Korea's Next top girl group 2018 mix: Who will snatch SNSD's crown (omona semi-original part 1)

[pikapika217.livejournal.com]

While looking through my email for something else I ran into a reply email I got to this fantastic post. Noting how most of those groups were gone and with SNSD officially riding off into the sunset I thought it might be fun to update and write an omona (semi, because the original wasn't my idea) original about it.


(this is an omona original written by pikapika217)



What better place to start than with the top/most likely groups?

Name: Twice TWICE!

Debut: 2015

Agency: JYP Entertainment

Description: While their initial single 'Like Ooh-aah' was a success it wasn't until Cheer Up & TT that they really began to gain steady traction. With 6 korean mini albums (including the pending What is Love?), a full korean album, a repackage, and several japanese releases Twice TWICE! seems poised to take over as this generations's big group

Hits: TT, Cheer-Up, Likey to name a few

Standout member: Sana, alongside Tzuyu

Strengths: While JYP can be a mess at managing groups the songs provided are almost always good and hold the distinction as the girl group with the fastest video to reach 300m views. Not to mention that they are all stars at scoring CFs and viral moments such as #ShyShyShy

Weaknesses: their voices An uneven vocal playing field vocally can be disaster if not perfectly balanced and while I personally liked Signal it was their first mis step. Not to mention a zig zagging of cute vs. slightly more mature concepts could leave the public confused eventually.

Scandals: Tzuyu's controversy about listed nationality comes to mind but so far so good.

Their next concept if they want to get to the top: Seated near the top it's about maintaining the bops and viral dance moments.

Percentage of chances of becoming the #1 girlgroup: 70% - 80%. The public loves them and so does the charts so it's all up in the air.

Name: Red Velvet

Debut: 2014

Agency: SM Entertainment

Description: The only group left standing from 2014's post Red Velvet has picked up a member since then as well as some steam, proving themselves to be formidable contenders for the throne. Two full albums, one repackage, five mini albums and a TBA japanese single RV seem to be working just as hard as TWICE.

Hits: Ice Cream Cake, Dumb Dumb, Peek-A-Boo

Standout member: Joy, thought not by much

Strengths: Having firmly branched away from being compared to f(x) - both by having 5 members and relatively frequent comebacks - Red Velvet has carved a niche for themselves with smooth vocal harmonies & a blend of pop/RnB sounds. Acting and variety show roles have also increased their popularity substantially.

Weaknesses: SM is still treating them well - for now - but we all know how fickle that can be.

Scandals: While cited as the standout member last time Wendy remains so for all the wrong reasons, having not one but two scandals involving 'acting' like black people. girl, bye!

Their next concept if they want to get to the top: With Bad Boy under their belt perhaps a summer single is the best fit as while I despise Red Flavor other people adored it.

Percentage of chances of becoming the #1 girlgroup: 70 - 80%. Versatility and fantastic vocal harmonies can only mean good things for this group and if it's not twice TWICE! it'll be them.

Name: BlackPink (in your airy-uh!)

Debut: 2016

Agency: YG

Description: YG's first girl group in almost a decade BlackPink holds the distinction of being the only one on the list to score their first music show win within a week of debut. While they don't have a mini the five songs they have released have all topped the charts.

Hits: Whistle, Play with Fire

Standout member: Lisa the rapper, Jennie

Strengths: Being YG girls affords them an effortless cool that clearly is being leaned into and so far they're avoiding 2NE1's pitfalls from styling and conceptual standpoints. Strong visuals and stronger vocals are why this group is poised to succeed.

Weaknesses: At least it would be if they weren't signed to YG who would rather cut off his nose to spite his face and seems to hate girl groups despite their success. Also, getting more than two songs at a time might do them a lot of good.

Scandals: None so far despite a few netizen attempts

Their next concept if they want to get to the top: Blackpink has shown themselves to be adept to a variety of sounds so really it's just about getting them out of the basement

Percentage of chances of becoming the #1 girlgroup: 65%. Much like 2NE1 this group has the goods but if they can't get out of the basement they really will follow in 2NE1's footsteps by not fulfilling their potential.

Name: Gfriend

Debut: 2015

Agency: Source Music Entertaiment

Description: The little group that could the success of Rough catapulted this group to success and now they've found a home making a-pink style songs people actually like. With A full album, 5 minis, one repackage and a best of album in japanese Gfriend are hot on the trail to be a serious contender.

