Some K-Pop girl groups launched in 2021-2022 have performed well on the music charts, indicating a golden age for fourth-generation girl groups and shattering the long-held theory that K-pop girl groups Pop lag behind boy bands in terms of sales. . albums, concert tickets and promotional items.
Historically, boy bands had a large following of fiercely loyal fandoms. In contrast, girl groups needed to attract a larger audience with their music as male fans generally handled the fanboy with less enthusiasm.
Here are five of the strongest fourth-generation girl groups by album sales that debuted in 2021-2022.
1. New jeans
NewJeans sold an impressive 311,271 copies of their self-titled debut EP in its first week of release, the highest first-week sales of any debut album by a girl group. In less than a month, the group also ranked number one on Cantaloupe, one of the most dominant streaming platforms in Korea. Her debut single “Attention” topped the charts for more than two weeks since August 31.
2.IVE
IVE’s ‘Love Dive’ album sold 338,141 copies in its first week of release, more than double its previous record of 152,229 set by its debut single ‘Eleven’ last year. Her third single “After Like” broke that record, selling an even more impressive total of 924,363 copies in its first week of release, nearly tripling her debut record.
3. Spa
aespa debuted in 2020, but its achievement this year is significant on this list. Their second mini-album “Girls” sold a staggering 1,126,068 copies according to the hanteo chart, making them the first K-Pop girl group to accomplish this feat. “Girls” is also the best-selling album in Hanteo chart history.
4. The Ssérafim
The Sserafim sold 307,450 copies in its first week of release in May, with 176,861 actual copies sold on its first day, the highest sales volume for a girl group on its first day of release.
5. Guardian
Based on Hanteo Chart, Kep1er’s mini album “DOUBLAST” sold 287,109 copies in its first week of release in June, surpassing their previous first week record of 206,569 for their debut mini album “First Impact. ” earlier this year.
Lee Hye-jinAssistant Clinical Professor of Communication at the USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalismstreamlined three factors why these fourth-generation girl groups work so well.
First, they debuted under powerful labels. The Sserafim, aespa, and NMIXX were known as the first girl groups created by BTS’s HYBE label, SM’s new girl group TWICE, and ITZY’s younger brother group, respectively, even before their official debuts. Their powerful management companies and the success of other artists under the same labels gave them greater visibility early on. IVE is also represented by Starship Entertainment, which propelled Monsta X and WJSN (Cosmic Girls) to fame.
—Lee Hye-jin
Professor Lee says that fans’ familiarity with certain members is the second factor in their popularity, and song choice is the third factor. ive Jang Won Young Yes Ahn Yujin and Le Sserafim’s Cherry tree Yes kim chaewon they were already enjoying the fandoms before their debut as they were once part of the disbanded project group ONLY.
There is certainly an indirect effect of the popularity of IZ*ONE on the success of IVE and Le Sserafim.
Kep1er members also had a chance to introduce themselves through an audition show titled “Girls Planet 999” (2021) before their debut, and STAYC has Sieun, a former child actor and daughter of famous Korean singer Park Nam – Jung in the group. .
The final contributing factor is their songs. Most of them are just pop songs and they are easy to hum, sing and dance. They are lower pitched and in a comfortable singing range.
—Lee Hye-jin
Kim Jin Wooprofessor of music economics at Seoul Institute of the Arts and principal researcher at Gaon Paintsays that after black pink became the first K-Pop girl group to sell a million albums in 2020, K-Pop insiders realized that female acts could amass huge fans and thus started launching girl groups using the concept of girl crush, to attract female fans from all over the world. world. The concept of girl crush in K-Pop refers to strong, confident, and independent women who can inspire admiration from female fans.
Professor Lee, however, feels that the concept of crushes on girls is no longer applicable. For her, the girl groups released in 2021-2022 showed “Different aspects of how a girl group looks and sounds.” NewJeans is casual and retro with a late 1990s feel. He described aespa as “more experimental and avant-garde with its sound and music, while STAY he plays with the tenderness of his limbs”. The Sserafim has a strong and confident vibe, while IVE has a romantic touch to their music.
It seems that diversity in sound, style, and portrayal of femininity are some of the defining characteristics of fourth-generation girl groups. They’ve also had a bigger presence on platforms like TikTok, and that fact is part of why their songs have different sound styles these days: So-called maximalist and complex songs are less likely to go viral on TikTok.
—Lee Hye-jin
The success of these new girl groups proves that there is no formula for them to flourish as long as they have quality songs and distinctive personalities.