ILLIT earned a prestigious rookie award in Japan even before their official debut in the country.

According to their agency, Belift Lab, ILLIT has been selected as the recipient of the New Artist Award at the '66th Japan Record Awards.' 

The group expressed their excitement through Belift Lab, stating, "Our goal this year was to win a rookie award, and we’re so happy and honored to see this dream come true. We will continue to grow and present new music and performances for our fans."

The Japan Record Awards, organized by the Japan Composer’s Association, is one of the country’s most prestigious music award ceremonies, dating back to its inception in 1959. ILLIT’s achievement marks the first time in 13 years that a K-pop girl group has won this award, following Girls’ Generation and 2NE1. Notably, ILLIT is the first group to win this award without having officially debuted in Japan—a rare and extraordinary accomplishment.

Despite not having debuted in Japan, ILLIT has already gained significant popularity in the country with their Korean releases. Their debut mini-album 'Super Real Me,' released in March, featured the title track "Magnetic," which became a record-breaking hit. The song surpassed 100 million cumulative streams on the Japan Record Association and Oricon charts in the shortest time ever for a female group track. Reflecting ILLIT’s influence in short-form content trends, "Magnetic" also ranked 5th on TikTok Japan’s 'Song of the Summer 2024' list.

ILLIT has continued to dominate charts, claiming the top spot in the 'Tower Records Music 2024 Mid-Year Streaming Rankings' for new artists and being named the #1 trending artist in the 'Shibuya109 Lab Trend Awards 2024.'

Building on their growing popularity, ILLIT is set to appear on NHK’s 'Kohaku Uta Gassen,' Japan’s iconic year-end music program, broadcast annually on December 31. Known for featuring the most popular and influential artists of the year, the program is a cultural phenomenon, commanding top viewership and media attention.

ILLIT is actively promoting their second mini-album 'I'LL LIKE YOU' featuring the track "Tick-Tack." The addictive melody of "Tick-Tack" has made it a viral hit across social media, earning the top spot on popular audio rankings for Instagram Reels in both Korea and Japan as of November 20.

SEE ALSO: ILLIT is the highest-ranking K-pop group on the '2024 Billboard Year-End Charts'