Hits: Rough, Navillera, Love Whisper

Standout member: Yuju

Strengths: Yuju and Eunha, who sing a majority of the lead vocals, as well as filling the niche apink is struggling with.

Weaknesses: Their attempt to mature - Fingertip - was executed too early and it seems to have trapped them in Apink land for now.

Scandals: Nothing major so far but special mention goes to netizens trying to create one because their outfits for LOL used a McCall's pattern. L-0-L indeed!

Their next concept if they want to get to the top: Apink land is great - it's fine! - but they need to figure out how to re-integrate the rock sound into their music and slowly craft a plan to not be held prisoner there forever.

Percentage of chances of becoming the #1 girlgroup: 50% . This year and the next one will establish them as either very formidable or just another high charting but ultimately second tier group

Name: EXID

Debut: 2012

Agency: Banana Culture

Description: After a line-up change EXID solidified as its current 5 member group, capitalizing on a viral fancam to further their success.

Hits: Up & Down,  Up & Down 2 Ah Yeah, Hot Pink, LIE

Standout member: Hani

Strengths: While it's fun to joke how their songs can sound similar it's a sound that people like and there's no denying the group's charisma & chameleon like abilities.

Weaknesses: While they haven't necessarily gone down while Solji is recovering - #GetWellSoonSolji - the public seems to like the group most as a 5 piece. All they need to do is hold on.

Scandals: Aside from an alleged bullying scandal & the confusion over the group that formed from when 3 members left - as well as a few trivial ones about Hani - the group seems to be solid & drama free.

Their next concept if they want to get to the top: Lady is brand new & cute but the next comeback most needs Solji or at least another sexy comeback like 'DDD'

Percentage of chances of becoming the #1 girlgroup: 50%. Their songs are usually hits but they are also the oldest debut on this list. With contracts lasting around 7 years who can tell where they'll be in 2020.

Hopefully I coded this well and if it's well recieved I have at least one more post planned LOL

source: this is an omona original written by pikapika217

Comments

[xlovexlessxtyx.livejournal.com]

OP this is HILARIOUS! (and informative!)
Great job!

But... I see several of the girls missing from this list... and while normally I'd raise my hand to defend them... this is a list of winners and I'd like to keep it that way.

STAN EXID! STREAM LADY ON iTunes, Spotify, Tidal and Google Play! (yes, EXID is on Tidal and the lessers aren't!)

Side note; why did I think Seulgi was the standout member of RV?

[carmine-pink.livejournal.com]

I also think it's either Irene or Seulgi in Korea at least.

[katheli.livejournal.com]

interesting write-up OP!

I have some thoughts (I'm a casual fan of all these groups except Exid, cause I only know Up & Down from them):

- Twice is already the top girlgroup, in terms of fandom, none of the others come close, their album sales are way ahead of the game.

- what you need to succeed is visuals and catchy songs, and they have that

- they don't come close to SNSD in terms of talent, and I'm not saying that as a hater, I like Twice and their songs, and I'm not a huge fan of SNSD, but it's just a fact

- Blackpink is huge in the West/SEA, they could take the throne worldwide if they got better promotions

- but they're with YG so they won't

- they're just as weak vocally as Twice, if not weaker, cause they don't even have a Jihyo

- Red Velvet has 2 talented members (Wendy and Seulgi) and three visuals, so idk why their fans come for Twice and Blackpink so often in terms of talent ratio.

- their performances are often really awkward to watch, aside from Seulgi honestly none of them look like they enjoy dance performances and they're super often out of sync

- Vocally they're definitely the strongest out of the Big 3 GGs, Wendy alone >>>, and their harmonies are on point

- I think Gfriend isn't gonna get to the top again but will continue to be successful as 2nd tier group, unless they have another surprise hit

- they're probably the most talented of these groups, vocally and dance performance-wise, but their music isn't appealing to me at all so I don't know that much about them

[xlovexlessxtyx.livejournal.com]

You didn’t tell a single lie.

[rainstormraider.livejournal.com]

I thought Tzuyu was the standout member mostly because I only ever hear about her.

I want to stan GFriend but their music is just not for me.

Great post OP!

[xlovexlessxtyx.livejournal.com]

Re: Tzuyu

‘Shy Shy Shy’ changed EVERYTHING. It shot Sana to the top. She’s also much more charismatic than Tzuyu. (I like Tzuyu, she seems chill, but on variety shows Sana stands out by a mile when she does nothing, the camera loves her.)

