The success of Kim Hyun Joong‘s newly released Japanese debut album was nothing short of ‘daebak‘.
His new Japanese album ‘KISS KISS/Lucky Guy‘ which dropped on the 25th immediately climbed to the #2 spot on the Oricon Daily Single Album Chart by selling 71,821 copies on the first day.
He was second to AKB48‘s popular sister group SKE48 who also released their new single ‘Kataomoi Finally‘ on the 25th, and sold a total of 285,467 copies on the first day.
Even with the number of copies he sold on the first day alone, Kim Hyun Joong would still rank as #16 on a list of Korean artists and their first week of sales in Japan. However, at the high rate that his albums are currently selling, he is predicted to sell well over 100,000 copies in the first week.
Kim Hyun Joong signed a contract with Japanese music label Universal Music in 2011. Ahead of his official single release, Kim Hyun Joong also began selling ringback tones on the 18th, which climbed to the #1 spot on the ‘Rekochoku‘ Ringback Chart.
He also will be greeting his Japanese fans by appearing on the popular TV Asahi music program ‘Music Station‘ on January 27th, and like his fellow celebrities IU and Lee Seung Gi, he is expected to make a big splash in Japan as one of Hallyu’s leading solo artists.