Lurker > YamaChan

Not that uncommon, or at the very least, it happened with Red Velvet. Irene was 24 when Yeri joined the group at only 16.

Currently in LE SSERAFIM, Sakura is also 24 with Eunchae being 16.

I'm really vibing with XG recently. There seems to be a dispute over whether they're jpop, kpop, internationalpop or whateverpop (I blame their company for this confusion), but I really like their songs, and their rap line is the best I have ever heard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7spCJxloLY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L4Visli9sA (FIRE!!!!)

My last post regarding their charting unless they do something insane again.

Wow.

https://twitter.com/NewJeansCharts/status/1620980922383319043?s=20&t=1q6o9-q9PiuG_gXPXKt7qA

https://twitter.com/NewJeansCharts/status/1620653746769518592?s=20&t=OtKrFP4TNk-T8P3YRpHbAQ

Legendary

Hanni has always impressed me, but Hyein has impressed me lately. Like I never would've guessed that almost haunting, melodic intro to Ditto was her or that she actually recorded that with her raw voice.

There have been a few times during some of the more vocally dominant parts of their songs where I was surprised it was Hyein and not Hanni.

She's getting a lot of good attention from that behind the scenes video.

KaZooo posted...

I'm not too sure about this idea. It's kinda impressive, but I hardly put that towards the musical value.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_qBGemF90U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzVtkdTpy_g

I think Hype Boy definitely fulfilled its position as a lead single. It's the brightest of all the tracks and has the "catchiest" choreography. Also helps they made so many video variants.

My favorite is probably Ditto. Usually holiday-timed releases have a more dedicated tone, and for them to pull it off as well as ridiculously well I feel put a stamp on the fact they're not just a group with a lucky/hot start. It's something of an indicator of "there's more where that came from".

They didn't shy away from going into topics at more depth, which for such a young group kinda makes older groups look a bit silly.

If you like Ditto, I highly recommend their recent behind the scenes video of them recording the vocals for both Ditto and OMG. This is simply awesome content.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mn5ZzRZ9yto&t=

Make sure you watch the MVs for OMG and Ditto. You won't regret it.

Hype Boy is still their best song for me too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wUKhEgnllc

Sakura is an S-Tier idol. Gorgeous, extremely intelligent, kind and hilarious even when she's not trying to be, and she's also a hardcore gamer and anime fan (her dream is to sing an anime OST for her favorite anime)

What's not to love about her?

But they're not funnier.

LSF is comedic gold and pure entertainment.

Ayo. It happened.

https://twitter.com/billboardcharts/status/1615389203700883457?s=20&t=iyuYUWAVEBoKn3UkyW304g

Not even 6 months old, and NewJeans becomes both the fastest and 5th K-Pop group overall to ever chart on the Billboard Hot 100, joining Wonder Girls, BTS, BLACKPINK and Twice.

Wow.

Ruddager posted...

Interesting, only 4 of the 9 loona members won their injunction to suspend contracts.

The remaining 5 made revisions in their contracts two or so years ago that the other 4 did not. The courts found the other 4 members had a similar contract to Chuu and thus decided they should get the same freedom to cancel out their contract with Blockberry.

What a fucking mess.

Okay. Ready for some more NewJeans spam, thread?

• NewJeans has been #1 on every hourly, daily, weekly chart in Korea for the past 400 hours. In case you're wondering, that's the most by a girl group ever. The only artists in front of them are BTS (Dynamite) and IU (Celebrity). It is looking like the only group that can potentially block NJ from getting the all-time record is...NewJeans
• Why? Because NewJeans also own the 2nd and 3rd spot on every single chart in Korea with OMG and Hype Boy respectively. Hype Boy is almost 6 months old by the way. Here's a visual: https://twitter.com/NewJeansCharts/status/1610989180196192256?s=20&t=g-1DG421We6Vh8Txm1R-pQ

