Has the Twilight of K-Pop Arrived? Album Sales Plummet and New Bands Fail to Achieve Great Success

Kapanlagi.com - It can still be remembered how K-Pop achieved success worldwide at its inception and has lasted for more than a decade. Recently, K-Pop is said to be fading. One indication of this is the decline in physical album sales of K-Pop in 2024.

Quoting a report from Allkpop, the end of last year marked an important moment for the South Korean music industry. Circle Chart, managed by the Korea Music Content Association (KMCA), released an annual report noting a sharp decline in physical album sales.

From January to November 2024, the number of physical albums sold reached only 93.14 million copies—a figure far below the achievement of 116 million copies in 2023.

1. Decline in Album Sales

Even with December sales included, the total figure is estimated to remain below 100 million copies, as reported by The Korea JoongAng Daily.

This decline is quite surprising as, over the past decade, physical album sales in K-Pop have consistently shown an upward trend. However, in 2024, the chart has moved downward for the first time, particularly felt by male artists.

The group Seventeen, which topped the album sales this year, could only sell 8.9 million copies. This number has dropped significantly compared to the previous year, where they managed to sell up to 16 million copies. Stray Kids, which ranked second, also experienced a significant decline with a difference of about five million copies compared to their sales in 2023.

2. No Major Achievements Yet

ITZY © instagram.com/itzy.all.in.us

The decline is also evident in the number of albums that have surpassed one million copies sold. While in 2023 there were 33 albums that achieved this milestone, in 2024 the number has drastically decreased to only 20 albums.

Meanwhile, according to a report from dw.com, newcomers like Baby Monster have yet to make a significant impact. The group failed to enter the top ranks of the Melon Top 100, one of the indicators of song popularity in South Korea.

Other groups like ITZY and NMIXX also experienced a decline in performance, with their latest releases dropping significantly in the second week. The latest mini-album from Le Sserafim even recorded a 20 percent drop in sales in the second week after its release.

3. Digital Strength

Seventeen © X/@17CARATS_INA

A number of factors are considered to contribute to this negative trend. Several major stars are currently undergoing mandatory military service, the multi-label group format is losing its appeal, and the Chinese market is still not fully open to the consumption of physical K-Pop albums.

However, this decline does not necessarily mark the end of the K-Pop industry's golden era. On the contrary, K-Pop is now showing significant strength in the digital realm.

Data from CNBC reveals that streaming K-Pop songs on Spotify has drastically increased: up 180 percent in the United States, 420 percent in Southeast Asia, and 360 percent globally.

(kpl/tdr)