Battle of Girl Groups Under Way

[ashiva.livejournal.com]

Reigning girl group “Girls’ Generation” is ahead of the game, for now.


The local pop scene is sizzling with an array of girl groups, both old and new, and the competition is expected to heat up with each band presenting distinctive sounds, fashion and personalities.

Reigning Groups

Girls' Generation and the Wonder Girls have been the top girl groups for the past two years, but now their thrones are starting to look a bit shaky as new groups loaded with new tricks have appeared.

The nine-member Girls' Generation, of SM Entertainment, released their new album "Genie" in June, donning a marine and military style for their new look. They have been topping charts on Internet music Web sites and music programs aired on television.

Despite the success, the group's image has been smeared by several incidents: First there was the rumor regarding an album cover that depicted a Japanese fighter jet; then the discord between band members; seen from clips taken by fans during rehearsals; and finally a plagiarism dispute, an allegation which later turned out to be false.

The Wonder Girls, of JYP Entertainment, on the other hand, are busy in the United States as the opening act of the Jonas Brothers' U.S. tour. The group was originally scheduled for 13 concerts, but after the girls surprised both fans and organizers with their witty handling of a technical delay, they were offered to open the entire 45 concerts.

Photos and clips of the five girls performing on stage dressed in their colorful retro outfits and matching wigs have captivated fans both here and abroad, giving a boost of pride and confidence to JYP head Park Jin-young.

Up and Coming



Meanwhile, other groups have started to attract fans, featuring different styles and sounds.

Among the most popular is the four-member 2NE1, created by the makers of Big Bang, YG Entertainment.

Comprised of Dara, CL, Bom and Minzy, the group's debut under the moniker "21" was not an easy one, as netizens found a singer going by the same name. The agency quickly changed the group's name to "2NE1." Despite the incident, the group has been soaring in popularity, dubbed "the girl version of Big Bang."

The group's first mini-album hit No.1 on online music charts, gathering pre-orders of 50,000 copies even before its release. Their documentary, "2NE1TV," featuring Big Bang members and YG Yang Hyun-suk himself, is aired every Wednesday on the cable channel Mnet.

Unlike Girls' Generation and the Wonder Girls, 2NE1 is known as an edgier group, with provocative outfits, lyrics and moves. While most groups focus on pretty, sexy looks and dancing in formation, YG's band jumps all around the stage, showing off their individual styles through clothes, accessories and dance moves.

And More



While 2NE1 is busy climbing the competitive ladder of girl groups, others have joined in, including 4 Minute, After School and T-ara.

Having debuted last month, the five-member 4 Minute is gaining popularity with their recent track "Hot Issue." Claiming that they will captivate fans in just four minutes, the group is the youngest among the other bands, with all members born in the '90s. Bearing a former member of the Wonder Girls ― Hyun-ah ― gave them a head start in attracting the attention of music fans, and the group is slowly catching up to the pack with catchy songs and their "candy funky" style. The group was also appointed as the goodwill ambassador for the Seoul Character and Licensing Fair.

After School, who recently made headlines for plans to collaborate with singer Sohn Dam-bi, is another aspiring girl group heading to the top of the charts. The six-member group is based on the concept of a school, with plans to "graduate" and "admit" members throughout the group's career. Early this year, Sohn briefly joined the group, while 21-year-old Uee was accepted as a new member. Like many other groups, After School stresses the importance of individual members having projects outside of the band, such as Uee's appearance in the drama "The Great Queen Seondeok."

T-ara hasn't even made their debut yet, but the six-member collective has garnered interest among fans and various companies. The group's agency, Core Contents Media, announced that seven companies have been in contact about commercials, but a decision has been taken to wait until the band's debut to make any deals. Meanwhile, two members of the group, Bo-ram and Ji-yeon, will appear in the upcoming horror television series "Hon" on MBC.

Forming the lineup of T-ara was difficult, as the band saw several members leave, but the group will finally make their debut on television program Radio Star July 29.

So why the recent surge in the number of girl bands? Many fans today tend to focus on a single member, which makes it easier for them to like the whole group, while others prefer to choose their favorites. But, either way, it is a win-win situation for the bands.

"Even having only one popular member can bring a synergy effect to the whole group. Agencies are looking to bring more variety and allow fans to choose their favorite members," a former manager of a girl group told The Korea Times.

Another entertainment insider added that now many members tend to broaden their horizons by jumping into acting, modeling and even hosting television shows.
"Then they come back and work as a group. It's hard to succeed in everything, but that's the risk many members and agencies are taking," he said.

Source

Comments

[rikayla.livejournal.com]

Yes, I was wondering about this too. >___>

[fauxflair.livejournal.com]

I KNOW RIGHT.

[rikayla.livejournal.com]

Re: After School's paragraph:
Early this year, Sohn briefly joined the group
Who's Sohn?

[ashiva.livejournal.com]

Just different romanization of Son (Dam Bi)

[rikayla.livejournal.com]

Ohhhh okay. Guess they were referring back to the December 2008 stint? Wouldn't really call that "joining briefly", but okay. xD

[hoyah.livejournal.com]

i thought they were referring to the new project group

[cakedomination.livejournal.com]

So then the media's the one declaring the 'war' again? D:

[cakedomination.livejournal.com]

Ia with you. Its just their luck they debuted at the wrong time? :/
I guess JYP did make a pretty intelligent move to debut his new girl group next year (which I presume, would be when more boy bands are debuting instead.)

