The Phase Opens at No. 6 Worldwide
MONSTA X’s new EP The Phase reached No. 6 on the Worldwide iTunes Album Chart, according to a September 5 StarNews report. The album topped local iTunes charts in five countries: Finland, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, and the Philippines. It also entered the top five in 10 countries, including Singapore and Thailand.
Why Southeast Asia Is Central to This Result
No. 1 Markets
Three of the five No. 1 markets are in Southeast Asia: Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. The Phase and its music video for title track MAGIC came out at 1 p.m. KST on September 4. That time matched noon local time in Malaysia and the Philippines. In Indonesia, the release landed at 11 a.m. local time.
Singapore and Thailand
Singapore and Thailand placed inside the top five on iTunes, though StarNews did not report their exact rank. Thailand also received the 11 a.m. local release, the same slot as Vietnam. Outside Southeast Asia, The Phase reached No. 1 on K-pop album charts in both the United States and Brazil, which shows buying demand far from Asia.
What Is on MONSTA X’s New EP
The Phase is a six-track EP. The tracklist runs MAGIC, Type X, SURVIVOR, Electric Heart, That’s My Girl, and Sweet Night, Sweet Morning, according to Yonhap News Agency. Joohoney worked on four of the six songs, including title track MAGIC. Hyungwon co-wrote and co-composed the closing track, Sweet Night, Sweet Morning, allkpop reported.
MAGIC Begins Music-Show Promotions
MONSTA X gave the first music-show performance of MAGIC on KBS2’s Music Bank on September 4. The group wore black leather styling for the stage. The choreography included a point move compared to a swinging pendulum, according to BNT News. The performance marked the group’s first live promotion of the title track after its same-day digital release.
The Billboard Benchmark to Watch
MONSTA X’s previous Korean album, THE X, debuted at No. 31 on the Billboard 200 in September 2025. That album also reached No. 6 on both the Top Album Sales and Top Current Album Sales charts in the United States, Soompi reported at the time. The Phase has not yet received a Billboard chart placement. Its early iTunes performance in the U.S. K-pop chart, where it reached No. 1, gives American fans a comparison point ahead of any Billboard update.
North American Fans Have October Tour Dates
MONSTA X will play 10 shows in North America as part of THE X : NEXUS tour, running from October 3 to October 24, 2026. The route includes Fairfax, New York, Boston, Toronto, Rosemont, Irving, Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle, according to Live Nation Entertainment. The tour opens in Fairfax on October 3 and closes in Seattle on October 24, with a Toronto date on October 10 and a Los Angeles show on October 20.
Ticket availability changes by city and date. Fans should check each venue’s official ticket page or Live Nation’s listing directly rather than relying on secondhand reports of sold-out shows.
Editor’s Take
iTunes album charts reflect purchases rather than streams, so the results above show early buying demand in the markets listed, with Southeast Asia accounting for three of the five No. 1s. They are not a Billboard placement, and as the post notes, no Billboard ranking for The Phase had been reported at the time. The North American tour dates give the next chance to see how that demand carries over.
Sources
- StarNews · 2026-09-05
- Soompi · 2026-08-06
- Yonhap News Agency · 2026-09-04
- allkpop
- BNT News via Daum · 2026-09-05
- Live Nation Entertainment · 2026-04-06
- Soompi · 2025-09-16
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