• NewJeans is on track to debut on the Billboard Hot 100 next week. Yep. that's right. Ditto is that big. And they will be the first girl group of this generation to do it
• NewJeans is also the first girl group since 2016 to take the #1 spot on the Weekly Oricon chart in Japan. They've barely done any promos there outside of KCON and it hasn't mattered. Japan wants more.
• NewJeans is the first girl group of their generation to break through the UK Singles Chart. They are already the highest charting 4th gen song on the chart. They also started off 2023 on top of the QQ chart (the Chinese equivalent to Melon) with both Ditto and OMG

I usually spare this thread my chart nerd rants, but this goes back to what I said maybe a couple months ago? NewJeans is on a historic tear to start their careers, and they're not just big in Korea anymore. No girl group, not a single one, has had a start to their careers like this.

When Hype Boy finally exits the top 10, I'll start to gather some details on what the hell that monster song accomplished.

I mean it when I say this:

DAMN!

Let's be honest. They only won because Newjeans debuted 7 months into the year.

I love this song, their concept, the creativity of their label and the very fun and fresh personalities of the girls who bring it all together.

Like I read elsewhere, NJ perfectly encapsulate a nostalgic charm with a vibrant energy that can appeal to both older fans and younger fans.

And they are literally rewriting the record books right now.

Over 800,000 albums pre-ordered
Broke a melon record for most listeners in the first hour with OMG
Ditto has been #1 on all charts for days and the only way it won't have the girl group all-time record is if their own songs takes #1
They have 3 songs in the top 4 on Melon and 4 songs in the top 10. 2 of them came out in JULY

I have never seen a group debut, rise and conquer this fast. Which makes sense. Because it has never happened before.

That's funny. Ditto is stuck in my head.

Stay in the middle~
Like you a little~
Don't want no riddle~

I won't fill this thread with more chart data, but just know every factoid involving Ditto/NJ is preceded by the words "shortest", "fastest" and "biggest".

They're proving their epic debut was more than just hype. Boy.

I'll see myself out.

Only took them two hours to top the charts.

Fastest of any girl group this year

^Even more exciting for me is to see that Kara's When I Move is rapidly climbing the charts and about to crack the top 10.

Let all K-Pop companies learn from this. You don't have to abandon your girl groups the moment they all become women.

Kara. SNSD. This year they've shown the value of experienced idols being able to show why they became legends in the first place and release new music.

So tired of older groups getting abandoned and disbanded. K-Pop could benefit greatly from 3rd gen groups getting the same treatment, once they get a decade+ old (which is soon)

Um. Hype Boy just reached its peak again on Melon at #2. Four months after release. Above Antifragile, After Like and Nxde and, hell, even Attention.

As a serial chart watcher, I can say that's practically unheard of and is actually insane. Korea really loves Newjeans and really loves this song.

I don't know how you can follow up a debut like this to be honest, but I'm looking forward to their first comeback.

AsucaHayashi posted...

should i go see blackpink?

not really too much into kpop anymore(at least not modern) but bp is still somewhat fire and it's literally the only time i don't have to travel to another country just to catch a kpop concert. not to mention the concert venue is less than an hour away.

Go. I'm a casual fan, but I had a lot of fun at their concert.

I thought about sharing my thoughts on the recently concluded MMAs and MAMAs, but really I'm just happy to see Kara on stage again. Hara's absence will always be felt, but they are still one of my all-time favorite groups and just as gorgeous as ever.

The combo of Lupin + STEP + Mr is undefeated.

Attention and Hype Boy just simultaneously became the longest charting debut songs by a girl group in history on the Melon top 10.

Here's the full list:

#1. Attention - 15 Weeks*
#1. Hype Boy - 15 Weeks*
#2. ELEVEN - 14 Weeks
#3. Whistle - 8 Weeks
#4. Dalla Dalla - 7 weeks
#4. OOH-AHH - 7 Weeks
#4. Step Back - 7 Weeks
#4. Don't Touch Me - 7 Weeks
#5. Cookie - 6 weeks
#5. Fearless - 6 weeks

These 4th gen girl groups are putting up some crazy numbers in their first year

Also I am falling hard for Impurities by LSF. The choreo is phenomenal

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-_q7W7nFVs

This is one of the few times I'll compliment the camerawork on a music show. It's on point for Impurities

You didn't like Love Dive?