[breathe-ai.livejournal.com]

This.

[albeitalways.livejournal.com]

lol so true. i mean japan's where the money is, second to america and where they'll have more chances of succeeding. korean girl groups are way above par on japan's IMO.

[electrogirlluna.livejournal.com]

Mmmmmmmm Perfume. ♥

[electrogirlluna.livejournal.com]

Yes they are! I kinda like Game more but Triangle is just so so so fantastic. Night Flight ♥

I love them so much but I kinda wish they try to sing live more lol

[electrogirlluna.livejournal.com]

Haha YES. I'd be surprised if they have material to top Game but with the direction Nakata is going, Perfume might start sounding like Capsule or smth.

I remember for Electro World they used to have a different recording of the song that sounds a bit more raw so that even though they lip-synced, it still seemed like they were singing live. Cheaters. But cheaters who ~make an effort~ so whatevs haha

[miduhyo.livejournal.com]

i love girl groups, but i think i'd be able to enjoy this girl group explosion a lot more if the media wasn't so desperate to declare this a huge "competition"; i mean, yeah, pop music is always about the competition, but i really hate when it gets ugly, which is what it seems like they're trying to make this. i mean, a lot of these new groups are talented, and i hope that they can last into next year and beyond, but the attitude right now is like, "there can only be one."

i thought the bit about "fans focusing on one member" part was interesting, though. i guess that's really apparent in, specifically, 4minute. is it true in after school and 2ne1? snsd and sm-ent have always said that, korea's taeyeon-bias aside, their fans tend to like them as a unit more than one specific member. i wonder which, in the long run, works better?

[speakoslow.livejournal.com]

Wait Uee is a favorite in Korea?!?!?!? REALLY???? I'm lost...I mean the other five girls are so much more talented...I thought it'd be GaHee but I guess she's the international favorite....I also don't care much for Uee and sorry but IMHO she is fug...it doesn't take away from my love for After School but when I saw Uee I thought WTF After School are hot & sexy...with Uee they totally downgraded After School when it comes to the image department.

[erbalurbal.livejournal.com]

they like the cute sohee type look. that is why uee is popular and it seems like pledis is really trying to promote her more lately since she is making the rounds on all the shows.

[miduhyo.livejournal.com]

yeah, taeyeon's the favourite in korea. yoona's fanbase is nothing to sneeze at, and people seem to be divided on who's more popular, taeyeon or yoona, but it could be that they're popular in different ways. i think it's interesting that "favourite in korea" is almost never the same for international fans (like you said, uee in after school -- she's basically the sohee of wonder girls, more popular in korea than anywhere else), but taeyeon seems to me to be as much of a fan favourite out of korea as she is in korea.

[xiao-baka.livejournal.com]

I think Yoona is the most widely recognised member of SNSD because of YAMD, but Taeyeon has consistently been voted the most popular member, and her work for OSTs has also garnered her quite a fanbase.

So, Taeyeon's the most popular while Yoona's the most well known. I think.

[telrunyaaa.livejournal.com]

OMO~ Im excited for 2NE1 =D

[katchi12.livejournal.com]

2NE1 might & must be the best rookie :P

[nicooyo.livejournal.com]

Agreed.

[katchi12.livejournal.com]

IKR. they have been so dedicated. but i'm not saying the other girl groups are not.
but they have this EDGE compared to other girl groups now.

[nicooyo.livejournal.com]

Competition is sometimes a good thing but on the other hand it is one of those things that can make or break a group.

[pretzel-knot.livejournal.com]

yeah i saw your list in some other post and felt a little sad that only a few boy groups are still alive and kicking. it wld be the case this year too, i think.

[super-genin.livejournal.com]

No KARA? I am sad...

[angel-of-blue.livejournal.com]

The writer is just biased with 2NE1. Yes, they ARE talented, but somehow people always overrate them. Everything they do is just too hot, too special, too perfect. It's tiring.

[speakoslow.livejournal.com]

IA. They are good but WAY overrated.

[aici-rua.livejournal.com]

[j0yjoong.livejournal.com]

lol oh patrick

[j0yjoong.livejournal.com]

i wanna know why t-ara is famous
they aren't getting my attention.

[speakoslow.livejournal.com]

Media needs to stop creating drama where there is no drama.
I mean imagine the horror when we found out that WG & SNSD actually got along really well...
I bet you instead of SNSD giving rookies the eye they are wishing them well & giving advice...and all the rookies are probably backstage eating together.

[lazyespada.livejournal.com]

okay, there's too many of these girl groups to keep track of!

My head is spinning from all the downloads, and I don't know if my iPod can take much more of this. JEEZE! Can they slow it down a bit? D:

[erbalurbal.livejournal.com]

groups come and go, the real test is who will be here again next year. I think SNSD and wondergirls have already proven themselves so the pressure is on these new groups to compete with each other. I honestly dont think they are competing with the wondergirls and snsd.

[xxsmiiles.livejournal.com]

I don't care, but SNSD needs to step down.

[xxsmiiles.livejournal.com]

lol I'm not very fond of them :| I don't think they're that great, but that's just me.

[xxsmiiles.livejournal.com]

Yeah... unfortunately, that's what I'll have to do.