[carmine-pink.livejournal.com]

Bad Boy slays me but I think Red Flavor is RV's biggest hit so far in Korea. Bbal bbalgan mat! Gunggeumhae honey!

I'm a casual Gfriend fan but Yuju is queen.

[pikapika217.livejournal.com]

I despise Red Flavor but it was a huge hit LOL

[minho-lover.livejournal.com]

I love posts like this!! good job op!!!

Twice is killlliiing it out here, while im not fond of their new releases, and their lack of vocalists, im unsure of how long their popularity will last....i love blackpink but they have WEAK vocalists *sigh*

i looove red velvet but their lives are so weak, and wendy is so annoying after that “i can act like a black girl” sht. i’ve loved all their songs tho. I love Exid but their songs all sound the same so im kind of snooze, i always like the beginning but then never finish the song woops. Gfriend have the most strongest vocalists esp live but i dont really like their songs either lawd. all in all imma still download all these girls songs cuz theyre so catchy and good. just wishing them all the best!

[kyungwons.livejournal.com]

twice and rv are really the only ones with any shot, mostly twice

its sad but gfriend really did shoot themselves in the foot with fingertip and lost a lot of momentum which is unfair cause fingertip is my favourite song from them but i guess they had too many male fans of their more innocent concepts :(

blackpink don’t have a chance purely because of yg screwing them over already and honestly i would just be happy for exid to get a win on a music show again

[pikapika217.livejournal.com]

I wish they'd gone with Contrail or Ping instead to ease it there and then saved Fingertip.

[showminomoney.livejournal.com]

Nice post, OP! Very informative!

Twice are definitely the biggest girl group rn for sure. They've been getting the biggest awards since debut and (as I've read in some netizen post) each member basically has their own fandom.
With the way Joy is being pushed, I'm not surprised she's the standout member. It's unfortunate though that this kdrama she's "acting" in is making me dislike her (and her fans.. ugh). haha
I'd consider As If It's Your Last to be a BP hit, it has more MV views than the ones listed and even broke one of those fastest mvs to hit XX-number records. At this point all I want from and for them is more songs and work..
I don't know about the other two groups.

[premonitioner.livejournal.com]

I appreciate all the effort that went into this post but I personally can't see any current girl groups coming for snsd's crown yet.

of course I'm biased af, but I also think that the 2nd generation kpop culture was a very different beast, and that the environment in which KPOP QUEENS girls generation came into existence has not yet been replicated.

[pikapika217.livejournal.com]

Yeah I don't think anyone can reach SNSD's goalposts because they (and WG) paved ways for them on an international scale but there's going to be groups that come out on top this generation and set different goal posts.

[nekokonneko.livejournal.com]

i don't doubt that bp would have a lot of streams anyway, but jyp literally only put their artists' songs on spotify yesterday, so it's hard to say how far ahead of twice they would be otherwise.

[benihime99.livejournal.com]

The 'battle', if there is one, is most likely between Twice and Gfriend (maybe but mostly Twice)
The question is weather they will be able to reinvent themselves

One thing about SNSD is that not only did they win the nation's heart but they also had a variety of hits
Whether 'too manufactured' or not, SM was always able to get them those songs, to make them those girls
And as much as I enjoy both Gfriend and Twice they are this 'one type of song'/'one concept' GG. And there's nothing wrong with that. They're successful and they do well, release nice songs. But SNSD had that extra factor. And for me both Gfriend and Twice are lacking in that area.

As for the other groups, they're not even in the competition

BP is the new 2NE1 and I'm not talking about music style or anything like that
I'm talking in term of recognition. They are this group with a potential that's not showcased properly. And I'm afraid YG shitty managment will keep them as such: Popular song, popular MV but no 'real discography' so to speak (side note: funny though how people always brush off the cultural appropriation with them)

[dior-chic.livejournal.com]

'side note: funny though how people always brush off the cultural appropriation with them)'

Mte it's annoying

[sra-interesante.livejournal.com]

kpop has changed too much since snsd debut and their circunstances cant happen again .... i know gg stans love this 'nations girlgroup' title but at the same time its a relief what happened to snsd wont repeat again because they suffered (& still suffer) too much to get to the top

i personally believe more in the "sequels are never any good" theory


+ this lists lacks a lot of groups

[benihime99.livejournal.com]

isn't there a part 2 list coming up?

