The group's 2009 single "Gee" was declared "Song of the Decade" by Melon and regarded as one of the first K-Pop songs to gain international attention, according to Google Statistics. Ian Martin of "The Japan Times" noted that the group's popularity was still strong even after the Korean Wave appeal had died down in Japan in 2011–12. During 2009–2011, the group generated ₩68.8 billion ($62 million), raking in $20 million in profits and becoming the highest profit earner for their label SM Entertainment. By 2012, Girls' Generation had sold over 30 million digital singles and 4.4 million physical albums, making them one of the best-selling artists in South Korea. Their songs have been widely recognized as the signature songs of K-pop: "Pitchfork" included "I Got a Boy" and "Gee" in their list of 20 essential K-pop songs, crediting them as the "magnum opus" of modern Korean music. "Spin" labelled "Run Devil Run" and "Gee" the 11th and 5th greatest K-pop songs of all time, respectively. "Billboard" placed "I Got a Boy" at number 21 on their list of the 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs, describing it as "proof to why girl-group music is in a league of its own in terms of excitement and boundary pushing."