The group ILLIT achieved back-to-back wins at the Japan Record Awards and set a record as the first K-pop group to do so.
On the 21st, according to HYBE Music Group label Belift Lab Inc., ILLIT (Yuna, Minju, Moka, Wonhee, Iroha) received the "Excellence Work Award" at the 67th Japan Record Awards for "Almond Chocolate."
The "Excellence Work Award" is given to 10 songs that represent the year based on artistry, originality and popularity. ILLIT's song was the only work by an overseas artist in this category this year, and this is also the first time a K-pop group's original Japanese song has received the "Excellence Work Award."
The 10 songs chosen for the "Excellence Work Award" become candidates for the Grand Prix at this ceremony. Accordingly, attention is on whether "Almond Chocolate" can win the Grand Prix at the ceremony, which will be broadcast live on TBS on the 30th of next month.
The Japan Record Awards is a music awards ceremony hosted by the Japan Composers' Association, which began in 1959 and is the longest-standing and most prestigious in the country.
ILLIT won the Rookie of the Year award at this ceremony last year with their debut song "Magnetic," which enjoyed global popularity. It was the first time in 13 years that a K-pop girl group had won the rookie award, and it was especially unusual for an overseas artist who had not released an official album in Japan to win the rookie award. With this, ILLIT set the milestone of being the first K-pop girl group to receive the "Rookie of the Year" and then the "Excellence Work Award" at the Japan Record Awards.
ILLIT, through their agency, said, "We are truly happy to receive meaningful awards for two consecutive years following last year. Thank you so much to everyone who loved 'Almond Chocolate,'" and added, "We will continue to work hard to deliver music that moves many people's hearts."
Released in February as the theme song for the Japanese film "I don't like you by face alone," "Almond Chocolate" is a song that highlights a nostalgic melody and ILLIT's distinctive clear vocal tone, and it received warm love locally. Five months after its release, the song surpassed 50 million cumulative streams and earned a "Gold" certification in the streaming category from the Recording Industry Association of Japan. That is the shortest record among songs by overseas artists released this year.
In addition, ILLIT made their official debut in Japan last September with their first single "Toki Yo Tomare" (original title 時よ止まれ) and swept the top ranks of major record charts. Thanks to this dazzling success, ILLIT has been confirmed to appear for the second consecutive year at Japan's representative year-end music shows "Kohaku Uta Gassen" and "FNS Music Festival."
Meanwhile, ILLIT will make a comeback on the 24th with their first single album "NOT CUTE ANYMORE." A pop-up to commemorate the release of their new record will be held at K-Town4U COEX in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, from the 25th to the 30th.
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