News
AKB48 is 1st Female Music Group to Sell 30 Million Singles
posted on by Kyle Cardine
Yahoo News reported on Tuesday that idol group AKB48 has become the first female artist group to sell more than 30 million singles.
Rock duo B'z was the first male group to sell more than 30 million singles in Japan in 2003. However, AKB48 reached 30 million single sales within eight years and ten months of the group's debut, breaking the record previously held by B'z for the fastest artist group to sell 30 million singles.
AKB48 topped Oricon's weekly single ranking for the week ending on December 8, selling 1,130,312 copies of its 38th single "Kibou Teki Refrain" (Wishful Refrain), which debuted on November 26. The single is currently ranked fourth on the Oricon daily single rankings.
AKB48's previous single, "Kokoro no Placard" (Heart's Placard), also sold 1 million copies within the first week. AKB48's 35th single, “Mae Shika Mukanee” (I Won't Face Anywhere But Ahead), set a record for sales in its 1st week, selling more CDs than any other idol group in Japan's history.
[Via Otakomu]
Update: "Mae Shika Mukanee" record fixed. Thanks, kaworu5.
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