I think their popularity is legitimate, but it doesn't mean the rumors are illegitimate.

Didn't a formal investigation just start too? Regardless of the outcome, it's the group members that suffer most from shady company shenanigans.

Yes, let's just end the back and forth here. It's not worth the time or effort.

Just don't characterize me as an overzealous fanboy for any group besides Mamamoo, and even then, it needs to come with actual receipts that call my opinions into question :)

Speaking of, let me state my opinions cleanly without walls of text.

• NewJeans had the most successful girl group debut we've ever seen.
• IVE had the most successful rookie year by a girl group we've ever seen.
• G-Idle or IVE had the most successful year among girl groups. We'll see who gets the awards. Probably G-Idle because IVE is a rookie group.

I'll amend the original statement you took issue with:

• I think Hype Boy will be the most popular song of the year when it's all said and done, even if it doesn't have the total numbers just yet. It will be literal months before we'll know for sure. Chart longevity is a marathon not a sprint.

And I briefly read a couple headlines/forum threads about the Kakao stuff, and I see girl group stans using it to undermine Starship/IVE. I don't know the specifics though.

Ruddager posted...

My brother in christ, I'm living in Korea, I see all this stuff first hand.

I get that youre clearly a huge fan. They are very successful already, what theyve actually done speaks for itself, you dont need to over/under exaggerate aspects to try and inflate that

I get you like the song and it was popular, again, thats undeniable, but Im telling you with no uncertainty as someone who lives in Korea, those artists I listed all released more popular songs here, Im not "just looking at charts". One of those 3 will win every Daesang this year, and those are based largely on impact.

And there is no hyperbole about the size of their pre-debut fandom, again, if you were on Korean sites in the last 3 years at all you'd know that. They werent just some group that came out of nowhere and amassed a fandom that buys 500k+ albums in the week, those fans were already around and waiting, they had 440k pre-orders. The fanwars between "Min Heejin GG" and "Sakura's GG" before anyone knew anything about either of the groups were huge.

Yes, their debut promotions were irregular but that ended up working more in their favour than it did against them as it was something people hadn't seen before and that piqued interest, maybe even moreso than if they had done it the traditional way. Min Heejin took an educated gamble with the marketing and it paid off. But the HYBE and Min Heejin factor are what allowed that to even work at the end of the day, an actual "out of nowhere" gg would never get any attention doing that

My fellow K-Pop stan, were this a discussion about the nuances of Korean culture, your having a residence there would be a wonderful qualification, but we are talking about K-Pop and the overall popularity of a group, and there are plenty of ways to analyze and determine that from the comfort of one's home, even if it isn't in Korea.

So let's not pull the "I live in Korea" card; it's unnecessary. It's also completely disingenuous to lead off your response with"youre clearly a huge fan", as if I can only hold the opinions that I do if I'm being a deluded fanboy.

You can disagree with my opinion, but don't insult my intelligence.

You're also conflating a conversation about fandom with a conversation about overall popularity and charting.

I'm sure there were plenty of hardcore fans anticipating whatever group was going to debut from Min Heejin's company, but people outside of the fandom were not checking for them, and if you think a large fandom equates to instant success on the charts, you are very mistaken.

Most people thought "Who are NewJeans?" and then listened to their music.

NewJeans didn't just gather a lot of fans and sell a bunch of albums; they dominated the charts for nearly two months. Attention, Hype Boy and Cookie occupying the #1, #2, and #3 spots on the chart respectively would be literally impossible from fandom alone. That means people like me, who weren't invested in silly fanwars, heard the songs for the first time and instantly loved them.

