~Top 10 K-pop Groups~

By: Michelle Nuno

Have you ever been scrolling through YouTube and saw a K-pop music video pass by? K-pop stands for Korean pop music and has started to become more and more well-known worldwide. Click ‘Read More’ to find out who are the top K-pop stars in the world today.

10.) Seventeen

Starting off this list is Seventeen. Seventeen is a 13 member boy group that is currently under Pledis Entertainment. The group debuted in 2015 with their song Adore U and as of 2018, they have released two albums. The group itself is divided into three subunits, those being the Vocal, Performance, and Hip Hop unit. Each member has one of these roles, so the result of the performance flows altogether. Seventeen has won many awards some of them being awards for their outstanding and synchronized choreography.

9.) NCT

NCT is a boy group that debuted in 2016 and is under SM entertainment. NCT is also an acronym for Neo Culture Technology. If you thought 13 members was a lot, then you were wrong because NCT has… 18 members at the moment. The concept behind this group is pretty confusing to new fans, so let me explain. NCT has three sub groups, which are NCT 127, NCT U, and NCT Dream. Before NCT debuted, the plan was for them to be an expandable group, and new units could be added based on the location of the unit, meaning that new members could be added every comeback. Long story short, in years, NCT could have 40 members. This year, NCT has came out with a new album called Empathy which features all 18 members together for the first time.

8.) Red Velvet

The first girl group on this list is, Red Velvet, a five member girl group under SM entertainment.  The members are: Irene, Joy, Wendy, Seulgi, and Yeri. They first debuted in 2014 with only four members, their song being Happiness. Not until 2015 did a new member (Yeri) get added. Although many people doubted Red Velvet’s success, they became the only K-pop girl group that topped charts and tied with the most K-pop albums that are number one. They’ve also won many awards for their fun choreography.

7.)Blackpink

Now we have, Blackpink. Blackpink is under YG Entertainment and they debuted with their song Boombayah in 2016. This group has 4 members, Jennie, Rose`, Lisa, and Jisoo. They are one of the only K-pop girl groups to be in the Billboard top 50, with their songs Whistle  and Boombayah.  Their debut song also earned a spot on the top 5 most viewed kpop debut music videos.

6.)Got7

Got7 is a boy group that has got 7 members, see what I did there... Anyways they debuted with their song  girls girls girls in 2014 under *whispers* JYP Entertainment. (nobody will understand this joke but…). The members are: JB, Mark, Jackson, Jinyoung, Youngjae, BamBam, and Yugyeom. This year they’ve had a comeback with their title track being look. This song topped all Korean music charts, and has become one of their most successful songs ever released.

5.) Shinee

Shinee is another boy group under SM entertainment. They debuted in 2008 with five members: Jonghyun, Onew, Key, Taemin, and Minho, but unfortunately, in December of 2017 Jonghyun passed away. Their first two Japanese albums were certified gold and sold over 100,000 copies. Shinee’s choreography is also known to be very complex.

4.) Twice

The next girl group on the list is Twice. They are a nine member group under JYP Entertainment. Twice debuted with their song like ooh ah in 2015. Twice started out in a survival show called sixteen to see what girls would debut in this group, like many K-pop groups do to promote the members. In 19 months, they sold 1.2 million albums and their EP was the most-selling by a K-pop girl group in 2016.

3.) EXO

EXO is a boy group that debuted in 2012 and was formed by SM Entertainment. EXO’s first album xoxo topped all highest-album sales of that decade. The group started with twelve members, but now only has nine active members and three former members who are now working on solo projects. This group also has three subunits. EXO-K, EXO-M and EXO-CBX. EXO-K worked on their Korean singles and EXO-M focused on their Mandarin singles. EXO-CBX is a subunit that includes three of the vocalists in EXO, Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin. Recently, EXO-CBX have had a comeback with the album named Blooming Days.

2.) Big Bang

Big bang is a boy group under YG entertainment that debuted in 2006. Big Bang has five members: G-dragon, T.O.P, Taeyang, Daesung, and Seungri. Since Big Bang is a senior group, they have helped the K-pop industry grow and are often considered K-pop legends. They have produced 18 songs that have been number one.

1.)BTS

Perhaps one of the most known k-pop groups to this day… BTS or  방탄소년단 meaning bulletproof boy scouts. BTS debuted under Big Hit Entertainment in 2013. You perhaps have heard of them while just looking through the internet peacefully. Their song DNA released in 2017, has become the most-viewed music video by a kpop group. BTS’ album wings also reached number 26 on the Billboard which is the highest a korean album has ever reached. Both DNA and Mic Drop went gold and the group has won for the top social artist on the Billboard Music Awards for the second year in a row. BTS’ success is even more impressive, because of the fact that their company was never big or well-known, and they produce and write their own songs. The boys also had a comeback on May 18 with their album Love Yourself tear.  Their title track Fake Love, it beat Taylor Swift’s record for fastest music video to hit 10 million views.

These are just 10 of the many talented K-pop groups out there. Maybe you should discover some of your own. WARNING: Once You Enter The K-pop World, You Can Never Escape!!!