Circle Chart reveals the top 10 K-pop songs and albums of December 2022

On January 13, 2023, Circle Chart released a list of K-pop songs and albums that were ranked high in the month of December 2022. Circle Chart, formerly known as Gaon, is South Korea's national music chart that records the sales and streams of K-pop songs and albums and releases monthly, weekly, as well as yearly charts revealing the songs that garnered the most attention in that time period.

Circle Chart is the Korean equivalent of other significant music chart labels such as Billboard in the United States and Oricon in Japan. The charts don't just record online streams of K-pop songs, but also record physical sales of K-pop albums and rank them accordingly.

While the two recent lists have many fourth-generation and rookie group songs popping up, they also feature a handful of artists from the other three generations of the K-pop industry. From Super Junior to NewJeans, quite a diverse list of idols sit on Circle Chart's list.

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K-pop songs and albums that ranked high in December 2022, according to Circle Chart

The first list looks at the top 10 K-pop songs that were streamed the most in the month of December 2022 along with their stream counts. The list has many new and popular faces like LE SSERAFIM, NewJeans, Zico, NCT DREAM, etc.

1) Younha - Event Horizon: 119,802,682 streams

2) NewJeans - Hype Boy: 84,541,198 streams

3) LE SSERAFIM - ANTI FRAGILE: 75,065,784 streams

4) IVE - After LIKE: 67,009,670 streams

5) JUSTHIS, DON MALIK, Huh, K HAN, Mckdaddy, Los - MY WAY: 62,775,412 streams

6) (G)I-DLE - Nxde: 62,217,455 streams

7) NewJeans - Ditto: 60,700,807 streams

8) Zico ft. Homies - New Thing: 59,740,147 streams

9) NewJeans - Attention: 58,616,257 streams

10) NCT DREAM - Candy: 56,450,567 streams

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The next list looks at Circle Chart's record of the top 10 K-pop albums that received the most sales in December 2022. It strictly counts only the physical sales of the albums and not the digital sales or streams of the albums. It included the artists, their albums, the number of sales it received along with the distributor through which the sales were counted.

1) NCT DREAM - Candy: 1,395, 187 sales (Dreamus)

2) Red Velvet - The ReVe Festival 2022 Birthday: 575,854 sales (Dreamus) (Total sales: 803,108)

3) BTS RM - Indigo: 544,294 sales (YG PLUS)

4) ATEEZ - SPINOFF: FROM THE WITNESS: 252,291 sales (Genie Music, Stone Music Entertainment)

5) ITZY - CHESHIRE: 224,078 sales (Dreamus) (Total sales: 1,003,533)

6) BTS RM - Indigo (Weverse): 195,069 sales (YG PLUS)

7) ATEEZ - SPIN OFF: FROM THE WITNESS (POCA): 189,734 sales (Genie Music, Stone Music Entertainment)

8) NCT DREAM - Winter (SMC): 1649,270 sales (Dreamus)

9) Super Junior - The Road: Celebration: 164,426 sales (Dreamus)

10) SMTOWN - 2022 Winter SMTOWN: SMCU PALACE: 161,469 sales (Dreamus)

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Fans react to the Circle Chart list

With NCT DREAM appearing more than once in both the charts with their winter mini album and other contributions through the SMTOWN album, fans couldn't help but feel proud of their artist.

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Netizens have also noted that due to shipment delays, certain albums are not counted in Circle Chart's report. Fans of K-pop idols whose work hasn't been reflected in the chart wished for a revision of the charts out of respect for the hard work and effort poured in by both the artists and their fandom.

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Regardless, for the time being, the K-pop fandom is celebrating the diverse list of songs and albums that have received worldwide exposure, which only seems to increase with every year.

About the author

Aishwarya is a pop culture writer who covers K-drama and K-pop at Sportskeeda. After completing her Bachelor's in English and Communication Skills, she sought a job that allowed her to explore her passion, and being a K-pop and K-drama reporter felt like the ideal fit. Aishwarya has 3 years of experience under her belt and previously took on several internships in the industry that further motivated her in choosing writing as a career.

Aishwarya believes in conducting extensive research and verifying facts with the help of reputable sources to produce accurate articles. She also spends a significant amount of time on Twitter to understand how netizens are reacting to the latest trends in the industry before crafting her content.

She admires SUGA from BTS for his dedication to his work and aspires to immerse herself into the things she loves, just like him. If she could go back in time, she would jump at the opportunity to be part of ""Reply 1988,"" a K-drama set in a time when neighborhood relationships were cherished and interpersonal connections were of utmost importance. Although she loves how technology has advanced, she would also love to experience living in an era before it was invented.

When Aishwarya's not writing and reading about the latest developments in the industry, she spends her time crocheting, sketching, cycling, reading Mangas, and cooking.

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Edited by Upasya Bhowal