K-Pop Act NewJeans Announced as Performing Artist for 2023 League of Legends World Championship Anthem

LOS ANGELES – SEPTEMBER 26, 2023 – Today, Riot Games announced global rising sensation NewJeans as the performing artist of the 2023 League of Legends World Championship anthem, “GODS.”

The song was written by Riot Games principal composer Sebastien Najand and Alex Seaver of Mako, whose co-writing credits include “Legends Never Die,” “RISE,” “Awaken,” and multiple songs on the Arcane soundtrack. Fans can watch “GODS” on YouTube or grab the track anywhere you listen to music at 10 pm PT October 3 / 2 pm KST October 4.

“The Worlds Anthem is the rallying cry for our community every year, and we’re so excited to partner with NewJeans to deliver this incredible moment,” said Carrie Dunn, Global Head of Creative, Esports at Riot Games. “Between Worlds taking place in Korea and NewJeans’ meteoric rise, this partnership felt fated as a true cultural celebration. ‘GODS’ juxtaposes epic and intense production elements with NewJeans’ beautiful and powerful vocals – conveying both the grind and the glory that awaits our players at Worlds.”

“It was a new experience for all of us,” said NewJeans. “It was fun to try a new genre and sound. Through this collaboration, we are happy to present a song that incorporates both NewJeans’ and League of Legends’ unique colors. We hope it brings you a new sense of empowerment!”

“We’re honored to be partnering with NewJeans for Worlds 2023 – both a historic breakthrough year for the group and momentous for esports fans as we celebrate the 10th anniversary of Worlds anthems,” said Maria Egan, Global Head of Music & Events at Riot Games Entertainment. “NewJeans joins the ranks of superstars such as Imagine Dragons, Zedd, and Lil Nas X who have helped make the anthem so iconic for our community.”

 

The 2023 Worlds Music Video will follow the story of Korean pro player Kim “Deft” Hyuk-kyu from his discovery of League in high school to his unbelievable run at Worlds 2022. This is not just the personal story of Deft and his unbreakable spirit, but the story of a team that overcame all odds to become World Champions.

 

“We don’t want to spoil too much of the music video, but expect to see familiar faces and unforgettable moments reimagined as we follow Deft’s story from its beginning in 2013 to his victorious World Championship last year,” Dunn said. “Allies becoming adversaries is a story all athletes can relate to, and we think ‘GODS’ will set the stage for what’s bound to be an incredible Worlds.”

 

The League of Legends World Championship, also known as Worlds, is the pinnacle of LoL Esports competition in which the top teams from nine regions compete for the world champion title. Held after the culmination of the regular season in a different host region each year, qualified teams from professional leagues around the world participate in the month-long tournament. Worlds is the most widely viewed and followed esport tournament, with Worlds 2021 generating an average minute audience (AMA) of 30M+, 73M+ peak concurrent users (PCU) and 1B+ hours watched. It’s among the largest and most popular gaming and sporting events in the world.

 

About NewJeans

NewJeans (MINJI, HANNI, DANIELLE, HAERIN, and HYEIN) made their debut on July 22, 2022, as the first group to debut from ADOR, an independent label under HYBE led by Hee Jin Min. The quintet aspires to push the limits of K-pop with honest and authentic music that exudes youth. Just like a pair of jeans that has been a staple of every wardrobe for generations, NewJeans aims to allure the listeners with timeless music to be kept in your daily music playlist. The act released NewJeans on August 1, 2022, instantly captivating the global audience and becoming the first K-pop band to achieve the million-seller milestone with their debut album. One of the title tracks “Hype Boy” charted on Billboard Global 200 for 37 consecutive weeks – the longest record from any K-pop female act. NewJeans amazed the world with groundbreaking records, charting on Billboard Hot 100 within less than half a year of their debut with global smash hits “Ditto” and “OMG.” The act also broke the Guinness World Record as the K-pop act to reach one billion streams on Spotify in the shortest amount of time since debut, and have quickly surpassed the 2 billion mark with their latest EP Get Up released in July. The stellar EP attests to NewJeans’ widespread global presence, debuting at No.1 on Billboard 200 and at No.15 on the U.K. Official Albums Chart with all of its triple lead singles, “Super Shy,” “ETA,” and “Cool With You,” landing in Billboard Hot 100. Continuing their upward trajectory, NewJeans made history as the first K-pop female act to perform at Lollapalooza in Chicago, winning over 70,000 audience gathered to watch their stage.

