Although BTS reigns as "Record King" for three consecutive years, THESE boy groups are strong candidates who can possibly replace the septet's status as they take hiatus.
Want to know who they are? Then keep on reading!
BTS 'Record King' Position 'Shaken' by THESE 'Million-Seller' Boy Groups
BTS is a team that has led the K-pop record market. According to Gaon Chart, BTS has dominated as a "Record King" for the past three years, recording an average of about 7.6 million albums a year.
However, the current title-holder announced their temporary break as a group to focus on their solo careers. With this, people began speculating which groups are possible to usurp the "Record King" title this year.
Due to this, it is expected that the upheaval in the male idol market will begin post-BTS hiatus, and the competition between boy groups and fandom's purchasing power will be hotter than ever.
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Among the male groups who had a release in 2021 and this year, NCT 127 & DREAM, SEVENTEEN, EXO, ENHYPEN, Stray Kids, and TXT established their impact in the music scene after becoming million-seller artists.
But from those mentioned above, three groups NCT 127, NCT Dream, and SEVENTEEN are highlighted as strong candidates to seize the throne.
This is because these groups didn't only sell a million copies in a single album, but they also achieved two million sold copies, earning the title "Double million-seller" groups.
Among the three teams, SEVENTEEN and NCT Dream showed their power to achieve a "double million" with more than 2 million sales with their fourth album "Face the Sun" and second album "Glitch Mode," respectively, following last year.
As of 2021, these three groups are the only male idol groups closely following BTS in terms of total album sales and share chart by singers based on the Gaon Chart.
BTS ranked first with about 7.3 million (12.9% share) on the chart, NCT 127 ranked second with about 4.05 million (7.1% share), and NCT Dream third with 3.89 million (6.8% share). SEVENTEEN ranked fourth with about 3.82 million (6.7% share).
Thus, according to the Korean media outlet E-Daily:
"The 'record power' (of NCT Dream, NCT 127 and SEVENTEEN) is as good as BTS. If they continue their active album activities this year, it is worth seeking to become the new "Record King."
What Will Happen to Record Market Amid BTS Group Hiatus? K-Media Explains
Although there are strong candidates who will fill the absence of BTS, the record market expressed worries if the numbers will plummet significantly.
However, Kim Jinwoo, a senior researcher at Gaon Chart, stated:
"The K-pop music market is more of a pyramid shape than a circular structure in which BTS is the center of a team. The market will not suddenly face a crisis even if there is a gap in the upper waist."
Instead, the industry is actually curious if what impact BTS will bring along with their solo debuts. Currently, EXO Baekhyun and Lim Young Woong are the most notable solo artists as the only "million-seller artists" with a single album.
The senior researcher added:
"In the case of BLACKPINK, the combined sales of solo albums by members Lisa, Rosé, and Jennie were 85% of the group album sales. The combined sales of the BTS members' solo albums are also expected to be close to the group album sales.
The variable is that we don't know how often and how many members will release albums within this year."
READ MORE: K-pop Album Sales in May 2022 Become Highest Monthly Figure + 10 Best-Sellers
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Written by Eunice Dawson
