K-pop superband BTS has become the first international act to be best-selling artist of the year in Japan.

According to the annual rankings released by Japanese music tracker Oricon on Friday, the septet placed No. 1 on the total sales by artist, based on the aggregated sales of albums, DVDs, online streamings and online singles.

The company said BTS is the first non-Japanese artist to top the annual comprehensive sales chart.

Oricon earlier said BTS' Japanese-language compilation album "BTS, The Best," released in June, sold 993,000 copies in Japan, becoming the best-selling album in the country in 2021.

The seven-piece act has been on a vacation since early December following in-person concerts in the United States. (Yonhap)