List of Oricon number-one albums of 2008

The highest-selling albums and mini-albums in Japan are ranked in the Oricon Weekly Chart, published by Oricon Style magazine.[1] The data are compiled by Oricon based on each album's weekly physical sales. Thirty-seven albums reached the peak of the chart in 2008.

R&B singer Namie Amuro's Best Fiction had the longest chart run of 2008. The album remained at the top of the charts from its issue date of August 11 to September 15.[2] Amuro became the first solo female artist in 28 years to have an album chart number one for six consecutive weeks after Saki Kubota (久保田早紀, Kubota Saki), who had an album at number one for seven consecutive weeks in 1980.[3] Pop singer Mariya Takeuchi's greatest hits album Expressions stayed atop the charts for three consecutive weeks, making her the first artist over 50 years of age to accomplish this.[2] Other artists who had extended runs on the chart include Kobukuro, Kumi Koda, Exile, Madonna, Superfly, Greeeen, and Mr. Children; each spent two straight weeks on the chart.

Korean pop singer BoA's Japanese album The Face debuted at number one, making her the second artist after Ayumi Hamasaki to have six consecutive number-one studio albums since her debut.[4] American pop singer Madonna is the only Western act to reach number one during 2008 with her eleventh studio album, Hard Candy. It became the singer's first album in 18 years to debut at number one on the Oricon chart.[5] With the release of their second album, Game, girl group Perfume became the second technopop group (after Yellow Magic Orchestra) to have a number-one album on the charts.[6]

B'z The Best "Ultra Pleasure" was hard rock duo B'z's 22nd number-one album, surpassing Yumi Matsutoya for having the most number-one albums.[7] Their record increased to 23 number-one albums with the release of B'z The Best "Ultra Treasure".[8] Rock singer Yui's B-side album My Short Stories debuted atop the charts, making her the second female artist after Seiko Matsuda to have a B-side album debut at the top.[9]

The best-selling album overall of 2008 was R&B group Exile's Exile Love, released in late 2007, which sold over 1,470,000 copies. The second-best-selling album was Amuro's Best Fiction, which sold more than 1,447,000 copies, followed by pop folk band Kobukuro's 5296, with nearly 1,405,000 albums sold. The fourth- and fifth-best-selling albums were Exile Catchy Best and Heart Station by Exile and pop singer Hikaru Utada respectively. Exile Catchy Best sold over 1,222,000 copies, while Heart Station sold a little over 997,000 copies.[10]

  1. ^ "Oricon Entertainment Inc" (in Japanese). Japan Association of Professional Recording Studios. Archived from the original on April 1, 2005. Retrieved April 9, 2009.
  2. ^ a b "Mariya Takeuchi ranks in first place for three weeks in a row - a first time record for an artist above the age of 50" (in Japanese). Oricon. October 21, 2008. Archived from the original on October 1, 2011. Retrieved April 9, 2009.
  3. ^ "Namie Amuro carries on weight! Sixth consecutive week in top place - a record after Dream Comes True since 14 years and 8 months" (in Japanese). Oricon. September 9, 2008. Archived from the original on March 15, 2009. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
  4. ^ "BoA achieves a record now second only after Ayumi Hamasaki" (in Japanese). Livedoor. March 4, 2008. Archived from the original on December 11, 2008. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
  5. ^ ""Thank you, Prime Minister Kimura": Queen Madonna dings no.1 since about 18 years" (in Japanese). Oricon. May 6, 2008. Archived from the original on August 18, 2012. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
  6. ^ "Perfume in first place. A striking record after 25 years since YMO" (in Japanese). Oricon. April 22, 2008. Archived from the original on February 26, 2009. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
  7. ^ "B'z sets a tie-breaking record with its 22nd album in first place - achieves a grand dominance of six major Oricon historical rankings" (in Japanese). Oricon. June 24, 2008. Archived from the original on October 1, 2011. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
  8. ^ "B'z renews its own record with the 23rd album winning first place" (in Japanese). Oricon. September 23, 2008. Archived from the original on December 1, 2008. Retrieved April 11, 2009.
  9. ^ "Yui achieves a striking record after 24 years and 8 months since Seiko Matsuda" (in Japanese). Barks. November 18, 2008. Archived from the original on March 26, 2009. Retrieved April 8, 2009.
  10. ^ "Special article: Oricon ranking of the year 2008" (in Japanese). Oricon. December 11, 2008. Archived from the original on November 29, 2011. Retrieved April 11, 2009.