BTS breaks sales record in Japan with album

BTS's fourth full-length Japanese album "Map of the Soul: 7 - The Journey" topped Japan’s Oricon Daily Album Chart a day after its Wednesday release by selling 447,869 copies.

It was the highest first-day sales for any album released in Japan this year, according to Japan’s biggest music chart, Oricon, and a record for first-day sales by any foreign artist.

"Map of the Soul: 7 - The Journey" also topped iTunes' Top Albums charts in 81 countries including Japan, the United States, Canada, Britain, Germany and India on the day of its release.

"Your Eyes Tell," a track that member Jungkook helped compose, topped the iTunes Top Song Chart in 93 countries including Japan, the United States, Canada, Britain, Italy and Russia.

The lead track "Stay Gold," which was released in June, ranked No.1 on the iTunes Top Song Chart in 84 countries, including Japan, the United States, Britain and France.

The 13-track album features Japanese versions of tracks on “Map of the Soul: 7, " released last February, including “ON,” and “Black Swan,”as well as two original Japanese tracks, “Stay Gold” and “Your Eyes Tell.”

BY KIM YEON-AH [kim.yeonah@joongang.co.kr]