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October was an excellent month for the Korean music industry, with familiar and surprising names coming up on the list of best-selling K-pop albums. While both Hanteo and Circle Charts have released a list of albums that sold the most units last month, this article will focus on the Circle Charts, earlier known as Gaon.
Circle chart sales are an estimate of the total album sales because they include shipment orders by stores offline and online, not including the albums returned in case of overordering. Nonetheless, the chart paints a fairly accurate picture of K-pop albums with the most sales, shedding light on the popularity of the album in South Korea and the world.
MAXIDENT, Antifragile, and 8 other best-selling K-pop albums of October that dominated the Circle Charts
Regardless of when they were released, these albums by Korean artists ruled October 2022, selling the most units of the month. From popular K-pop groups to solo artists, here are the 10 best-selling K-pop albums from the previous month.
10) Love Pt.2: Passion by WEi
The K-pop group's fifth extended play album followed Love Pt.1: First Love and was released on October 19, 2022. Despite being released in the second half of the month, Love Pt.2: Passion managed to sell 145,200 copies, making it the tenth on this list. With six tracks that expressed the yearning and passion felt by those in love, this WEi album peaked at number 10 on the Circle Monthly Charts.
9) Youth by MONSTA X's Kihyun
Released on October 24, Kihyun's EP Youth sold 151,200 units that month. Featuring five tracks, including the lead single of the same name, Youth is Kihyun's second solo album, having released Voyager earlier this year. The singer contributed lyrics to the song 'Cause of You, while his bandmate Hyungwon was involved in the creation of Bad Liar.
8) 28 Reasons by Red Velvet's Seulgi
Seulgi's first solo album, 28 Reasons, was released on October 4, 2022, and sold 206,600 copies to make it the eighth best-selling K-pop album of the month. The EP is made up of six diverse tracks that range from dance pop (28 Reasons) to R&B (Dead Man Runnin'), and carries the thread of Seulgi's narrative of good verus evil throughout all the songs.
7) After LIKE by IVE
Despite being released back in August 2022, this best-selling K-pop album managed to generate a total of 222,100 sales in October. After LIKE is the third single album by the Starship Entertainment-led IVE, and it has also earned the designation of the fastest idol group album to sell one million copies. The lead single of the same name has been viewed over 133 million times on YouTube, a remarkable achievement considering that IVE debuted less than a year ago.
6) TROUBLESHOOTER by Kep1er
While Kep1er's WA DA DA took over K-pop Tiktok in the first half of 2022, TROUBLESHOOTER's We Fresh will certainly be credited with one of the famous releases in October. The album, which was released on October 13, sold a whopping 263,100 units that month. Kep1er is up for quite a few Best Rookie Artist trophies this year, and these sales just cement their success.
6) The Second Step: Chapter Two by TREASURE
With their sophomore extended play (EP) album, The Second Step: Chapter Two, TREASURE sold a massive 473,900 copies in October 2022. The best-selling K-pop album consists of five tracks and is the group's second this year. This marks the boy band's first album as a ten-member group since the departure of Bang Ye Dan and Mashiho.
4) The Astronaut by BTS' Jin
Jin's debut single album, The Astronaut, was released in collaboration with Coldplay and sold 533,700 units in October 2022. The best-selling K-pop album was announced at BTS' concert in Busan and the vocalist's last song before his enlistment. Moreover, Coldplay invited BTS' Jin to perform The Astronaut for the first time at their Argentina concert, a video of which can be found on YouTube.
3) Antifragile by LE SSERAFIM
LE SSERAFIM's second EP, Antifragile, sold a whopping 596,000 units in October, making it the third best-selling K-pop album on this list. Huh Yun-jin and Kazuha have songwriting credits on this album, and the album's single of the same name has already taken over Tiktok. Antifragile has a total of five tracks and has been ruling all charts in Korea.
2) I Love by (G)I-DLE
(G)I-DLE's seventh EP might be the fourth-generation group's most successful album yet. In October of this year alone, the best-selling K-pop album sold 680,000 copies. I Love features massive contributions from the group, specifically Soyeon, Minnie, and Yuqi. With an old-time Hollywood-esque vibe surrounding the album, it has turned out to be a unique and strong concept that suits (G)I-DLE completely.
1) MAXIDENT by Stray Kids
Stray Kids released their seventh EP in October and sold a mind-boggling 2,750,000 units in the same month. Named MAXIDENT, which is a combination of maximum and accident, the album has eight tracks with the members being the major creators. MAXIDENT is the group's most successful album since their debut.
As the year draws to a close, the end-of-year award shows will reflect the collective sales from last year, wherein these ten best-selling K-pop albums are bound to feature in one form or another. This year's shows are bound to bring up some deserved wins and snubs, which makes them worth watching.
