LAS VEGAS, NV – MAY 01: BTS performs onstage during the 2019 Billboard Music Awards at MGM Grand … [+] Garden Arena on May 1, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for dcp)
FilmMagic for dcp
Less than one week from the release of their new English single “Dynamite,” BTS is still making waves on the Billboard charts, launching their latest Japanese album, Map of the Soul: 7 – The Journey, to a new peak on the Billboard 200.
Map of the Soul: 7 – The Journey blasts to No. 14 on the Billboard 200 with 28,000 units after previously falling off the chart. The Korean pop septet’s latest album debuted at No. 115 last month with only two days of tracking and no physical release. Physical editions of the album arrived in the United States last Friday, Aug. 7, contributing to this week’s chart surge.
Map of the Soul: 7 – The Journey contains Japanese versions of songs from 2018’s Love Yourself: Answer, 2019’s Map of the Soul: Persona and 2020’s Map of the Soul: 7, along with four new Japanese tracks, including the popular single “Stay Gold.” It marks BTS’s highest-charting Japanese album on the Billboard 200 and their milestone 10th No. 1 on the World Albums chart. Prior to The Journey, BTS sent four consecutive albums to the top of the Billboard 200: 2018’s Love Yourself: Tear, along with the aforementioned Love Yourself: Answer, Map of the Soul: Persona and Map of the Soul: 7.
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A No. 14 peak on the Billboard 200 is a remarkable achievement for Map of the Soul: 7 – The Journey, considering it was not primarily intended to impact the U.S. charts. The set was designed to make a splash in Japan, and it certainly delivered. The Journey sold a staggering 564,000 copies in Japan in its first week, including historic first-day sales of 447,000. It quickly became Japan’s bestselling album of 2020, and in less than one month, it received a triple platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of Japan for sales exceeding 750,000.
Map of the Soul: 7 – The Journey’s success on this week’s Billboard 200 will likely pale in comparison to the records BTS will smash next week with “Dynamite.” Still, it’s a good reminder that even during their quiet weeks, the pop superstars are making moves.
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