Rookie Powerhouse CORTIS Recognized as 'Artist to Watch' by US Pandora

Group CORTIS has been recognized as a 'top rookie' not just in Korea but in the world's largest music market, the United States.

CORTIS (Martin, James, Junho, Seunghyun, Gunho) was recently selected for 'Artists to Watch 2026: The Pandora Ten' (hereafter 'Pandora Ten'), announced by Pandora, the largest advertising-based audio streaming service in the US. This list highlights 10 promising new artists across all genres globally, with CORTIS being the only K-pop act featured this year.

The 'Pandora Ten' selection process combines expert analysis with local listener data, serving as a key indicator of musical creativity, innovation, local impact, and potential for success. Past honorees include current pop giants like Post Malone, Dua Lipa, Doja Cat, The Kid LAROI, and Tyla when they were emerging artists.

Pandora introduced CORTIS as a group "offering a fresh perspective on K-pop," praising their debut album 'COLOR OUTSIDE THE LINES' for showcasing a bold vision and versatility in creating unconventional music. The service highlighted that tracks like 'GO!' and others from the album have received enthusiastic responses from listeners. Pandora also committed to continuously spotlighting and supporting the 10 selected artists, which includes featuring CORTIS's portrait in Times Square, the 'heart of New York,' from December 12th to 18th.

CORTIS's potential in the US market was previously demonstrated on the Billboard charts. Their debut album 'COLOR OUTSIDE THE LINES' entered the main album chart, 'Billboard 200' (dated Sept. 27), at number 15, setting a record for the highest debut album ranking by a K-pop group (excluding project teams). Even three months after its release and amidst the dominance of holiday-themed albums, the album continues to show strong staying power, ranking at number 169 on the latest 'Billboard 200' chart (dated Dec. 13).

Korean netizens are flooding social media with congratulatory messages, saying things like, "This is insane! CORTIS conquering Billboard and Pandora too!", "Definitely a legendary debut! So much more to look forward to", and "It's so proud they're being recognized not just in Korea but overseas."