Rapper YoungBoy Never Broke Again narrowly beats Drake on this week’s Billboard 200 albums chart, collecting his fourth leader on the ranking as his new set Sincerely, Kentrell outperforms the Canadian musician by just 2,000 equivalent units. The set may be the No. 1 title in the U.S. this frame, but it doesn’t win when looking at pure sales. That honor is claimed by one of the biggest names in the K-pop space, as a beloved girl group launches their new project atop the sales tally, making history as they arrive.
Itzy debuts their first-ever full-length Crazy In Love at No. 1 on this week’s Top Album Sales chart, which ranks releases by how many copies, physical or digital, were purchased. The band’s latest project sold just under 22,000 copies in its first tracking frame, according to numbers shared by MRC Data. That’s enough to put it in first place, ahead of new releases by the likes of Angels & Airwaves, Sufjan Stevens and the aforementioned YoungBoy Never Broke Again.
With their first No. 1 on the Top Album Sales chart to their credit, Itzy instantly becomes just the third South Korean girl group to rise to the summit on the purchase-only list.
The first South Korean all-female vocal act to reach the highest spot on the Top Album Sales chart was Blackpink, who managed the feat almost exactly a year ago. The quartet’s debut full-length The Album opened in first place, and it nearly conquered the Billboard 200 as well.
Just a few months ago, Twice joined Blackpink in this feat, becoming the second South Korean girl group to rule over the Top Album Sales chart. The act’s Taste of Love also debuted atop the tally, becoming a bestseller from the moment it launched.
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Amazingly, Itzy is also only the third South Korean vocal troupe made up of only women to reach the top 10 on the Top Album Sales chart. Blackpink leads the way in this regard, as they have risen to the peak position and placed a previous title, their Kill This Love EP, at No. 10.