Year Sec Awards 2026 International Song of the Year
+ Music program awards for "Swim" Program Date Inkigayo March 29, 2026 April 5, 2026 April 12, 2026 M Countdown March 26, 2026 April 2, 2026 April 9, 2026 Music Bank March 27, 2026 April 3, 2026 Show Champion March 25, 2026 April 1, 2026 April 8, 2026 Show! Music Core April 4, 2026 April 11, 2026 April 18, 2026
+Melon Popularity Award Award Date Weekly Popularity Award March 30, 2026 (Note: Click on tab labelled '3월' at top of page to view winners for March, scroll up from '03.02' to view each successive week's winner.) April 6, 2026 April 13, 2026 April 20, 2026
Commercial performance "Swim" debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, marking BTS's sixth song to debut at the top, and their seventh song to top the chart, the most number ones on the chart among groups in nearly half a century. It debuted with 15.3 million streams, 25.8 million in airplay audience, and 154,000 sales, and also debuted at number two on the Streaming Songs, number 18 on the Radio Songs, and number one on the Digital Song Sales chart, making it the group's highest entries on the former two, while becoming its 13th number one on the sales chart.
"Swim" was streamed over 14 million times on Spotify on its first day of release, surpassing 100 million streams on the platform in eight days, being the fastest song of the year to do so. "Swim" also reached number one on the Top 100 chart on Melon an hour after its release, overtaking "Bang Bang" by Ive. The song also debuted at number two on the Official Singles Charts in the UK, marking the group's fifth top 10 hit and highest-ever position on the chart.
"Swim" earned BTS their first number one song in Germany. They also became the first group in German chart history to simultaneously hold the number one position on both the German album and singles charts with two new entries, "Swim" and Arirang. In Brazil, "Swim" debuted at number one on the Brasil Hot 100, becoming the first foreign song to top the chart since the relaunch of Billboard Brasil in August 2023.
Track listing CD and cassette "Swim" – 2:39
CD and digital single – instrumental "Swim" – 2:39 "Swim" (instrumental) – 2:37
Digital remix album – Keep Swimming "Swim" – 2:39 "Swim" with RM (chill hip hop remix) – 2:43 "Swim" with Jin (alternative rock remix) – 3:13 "Swim" with Suga (melodic techno remix) – 3:39 "Swim" with J-Hope (Afrobeat remix) – 2:33 "Swim" with Jimin (slow jam R&B remix) – 2:29 "Swim" with V (electronic remix) – 2:20 "Swim" with Jung Kook (acoustic lofi remix) – 2:38 "Swim" (instrumental) – 2:37
4-inch vinyl "Swim" – 2:39 "Normal" – 3:01
7-inch vinyl and digital single – Underwater remix "Swim" – 2:39 "Swim" (Underwater remix) – 2:44 "Swim" (instrumental) – 2:37
Digital single – Spring Waves remix "Swim" – 2:39 "Swim" (Spring Waves remix) – 2:44 "Swim" (instrumental) – 2:37
Credits and personnel Credits adapted from Apple Music.
BTS – vocals RM – vocals, composer, lyrics Jung Kook – vocals, background vocals J-Hope – vocals Jimin – vocals Jin – vocals Suga – vocals V – vocals James Essien – background vocals, composer, lyrics Tyler Spry – guitar, keyboards, background vocals, synthesizer, drum programming, composer, lyrics, producer, vocal producer Leclair – producer, keyboards, guitar, bass, drum programming, violin Roger Joseph Manning Jr. – keyboards, synthesizer Sean Foreman – composer, lyrics Jamison Baken – composer, lyrics Ryan Tedder – composer, lyrics Kirsten Spencer – composer, lyrics Derrick Milano – composer, lyrics Pdogg – vocal arranger, composer, lyrics, recording engineer, vocal producer Serban Ghenea – mixing engineer Bryce Bordone – assistant mixing engineer Mike Bozzi – mastering engineer Yang Ga – immersive mixing engineer, immersive mastering engineer
Charts
Weekly charts + Chart (2026) Peakposition Argentina (CAPIF) 1 Bolivia (IFPI Latin America) 1 Bulgaria Airplay (PROPHON) 8 Canada CHR/Top 40 (Billboard) 7 Canada Hot AC (Billboard) 30 Chile (Billboard) 1 China (TME Korean) 1 Colombia Airplay (National-Report) 5 Colombia Streaming () 1 Costa Rica Streaming (FONOTICA) 4 Croatia (Billboard) 14 Croatia International Airplay (Top lista) 9 Ecuador Streaming () 1 Greece International (IFPI) 1 Hong Kong (Billboard) 1 India (Billboard) 23 Indonesia (IFPI) [Select 2026 Week 14] 5 Israel (Mako Hitlist) 56 Italy Airplay (EarOne) 28 Japan Combined Singles (Oricon) 5 Latin America Anglo Airplay (Monitor Latino) 2 Latvia Airplay (LaIPA) 9 Latvia Streaming (LaIPA) 1 Luxembourg (Billboard) 10 Lithuania (AGATA) 2 Malaysia (IFPI) [Select 2026 Week 13] 3 Mexico (Billboard) 1 Mexico Streaming (AMPROFON) 1 Middle East and North Africa (IFPI) 1 Nigeria (TurnTable Top 100) 37 Nigeria Airplay (TurnTable) 15 North Africa (IFPI) 3 North Macedonia Airplay (Radiomonitor) 11 Panama International () 5 Panama Streaming () 1 Paraguay (IFPI Latin America) 1 Peru Streaming () 1 Poland (Polish Airplay Top 100) 16 Poland (Polish Streaming Top 100) 14 Romania (Billboard) 4 Romania Airplay (UPFR) 4 Russia Streaming (TopHit) 35 Saudi Arabia (IFPI) 1 Serbia Airplay (Radiomonitor) 7 Singapore (RIAS) 1 Slovenia Airplay (Radiomonitor) 15 South Africa Airplay (TOSAC) 3 South Africa Streaming (TOSAC) 20 South Korea (Circle) 1 South Korea Hot 100 (Billboard) 1 Taiwan (Billboard) 1 Thailand (IFPI) [Select 2026 Week 13] 1 Turkey (Billboard) 18 Turkey International Airplay (Radiomonitor Türkiye) 4 United Arab Emirates (IFPI) 1 Venezuela Airplay (Record Report) 12 Vietnam (IFPI) [Select 2026 Week 13] 1
Monthly charts + Chart (2026) Peakposition Belarus Airplay (TopHit) 10 Brazil Streaming (Pro-Música Brasil) 2 CIS Airplay (TopHit) 3 Estonia Airplay (TopHit) 18 Kazakhstan Airplay (TopHit) 8 Latvia Airplay (TopHit) 16 Lithuania Airplay (TopHit) 3 Moldova Airplay (TopHit) 20 Panama Streaming (PRODUCE) 2 Paraguay Airplay (SGP) 13 Romania Airplay (TopHit) 5 Russia Airplay (TopHit) 3 Russia Streaming (TopHit) 45 South Korea (Circle) 8 Ukraine Airplay (TopHit) 17 Uruguay Streaming (CUD) 8
Certifications
Release history + Release history and formats for "Swim" Region Date Format(s) Version Label Various Original BigHit CD single Italy Radio airplay Original EMI Various BigHit United States March 24, 2026 Contemporary hit radio Original Digital download Digital alternate cover versions on iTunes: Various Remix album United States Cassette single Original Tiny vinyl (4-inch) Various 7-inch vinyl
Notes
References