BTS tops Oricon’s album sales for first half of 2020
MANILA, Philippines — Korean pop giant BTS has topped the Japanese music Oricon album chart for the first half of 2020, making it the first foreign artist to rank first in the list since Michael Jackson.
According to a Soompi article on Friday, the group’s latest album “Map of the Soul: 7” ranked No. 1 on the albums chart for the first half of the year after selling 429,000 copies in Japan.
The album likewise topped Oricon’s daily, weekly and monthly album charts following its release in February.
This is the first time in 36 years that a foreign artist topped the Oricon’s album chart since Michael Jackson’s feat in 1984 with his iconic hit “Thriller,” Soompi said.
BTS is likewise the first male artist to top the chart in three years since veteran Japanese group SMAP last achieved the ranking in 2017.
The K-Pop boy group is currently gearing up to release their fourth Japanese studio album “Map of the Soul: 7 ~ The Journey ~” on July 15, Soompi said.