[dior-chic.livejournal.com]

Twice already has won imo. I was watching a video about girl groups & music sales and who ranked no1 for the last decade. And SNSD of course came out on top for several years, and the recent years no gg had numbers like SNSD in the early 2010s, not even SNSD anymore so I thought maybe with times changing we wouldn't see those big numbers again. ....then Twice appeared and it was either 2016 or 2017 damn they were making SNSD money when they were at their peak. So it's no contest imo

Also - that video showed that while 2NEI was hugeee, their sales never compared to SNSD. It feels like BlackPink is just repeating history with being second to Twice. Also on the topic on BP, I wouldn't call vocals part of their strength, I know you're putting in comparison to 2NE1 and yea they only really had Bom, but Bom >>>>> whoever BP has. That's just my opinion though

Thank you for posting!!

[horichansenpai.livejournal.com]

Revisiting the original post and seeing all the comments/predictions gave me a good laugh haha

Twice is the new girl group for sure.

[aridnili.livejournal.com]

Twice is already the 1st top GG with no real competition at the moment. All these girls album sales combined don’t reach Twice’s total numbers. They also have digitals, yt views, charts, 7 daesangs and a great hype and selling power at Japan with only a 2.5 years career. The only thing they have different from SNSD is time and the context of a much stronger Hallyu wave back then. Im too than lazy to pick the charts that show it bc Im in my phone, but you can see it here: https://pann-choa.blogspot.com.br/2018/01/enter-talk-twice-dump.html?m=1

in relation to the other girls, I really like RV, even tho their mismatched stage presence to queen Seulgi bothers me sometimes. I think Bad boy is an a-ma-zing song and it’s what sealed the deal for me to like them. Wendy still is racist, so that's too bad.

BP is nowhere’s to be seem but they release bops, once in every century, they are overhyped regarding their ~talents~ but that’s YG group so it’s a given. For a time I really thought they could be a great competition, with a huge selling power and relevance compared to Twice, but now RV easily surpassed them, bc YG has no idea of what to do with this group and I really hope they don’t go the 2NE1 way.

Gfriend had a great momentum and is sitting prettily in a comfortable place, being relevant and successful enough for a group that’s not from the big 3. They’re what Apink were a few years ago and I think it’s time for them to have a comeback by now.

If GF is the Apink of our times, EXID has become the BEG, I know this legendary group isn’t dead lol, but still inactive, while EXID keeps on giving. They found their sound after the Up &Down Phoenix success and the 3 remakes they did of it as consecutive comebacks. They’re holding the torch of the older groups with a candid smile. The thing that sells a group for me is the synergy of the members and how genuine they are outside the idol mask, EXID is great, they showed great professionalism even tho Solji couldn’t be with them. A true winner and they deserve the world. I also love their recent release.

I’m still half asleep, so pardon my english and spelling mistakes lol

[tungatunga.livejournal.com]

Agree with everything even though I'm Gfriend and RV fan. Twice are way ahead and unless something big happen there is little to no chance any current gg could reach them. Gfriend could get another "Rough" but without big agency backing it would be hard to up their pr game to promote them against Twice.

[volume1995.livejournal.com]

Twice has already won over the nation's heart but its just to see how long they can keep on going like this. They are overworked and need their rest, going back and forth between korea and japan won't do them any good either. But they have to keep up their momentum.

Red Velvet had a really strong year but who knows if they'll fall back in the one / two release(s) a year..

If BP don't bring out an album or at least a mini/EP, they're already done with. The public seems to be fed up with YG's foolery...

GFriend won't really switch up they're game cause they're safe with what they're doing. Fingertip flopped and Love Whisper got them back on again, even though that was a snoozefest. Bring home more fast paced pop hits like Navirella gorls!!!

EXID currently has the #1 spot in my heart so I hope they'll still be around in a ciuple of years. They're fun, innovative and know how to put on a show. The public really does like them better when they're a full house but I can't blame them. Hyerin has gotten really good over the last few years but she'll never be a full Solji. I love them so much so I don't care if they get the top spot in korea or not. They have a loyal fanbase and bringing out a sexy song once in a while keeps the public eye interested as well. They also have a lot of freedom within their company so I doubt they'll break in a few years.

[myrrhcat.livejournal.com]

yeah twice are already there. you can say they're different from snsd in whatever specific ways but we're only talking about being solidly #1 here and they have it.

unpopular onion (for an i-fan) but i get why fingertip flopped. i was a big fan of gfriend since the rough era and i loved the aesthetics of fingertip but the choreo wasn't up to the level of their previous releases (which is gfriend's most important selling point) and the song is just alright. with love whisper they got back to that "cool choreo, song constantly stuck in my head" level.

