| K-pop group Ateez / Courtesy of KQ Entertainment |
K-pop boy group Ateez's latest EP, "The World Ep. 2: Outlaw," has landed at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, marking the band's highest-charting entry yet.
The six-track album had earned 105,500 equivalent album units in the United States since its release on June 16, including 101,000 units of album sales, Billboard said in a chart preview Sunday (U.S. time). The latest chart will be released Tuesday.
This marks the band's highest-charting record yet and the third top 10 entry of its career.
The group previously hit the top 10 with "Spin Off: From the Witness" at No. 7 in January and "The World Ep. 1: Movement at No. 3 in 2022.
"The World EP. 2: Outlaw is the 10th album to sell at least 100,000 copies in a single week in 2023," Billboard said. Seven of the 10 albums are K-pop titles, with sales largely driven by collectible CD variants, it added.
Debuting in 2018, the eight-piece group has been known for its intense stage performances and unique music style.
"The World Ep. 2: Outlaw" is the band's ninth EP and the second installment of its "The World" album series that began with "The World Ep. 1: Movement," which dropped in July.
The album depicts the group's bold attempt to change the world, where people live in a continuous cycle of life and death like machines without feeling any particular emotions.
It comprises six tracks ― "Bouncy," "This World," "Dune," "Django," "Wake Up" and "Outlaw." (Yonhap)