ILLIT returns to 'THE FIRST TAKE' with 'Almond Chocolate', captivating fans with their beautiful voices and unique arrangements.

ILLIT appeared again on 'THE FIRST TAKE' and captivated fans with their beautiful singing in 'Almond Chocolate' following 'Magnetic'. Yesterday (15th) at 10 PM, ILLIT appeared in the 600th episode of the YouTube channel 'THE FIRST TAKE' and showcased their first original Japanese song 'Almond Chocolate', which created a whirlwind in the first half of this year. ILLIT previously appeared in episode 596, presenting a city pop arrangement of their debut song 'Magnetic'. The comments section of the video and social media were flooded with positive feedback such as 'Each member's voice is charming' and 'Sophisticated arrangement, I can't stop listening'. When it was announced that they would appear again with 'Almond Chocolate', many comments of anticipation were received. 'Almond Chocolate' is ILLIT's first original Japanese song released digitally in February this year. It was used as the theme song for the movie 'I Can't Fall in Love Just by Looks' (released on March 7), and gained attention for being produced in collaboration with music producer Pdogg, known for working with SEKAI NO OWARI's Nakajin and BTS's hit songs. This song expresses passionate feelings and love by likening their favorite to 'almond chocolate', making it a song for fans. In 'THE FIRST TAKE', it was reborn with a non-beat acoustic arrangement. Set to a beautiful melody featuring acoustic guitar and piano, ILLIT showcased their clear and sweet singing voice in a sophisticated atmosphere. In particular, Wonhee's three high notes, which received acclaim in the original song, and the overlapping main and sub vocals of the members reaffirmed ILLIT's high singing ability. The special arrangement allows listeners to feel the sweet love depicted in 'Almond Chocolate' even more purely and sweetly. 'Almond Chocolate' has recorded an unusual hit as a Japanese original song by a K-POP artist, becoming a representative song for ILLIT alongside their debut song 'Magnetic'. The sparkling J-POP style melody and straightforward lyrics about sweet love have captured the hearts of listeners, resonating especially with Gen Z. Starting from influencers popular among teenagers, the song went viral through TikTok dance challenge videos, and 'Almond Chocolate (Sped Up)' entered the TOP 10 of the TikTok music chart for five consecutive weeks, maintaining stable popularity. It continues to achieve long hits on major Japanese charts. In the 'Oricon Weekly Streaming Ranking' published on April 9, it ranked 10th for the highest position and highest number of plays among overseas girl groups and songs released this year. In the Apple Music 'Weekly Song Ranking', it rose to 6th place (aggregation period: March 31 - April 6), recording the second-highest position among K-POP girl group original songs in Japan (according to Universal Music). According to the mid-year chart released by Billboard JAPAN, both 'Magnetic' and 'Almond Chocolate' ranked 58th and 80th respectively on the overall chart 'Hot 100', making ILLIT the only K-POP artist to have two songs ranked on that chart. Even six months after its release, the heat has not cooled down, and according to the Japan Record Association's streaming certification, it surpassed 50 million cumulative plays as of July, achieving 'Gold' certification. This accomplishment marks the fastest 'Gold' certification among songs released by foreign artists this year (according to Universal Music).