[existingisfunny.livejournal.com]

SNSD was really versatile in their concepts and I feel like every group listed here, except Red Velvet, has to keep the same styles to make sure fans don't leave. Twice isn't the next SNSD but have reigned and will continue to reign in their own way. Red Velvet has better music but with less members to "choose" from, they can't take over individual projects and promotions and characteristics that SNSD had. Even down to the way albums can be personalized by each member, IGAB's release was a bit much but people did buy every version which Twice can easily replicate and up sales just by that and Red Velvet can't.

EXID is a fad, BP doesn't release enough music, GFriend will maybe end up like APink.

Loona is a visual group with no vocals but their fans will use ARMYs affect to get them noticed.

In my heart, I want Cosmic Girls to be the next thing but they're not sticking. LOL at no IOI branch groups being nominated, when I think that's like 60% of what active GGs we have left. WJSN would be my first choice out of those, then Gugudan, but there's too many people that only like IOI members in their groups.

This year has been so dry musically, even a nugu could rise just by my sheer desperation for good music. So yeah, Twice is it unless they burn themselves out. Would like to see a BG version of this for further discussion!

[goshipgurl.livejournal.com]

Would like to see a BG version of this for further discussion!

mte, but who is the original nations boygroup? tvxq? big bang? shinhwa?

[asnindie.livejournal.com]

Twice is already it though. I mean people say that BP is bigger internationally but is that true?? Twice has yt views and Japanese sales. And jyp only added them to spotify a week ago and they already have a ton of views. I think their music needs to be more diverse for sure but at this point with their sales and popularity. It's hard to come close to. Rv is next up but they go up and down slaes wise. And their lives are just as awkward as ever. Not that twice is much better.

I just don't think we'll get the same level as WG or Snsd or 2ne1 again. Those groups were another level. These groups would be lucky to get 4 minute charisma.

[existingisfunny.livejournal.com]

"Internationally" gets confused with "western" for some. Which even then, I think Twice is more popular in the west but YG songs tend to be like huge anthems that everyone knows. Really BP's songs are bigger than their group and that gets mistaken as being more popular, in my opinion.

[goshipgurl.livejournal.com]

imo SNSD is a wall that can't be touched. not every group can maintain their popularity and status for 10 years. right now twice might be the current it-girlgroup, but will people remember them as a legendary group that had a huge impact on kpop in 10, 20 years or will they be just another girlgroup like the ones in the previous post that were famous for a few years but then disbanded?

[existingisfunny.livejournal.com]

Honestly, I feel like Twice could disband this year and would have perfectly solidified a reputation of accomplishments. And when you're popular enough, over time people might forget why you were popular but know you were popular and that's enough to be your legacy. Like how many people actually know S.E.S as a group? But when they're brought up, it's understand that's a legendary girl group. And should a legacy be purely awards and being the first and record breaking or should we think of groups that mean something to us and that's the legacy, of being important to people.

I don't even think SNSD did maintain their popularity and status for 10 years toward the end, through activity and I think "Lion Heart" was their last big song but it's still flat imo. But they worked hard enough that they could do nothing and still sit on the title. I think after this year, Twice might just be at that place because it'll have been 3 years of work since debut and they did their job of being the first group you think of when you even think of who is the newest top girl group. They're half way in as being the thought.

[dbsked.livejournal.com]

I prefer red velvet and blackpink, but you can not deny twice success.
I still do not think that twice is at snsd level.

none of these groups has anyone with Taeyeon or Yoona star power imo.

but what always amazes me about this generation of girl groups is how pretty they are~~~

[revedesnuages.livejournal.com]

The last post was only 3 years ago and most of the girl groups in it have already disbanded, the turnover rate for girl groups make me sad :(

[pikapika217.livejournal.com]

to be fair, a lot of those groups were older at least?

[gathyou.livejournal.com]

I remember the original post <3 So bittersweet to look back at Omona collectively voting for SHINee to be the new SNSD..

To be honest, Twice is the no1 girl group at the moment so, yeah, they're the new SNSD. Red Velvet are really close behind though. But to me, SNSD looked unstoppable because they could cover all kinds of skills (vocal powerhouses for the OSTs, one really successful it-girl, a great dance-line, variety skills that translated well in non-idol focused shows...) and I don't see either Twice or Red Velvet having all those skills cover yet. They're both amazing and I'm a fan, don't get me wrong! I just see them as more focused on some areas.