Charting is largely the result of public interest in a song and group, not fandom. Melon, what has historically been the biggest chart in Korea, has even taken actions to further neutralize the impact on fandoms on streaming numbers. If you want to take issue with that, then you better be prepared to argue NewJeans and IVE have bigger fandoms than BlackPink and Twice.

Another misrepresentation of my opinion is this notion that I'm calling NewJeans the most successful group this year. I didn't.

"Most successful group of the year" and "most successful debut I've seen" are two entirely different statements. NewJeans hasn't even made their first comeback, and their songs dropped in the second half of 2022. Of course Love Dive or Tomboy or Still Life are going to have the best numbers overall, and of course groups that made multiple comebacks with all hit songs will have objectively better overall performance.

But I digress, if you don't think NewJeans had the most successful girl group debut ever, that's fine. My thinking otherwise shouldn't ruin your day, and I've already made it clear you're not going to change my opinion.

But leave it at disagreement. Cut off the extra fat of dismissing me as a huge fan or accusing me of exaggeration.

I don't even know what your main point of contention is anymore, because I literally listed several factors for why they have been so successful, with the last one being the strength of their company and creative team. I clearly don't think they're mega popular for no reason at all.

You almost seem offended I said they had the biggest debut by a girl group ever. Don't worry. I literally like Le Sserafim just as much as NewJeans, and I like Mamamoo considerably more than any musical act. I think they're all very accomplished groups.

Ruddager posted...

Its a weird comparison because BP only released 2, if they had released more songs with more MV's they would've also charted them

Huh? From the moment Min Heejin went over to HYBE in 2019 kpop fans/the kpop world have been hotly anticipating and hyping up her upcoming girl group. The group had a huge fandom for years before anyone knew even a single detail about them because of her involvement. The woman was responsible for some of the most beloved concepts/comebacks in girl group history

Idle, IVE, and Lim Young Woong have all released songs were objectively more popular

I'm not here to argue, so you can disagree if you like. My opinion isn't going to change, but a few things.

How is comparing them to BlackPink weird? If we're talking about all-time girl group debuts, BlackPink will obviously be in the conversation.

It's no fault of NewJeans that BlackPink didn't release more music. That's not exactly unusual for them.

Plus it wasn't just the number of songs. Literally no girl group has debuted and performed on the charts like NewJeans did with Attention, Hype Boy and Cookie all at the same time.

Ruddager posted...

Huh? From the moment Min Heejin went over to HYBE in 2019 kpop fans/the kpop world have been hotly anticipating and hyping up her upcoming girl group. The group had a huge fandom for years before anyone knew even a single detail about them because of her involvement. The woman was responsible for some of the most beloved concepts/comebacks in girl group history

This is hyperbolic. Yes, people anticipated the group she would debut, but to say a nonexistent group has a huge fandom is a bit much.

Plus let's not act like there was anything typical about their debut. There was literally zero promo or hype. They just dropped their album and became superstars over night.

Their album drop was so sudden that people (idiots) thought they were just being used to draw attention away from the whole Kim Garam (former Le Sserafim member) scandal.

Ruddager posted...

Idle, IVE, and Lim Young Woong have all released songs were objectively more popular

That is extremely debatable, and it's not one I feel like having tonight.

I think Hype Boy will have more longevity than any of those songs.

It peaked at #2 (just behind Attention) and is now experiencing a second life, rising above Attention on the charts, and is currently a top 4 song again, even surging past After Like by IVE.

Besides, you can't just look at charts for Hype Boy. Its impact and popularity in Korea is absolutely massive.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhzIFsNu0pA

You can't escape its popularity even in the Korean military

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN-DcynE4bw

I don't think there is a point in downplaying what this baby group has accomplished in less than half a year. Nitpick the specifics all you want, but the accomplishment itself is unprecedented.

accord posted...

why exactly is new jeans so successful? I Iike their song hype boy, but they seem to be a pretty typical girl group.

