Early TVXQ Career:
TVXQ made their debut in December 2003 performing their debut single "Hug" and an a capella version of the Christmas song "O Holy Night" with BoA. "Hug" went to #4 on the Korean chart, and it was followed by a second single "The Way U Are" which reached #2. TVXQ were launched on their way to success.
Korean Pop Market Success:
TVXQ's first album Tri-Angle debuted at #1 on the Korean charts in 2004 and ended up becoming one of the 10 bestselling albums of the year.
It has been followed by four more #1 Korean studio albums. The bestselling has been Mirotic released in 2008. Mirotic sold over 500,000 copies in South Korea alone. It was the first album in six years to accomplish that feat.
Japanese Pop Market Success:
Following their success at home in South Korea, TVXQ extended their popularity into the rest of Asia, particularly the Japanese market. In 2008, "Purple Line" became the group's first #1 pop single in Japan. Japanese sales continued to grow and in 2010 the single "Break Out!" broke the record held by Elton John's "Candle In the Wind" for the biggest first week singles sales by a foreign artist. In part due to their massive Japanese success, TVXQ have entered the Guinness Book of World Records with two records. The first is that their fan club Cassiopeia is cited as the world's largest with an estimated 1.2 million members. The second record is that of the world's most photographed celebrities with an estimate of being photographed over 500 million times.
TVXQ Music Videos:
Lawsuit and Splintering of TVXQ:
In July 2009, three members of TVXQ filed a lawsuit against SM Entertainment claiming their ongoing contract was unfair and was changed and extended without their knowledge or consent. A Korean court ruled in favor of the three group members. The trio formed the group JYJ and in October 2010 released the English language album The Beginning. It reached #1 in South Korea and was released in the US. Their first single from the album "Ayy Girl" was produced by and features Kanye West.
In November 2010 SM Entertainment announced that TVXQ would continue as a duo. The new configuration released their first album Keep Your Head Down in January 2011 and it reached #1 in South Korea.
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