Black Pink aren't as active to be the next SNSD, they'll more probably be like 2NE1 (it's as much a compliment as a curse) in the sense that they'll smash records whenever they're allowed to release something but be a little forgotten between those moments.
GFriend had a good chance but 2017 wasn't their best year, while the main competition Twice and Red Velvet both had fantastic 2017 runs. They'll probably stay among the top groups but I don't see them going back to Twice or Red Velvet's levels (a bit like Kara?).
EXID are something else entirely, I see them more like the new Brown Eyed Girls, aka an older group that managed to build a nice career on top of a hit (Up&Down, Abracadabra) and are looked forward for their input, without being the nation's first love or something like it.


To be honest, IOI looked to me as the closest SNSD in potential - especially the fact that the members covered just as many areas as SNSD, but we'll never know if that potential I was was true since they lasted one year lol. I love all the groups that came off IOI but I don't see any of them getting as big as IOI could have been.


As for other groups, I absolutely adore Lovelyz with all my heart but their strategy has always been rather safe and much more team and/or Kei focused. I can see them building a nice fandom and going along smoothly like APink, but not moving upwards. Others are probably too nugus. Cube and DSP both missed the mark with their groups, Loona is going for a BTS-like trajectory and won't make waves in Korea yet, Oh My Girl had a rocky 2017 so they really need to nail 2018 if they want to move up in ranks, Dreamcatcher are a niche, Elris are way too focused on the face of their group, Fromis_9 are nugus... (again, I'm a fan of all of those groups lmao)


We'll see how SM's new girl group debut, I have a feeling that this time SM is aiming at a SNSD-like girl group (which I think was never really the point of Red Velvet and which allowed them to become something else).

[existingisfunny.livejournal.com]

I love Elris. I don't think they'll be the top gg but I just want them to have enough popularity that they stay around. But I feel kinda gross bc it feels like their company has just been waiting for Sohee to become legal so they can rly push her out there...

I was reading through Oh My Girl's wiki this year and was surprised that they kind of haven't done well? Like, I could tell they weren't doing as well as I expected when they debuted (personally, loved CUPID why didn't it go big!) but they're kind of... flops... But it's like EVERY other girl group loves them and wants to be them and finds them pretty? It's so weird, they have the place of being widely known but they're not actually popular?

Watching their teasers for this Banana song roll out was like cute teasers but you're basically advertising a flop. I don't understand how WM thought this was going to be something.

I feel like I should get into Fromis_9 but the name...

[dior-chic.livejournal.com]

Omgggggg that original post got me so sad 😭😭😭 so many amazing groups gone 😢

[theweebdream.livejournal.com]

I think K-pop back then was way too different for there ever to be a number one girl group again like SNSD reigned. One of the main factors was there weren’t many groups back then, so it was easy for SNSD to grab the crown, and by the time a shit ton of groups started debuting SNSD was already at the top with the crown secured so they were untouchable. Nowadays it’s probably more of a “passing around the crown” thing like top solo female artists in the US.

I agree with most people that Twice is there. What makes a group a successful group by today’s terms is catchy songs and visuals as OP pointed out, and Twice is already there. They’ve already got all the sales and YT views and whatever else as well. But their downfall is they’re limited to one concept at this point, and it’s a concept that once a girl group is cornered into, risks losing a lot of fans (read: fake male fans LMAO) if they ever go a different route (ie Gfriend). They’re also huge now, but whether or not they can keep up the momentum and still be relevant years down the road is a different beast. I would say not having any strong vocalists is a downfall too, but like I mentioned, that’s not something that’s relevant in kpop nowadays (sadly).

[benihime99.livejournal.com]

One thing I might add is that none of these GG seem to have a soloist like SNSD did
And that seems to be symptomatic of the latest gen. With groups like sistar, 2ne1, WG, SNSD at least one (or several members) had potential for solo activity and had their own star power
Even after disbandment Hyorin, CL, Sunmi... they all have solo career working out nicely

With the latest gen it seems like label focus more on group synergy rather than a collective of solo power (more Arsenal and less Real Madrid if you will).
But the thing is that having member with solid solo activity can help a group stay established in the long run because it 'feeds' the fandom between 2 group promo

There will be a point where twice won't be able to release as much as they do now (mind you they need to sleep) and that's when they'll need solo activity to keep the group in the audience heart/eye/mind

[existingisfunny.livejournal.com]

I'm not a variety show watcher but I also think how much it has to do with not having variety shows where idols specifically could show up, even to just be in the background.