BTS' 4th full-length album, the most sold album in the first half of t

The group BTS ranked No. 1 on the Japanese Oricon chart in the first half of the year for the first time in 36 years as an overseas singer.

According to the agency Big Hit Entertainment on the 19th, BTS' fourth full-length album "MAP OF THE SOUL: 7" (MAP OF THE SOUL: 7), which was released in February, sold about 429,000 copies, topping the album rankings of the first half of the year of Oricon.

It is the first time that a non-Japanese overseas singer album has topped the Oricon album sales list in the first half of the year since Michael Jackson's "Thriller" in 1984.

It is also the first time in three years that a male singer has topped the category since the Japanese national group SMAP in 2017.

Shortly after its release, "Map of the Soul: 7" swept the top of the Oricon Daily Album Chart, Weekly Album Chart, and Weekly Combined Album Chart.

BTS also ranked second in total sales with 3.22 billion yen (36.5 billion won) in Oricon's "Sales by Artist" category, which combines sales in the first half of the year.

Sales rankings by artists are based on the combined sales of singles, albums, streaming and music DVDs, which are one of the indicators of their influence in the Japanese music market.

BTS is also set to release its fourth full-length Japanese album "MAP OF THE SOUL: 7~THE JOURNEY" on the 15th of next month. The title track "Stay Gold" will be pre-released on July 19.

Meanwhile, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, BTS' junior group under Big Hit Entertainment, also stood out by ranking third in the sales category of artists in the first half of the Oricon season.

TOMORROW X TOGETHER topped the Oricon Daily Chart with its Japanese debut album "MAGIC HOUR" released in January.