&TEAM Shatters Own Record with Korean Debut Album 'Back to Life', Selling Over 1.2 Million Copies and Cementing K-Pop Presence

&TEAM, the global group under HYBE, has successfully established its presence in the K-pop heartland with its Korean debut album, breaking their personal best for first-week sales.

According to Hanteo Chart data released on November 4th, &TEAM's first Korean mini-album, 'Back to Life,' sold a total of 1,222,022 copies during its release week (October 28th to November 3rd). This achievement not only marks the highest sales for a Korean album released in October (based on Hanteo Chart) but also ranks among the top performances for the entire year.

'Back to Life' had already achieved the 'million-seller' status on its release day, selling 1,139,988 copies. This marks the second consecutive million-seller for &TEAM, following their third Japanese single 'Go in Blind,' showcasing their explosive growth.

The group's success also extended to Japan. 'Back to Life' topped the Oricon 'Weekly Album Ranking' (dated November 10th, with the counting period from October 27th to November 2nd). &TEAM is the first Japanese artist to reach the top of the Oricon weekly album chart with a Korean album.

&TEAM's remarkable performance transcends mere record sales; it symbolizes cross-border fusion and mutual growth in the global music market. This also indicates the maturation of HYBE's 'multi-home, multi-genre' strategy, which is expanding its influence by transplanting the K-pop production system into the global music scene.

The album 'Back to Life' encapsulates &TEAM's strengthened bond and growth. Built on the team's identity of 'wolf DNA' and HYBE's 'global DNA,' the album delivers instinctive and daring energy, earning praise from both music fans and critics. It features six tracks, including the title song 'Back to Life,' the upbeat 'Lunatic,' the sweet confession 'MISMATCH,' the powerful vocals in 'Rush,' the deeply resonant rock ballad 'Heartbreak Time Machine,' and the sincere message in 'Who am I.' The album's quality was further enhanced by contributions from hitmakers like Bang Si-hyuk, who has been with &TEAM since their inception, and Soma Genda.

&TEAM, which debuted in Japan in 2023, has been solidifying its presence through various activities in Korea, including music shows and entertainment programs. With notable achievements in both Korea and Japan, fans are keenly anticipating &TEAM's future global endeavors.

Korean netizens are reacting enthusiastically, with comments like, "&TEAM's Korean debut is a massive success! So proud!", "1.2 million first-week sales are unbelievable! This is the &TEAM we know.", and "Please have more Korean activities!" showing strong support.