Nearly one-third of global K-pop CD sales come from HYBE Labels

K-pop

Published: 12 Jul. 2022, 15:58 Updated: 12 Jul. 2022, 17:07

Nearly one-third of global K-pop CD sales come from HYBE Labels

Boy band Enhypen is the latest to join the list of million-sellers this year, with its EP "Manifesto : Day 1” which dropped on July 4. [BELIFT LAB]

When it comes to K-pop CDs, HYBE Labels accounted for almost a third of all sales during the first half of 2022.

According to Circle Chart, formerly known as Gaon Chart, HYBE Labels sold over 10.6 million CDs from January through June. The total number of K-pop CDs sold worldwide during the same period was 35.48 million copies.

Artists that release albums through HYBE Labels include acts under K-pop agency HYBE and its subsidiaries, most notably BigHit Music, Belift Lab, Source Music, Pledis Entertainment and KOZ Entertainment.

K-pop phenomenon BTS from BigHit Music has sold the most albums so far this year, thanks to the boy band’s latest anthology album "Proof," which dropped last month. BTS sold over 4.26 million copies of CDs during the first half of 2022, with "Proof" accounting for 2.59 million of them.

Promotional image for BTS's "Proof" (2022) [BIGHIT MUSIC]

Although BTS saw relatively underwhelming results in digital downloads and streaming — with none of the new tracks from “Proof” making it in the top 10 of June’s Circle Chart — the boy band still seems to remain unrivaled in the K-pop scene in terms of physical album sales.

Boy band Seventeen from Pledis Entertainment ranked at second place with its fourth full-length album "Face the Sun," which dropped in May. The album sold over 2.37 million copies, setting a new high for the boy band seven years after its debut.

Promotional image for Seventeen's "Face the Sun" (2022) [PLEDIS ENTERTAINMENT]

Tomorrow X Together from BigHit Music and Enhypen from Belift Lab also produced million-sellers this year: “minisode 2: Thursday's Child” by the former in May and “Manifesto : Day 1” by the latter on July 4. HYBE's new, much-talked-about girl group Le Sserafim, which debuted under Source Music in May, sold more than 415,000 copies of its debut EP "Fearless" — an impressive record for a debuting act.

As a whole, K-pop CD sales grew by 36.7 percent compared to the first half of 2021, which saw 25.96 million copies sold. Other million-seller-albums so far this year that are not from HYBE labels include boy band NCT Dream’s "Glitch Mode" and Lim Young-woong’s "Im Hero."

Promotional image for NCT DREAM's "Glitch Mode" (2022) [SM ENTERTAINMENT]

Girl group aespa’s second EP “Girls,” released on Friday, is also expected to become a million-seller as preorders for the EP have already surpassed 1.6 million copies. If so, this will be the second release from a girl group to join the list of K-pop million-sellers, following Blackpink’s “The Album” (2020), which sold 1.3 million copies, and the first-ever to surpass that milestone in the first week of its release.

The record is especially remarkable for a K-pop girl group, which tends to see much lower CD sales compared to male K-pop acts and is instead known to have a stronger edge in streaming and digital downloads.

Promotional image for aespa's "Girls" (2022) [SM ENTERTAINMENT]

Industry analysts suspect the increased number of million-sellers is a key factor leading the growth of the K-pop CD sales market. Although some claim that K-pop will soon face a crisis, as BTS put a hiatus on group activities in order to pursue solo activities, analysts say the market will mostly maintain its size regardless of BTS’s group break as more K-pop groups will continue to see their albums sell over a million copies of their releases. For instance, Seventeen’s aforementioned album “Face the Sun” was the band’s sixth million-seller in a row, suggesting a steady future ahead.

"The K-pop market in 2022 has more of a pyramid structure rather than relying on a few artists,” said Kim Jin-woo, head researcher at Circle Chart. “Even if there is a bit of a vacuum caused by certain artists at the top of the pyramid, it’s unlikely for the entire market to suddenly collapse.”

BY PARK KUN, HALEY YANG [yang.hyunjoo@joongang.co.kr]