Sales of physical K-pop albums continue to soar and could surpass the 100-million mark within this year.
According to the Circle Chart compiled by the Korea Music Content Association, cumulative CD sales of the top 400 most popular K-pop albums in Korea totaled 42.9 million in the first half of this year, up around 15.2 million from a year ago. There were 13 million-seller albums compared to seven last year.
Talent stable Hybe, which manages BTS and NewJeans, raked in the lion’s share, with CD sales in the first half of this year reaching 22.7 million, already more than the total of 22.2 million discs across the whole of last year.
Overseas sales are also rising. According to the Korea Customs Service, K-pop CD sales abroad rose 17.1 percent on-year in the first half to a record US$133 million.
Kim Jin-woo at the KMCA said, “We need to look at sales data of old albums to determine whether the increase in K-pop album sales is the result of rising spending by some ardent fans or an overall growth of the fan base. New K-pop fans usually purchase older albums first.”
Indeed, sales of the most popular 400 albums released before July 2022 rose 23.8 percent on-year in the first half. “Sales of K-pop albums have begun to rise sharply since last year in the U.S., Germany and other regions where they were weak in the past,” Kim said.
Fans of different acts race each other to boost album sales in the first week of their release, which then affects overall performance on music charts. The resumption of face-to-face autograph sessions with fans after the coronavirus pandemic is another factor behind surging sales.
Fans buy multiple copies of the same album to increase their chances of getting invited to autograph sessions with their idols as they do not know which box contains an invitation. Overseas fans are even using proxy buyers to get their hands on as many as possible.
A staffer at a major talent agency said, “Chinese fans are particularly big buyers of K-pop CDs and post photos of their receipts on social media.”
Yet overall sales in the global music industry are declining. According to the Recording Industry of America, CD sales in the U.S., the world’s biggest market, fell to 33 million last year, down from 41 million the previous year, while CD revenues accounted for only 4.6 percent of total music industry earnings, which include streaming and digital album sales.
Pop music critic Cha Woo-jin said, “High sales volume of physical albums are now unique to the K-pop industry. As album sales decline in the U.S. and U.K., artists there are now focusing on concerts to make money.”