 

About LoL Esports™

League of Legends Esports (LoL Esports) is the fastest growing global sport and the pinnacle of competitive gaming with 9 regional leagues, 93 professional esport teams, and more than 860 players. Accessible around the globe on 35+ TV and digital channels, it is one of the most-watched forms of sports entertainment globally. League of Legends Esports started in 2011 and remains owned and operated by Riot Games, one of the world’s top video game developers. Led by Naz Aletaha, Global Head of LoL Esports, our mission is to build a thriving global sports ecosystem by focusing on growth, engagement, profitability, integrity, and accessibility. From the thrilling regional league competitions that captivate millions of fans across the globe to the trophy lift at Worlds, it all lives within LoL Esports. For more information, visit LoLEsports.com.

 

About League of Legends

Released in 2009, “League of Legends” is Riot Games’ debut title and one of the most-played competitive games in the world, engaging millions of players daily in 20+ officially-supported languages. A mainstay of the MOBA genre, in “League”, two teams of five powerful champions face off to destroy each other’s base in a game that blends the speed, strategy, and intensity of an RTS with immersive RPG elements.

“League” continues to evolve year over year in gameplay and storytelling, delivering fresh new experiences like K/DA, immersive stories like Star Guardian and Spirit Blossom, and technical balance changes to ensure competitive integrity. As the basis for the Runeterra universe, League champions have been featured in music, comic books, spinoff games, collectible figurines, board games, TV series, and more. The annual League of Legends World Championship is the most widely viewed esport tournament, and is among the largest and most popular sporting events in the world.

Visit leagueoflegends.com for more information and follow @leagueoflegends on social media.

 

About Riot Games

Riot Games was founded in 2006 to develop, publish, and support the most player-focused games in the world. In 2009, Riot released its debut title, League of Legends, to worldwide acclaim. League has gone on to be the most-played PC game in the world and a key driver of the explosive growth of esports. With League in its second decade, Riot is continuing to evolve the game while delivering new experiences to players with Teamfight Tactics, Legends of Runeterra, VALORANT, League of Legends: Wild Rift, Riot Forge, and multiple work-in-progress titles. Riot is also expanding the world of Runeterra through multimedia projects across music, comic books, board games, and Arcane, its Emmy-winning animated series.

 

Founded by Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill, Riot is headquartered in Los Angeles, California, and has 4,500+ Rioters in 20+ offices worldwide.

 

About Riot Games Music

Riot Games Music builds on Riot’s fandom at the intersection of gaming and music — fostering partnerships with artists who can take the global player experience to the next level through music, live events, and IP expansion. RGM has amassed a catalog of over 750 songs including nine original Esports Anthems for the annual League of Legends World Championships, which have collectively amassed billions of streams across DSPs. These anthems have been performed by superstars including Lil Nas X, Imagine Dragons, Zedd and many more.

Riot Games Music is also known for being a leader in virtual artistry including artists like K/DA, a record breaking K-Pop inspired girl-group based on some of the most popular female champions in League of Legends, whose music has received over 1.2 billion streams. Their single “POP/STARS” recently was certified platinum by the RIAA, and they have amassed over 2 million followers on Spotify. Other Riot virtual artists include heavy metal band Pentakill, hip-hop band True Damage, DJ Sona and Seraphine.

RGM also created Sessions, a music project focused around creators, available for anyone to use without concern of copyright strikes.