In the first half of 2024, K-pop album sales fell by 9.4 million copies. A major reason for this decline was the military enlistment of BTS members Jimin and Suga in late 2023. From December 31, 2023, to June 22, 2024, total album sales, including CDs, were 45.49 million copies, which is 17% less than the 54.89 million copies sold in the same period in 2023.
Jimin and Suga’s absence from the music scene, along with no new album releases from BTS, contributed to this drop in sales. Other K-pop groups like Stray Kids, who didn’t release an album in the first half of 2024, also played a part in the decrease.
Despite this, BTS still achieved significant milestones. They became the first K-pop artist to surpass 40 million physical album sales on Circle Chart. Researcher Kim Jin-woo from Circle Chart mentioned that the decrease in sales might be due to entertainment agencies pushing large quantities of albums to boost sales figures in previous periods.
Overall, BTS members’ military enlistment and other market factors led to a noticeable drop in K-pop album sales in the first half of 2024.