Hmmmmm. I think a few factors.

1. Their title songs are just that good. You can't find a celebrity in South Korea not covering or dancing to Hype Boy. JYP himself just got some buzz for dancing to it just last night at a music show.
2. The members are all objectively very pretty and have personalities to match. Makes it really easy to stan them
3. They're very strong performers right out the gate, so they're not just a collection of pretty faces. For rookies, they are already performing at college festivals, KCON and going to awards shows
4. They have the power of Hybe Entertainment (formerly BigHit and responsible for a group you maybe heard of called BTS) and their CEO, Min Hee-jin, is SM's former creative director, responsible for branding Girls' Generation, f(x) and Red Velvet during her tenure

So their outstanding success right out the gates isn't too surprising when you look at these factors.

You may disagree, but a popular sentiment I've seen on forums and across social media is that they have a very natural girls-next-door vibe to them that distinguishes them from other active girl groups.

NewJeans impresses me because they really just dropped out of nowhere and completely took the K-Pop industry by storm. I won't fill this topic with boring accomplishments stats, but believe me when I say it's indisputably the most successful debut by a K-Pop group ever.

BlackPink had two songs in the top 10, but NewJeans had 3. 2 of them in the top 2. And even BlackPink had literal years of pre-debut hype.

Nobody was thinking about NewJeans until they caught our attention out of nowhere. :)

And Hype Boy is straight up the most popular song of the year in my opinion. It's rising on the charts again.

Yes, they're really young but they are also just magnetic. And I don't feel bad for being such a fan already, because I loved their music and couldn't get Attention and especially Hype Boy out of my head for months.

Not gonna lie.

I'm a MooMoo (Mamamoo fan) for life and they will forever and always be my ultimate favs.

But both Newjeans and LE SSERAFIM have won me over. Have you watched their content? Newjeans are just adorable, and LE SSERAFIM is the first group since Mamamoo to make me laugh to the point of tears.

I love their title tracks and their performances, but it's the stuff that groups do between promos that solidifies a person as a true fan when it comes to Kpop. To me at least.

LE SSERAFIM might be the most balanced girl group in K-Pop. And Newjeans is right behind them.

Hybe Girl Groups really came through after all the speculation all these years.

KainWind posted...

I've heard their tour has been pretty underwhelming. I might have gone if they came close to me but it's still pretty expensive. It seems like they don't even have to try with how popular they are with so few songs comparatively.

I went to the first concert date in Houston and had a great time. And from my observations, most of the people who actually went to their concert had a similar experience.

There has been a lot of negativity spewed by people who haven't even gone to a single concert, fueled by cherry picked 5 second clips of the members not being 100% synced for some random choreo.

It's sad to see really. I'm the last person to defend BLACKPINK, given I've had my own clashes with Blinks historically, but the concert was high energy, fast paced and explosive.

I don't regret spending the money.

MAMAMOO returns on 10/11

This MooMoo is excited, because they don't promote as a group half as much as they did during their peak activity years.

My expectations are high, because after 8+ years, I still don't feel like there is any group in K-Pop, particularly among the girls, who bring such a unique package to the table like MAMAMOO.

KaZooo posted...

I don't do fancams (kinda think they're creepy).
And I also wouldn't want to imply any kind of hair-based discrimination.

But long hair changes up a lot on Winter. Fascinating to me as far as I guess visual/aesthetic "science" goes. It makes her look misleadingly taller. Supposedly she called the shots on her look/outfit for this performance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUCwupHGV74

I always forget how much of a K-Pop fan you are. Truly fascinating.

I tried to tag you, but it wouldn't let me so quote it is.

After 1.5 years of ignoring them and their debuts, I'm finally starting to fall for the 4th gen girl groups.

NewJeans was the catalyst though. I love Attention and love Hype Boy even more, and both Cookie (controversial lyrics aside) and Hurt are great songs.

This generation of girl groups is going to be deep.