Charts: AKB48 achieves first #1 (Tokyograph)
This is amazing news! AKB48’s new single ‘River’ has shattered the group’s previous single sales numbers with 179,000 sales in the first week. The mark was the best first week sales number for a female artist in 2009, and finished well ahead of the new releases by AAA and Hirai Ken.
I just love this single…all three tracks. And the three-PV bonus DVD makes it a great set! And it seems like AKB’s time has really come. They are all over Japanese television. The girls are busy doing multiple magazine spreads, plays, anime, doramas…the list goes on and on. After three visits to the West over the past few months, I wonder what could possibly be in store for the near future.
And just a little side note, SCANDAL’s major label debut album debuted in the Top 5 of the album charts, making it the highest debut release for a female band in seven years. Considering SCANDAL is sort of like the AKB48 of the rock set “looks wise”, I think schoolgirl fetishes are alive and well…
Or maybe it just that both groups are awesome!
Comment by takaboy — 2009/11/09 @ 9:34 pm
I expected River to sell well but not quite to the extenet it did, and I’m pretty damn happy about it. It’s a shame about Kimagure but this more than makes up for it.
Pingback by The rise of AKB48 « Onigiri Sensei — 2009/11/28 @ 9:32 pm
[...] of their recent single hit #1 on the Oricon charts, setting a record for first week sales by female artists in 2009. They’ll also be performing in [...]