South Korean girl group NMIXX (Credit: JYP Entertainment)
While girl groups have largely fallen out of popularity in Western nations, they remain incredibly popular in South Korea. In fact, vocal bands made up entirely of women continue to rank as some of the most successful in the Asina nation, and many of them have found a global audience, especially in the past few years. Every year, new outfits launch, and some of them go on to become worldwide favorites.
2022 is only a few months old, but already four new girl groups have launched in South Korea alone, and they are all off to an amazing start. Here’s a quick introduction to the quartet of all-female acts every K-pop fan (and even those who don’t identify as such) should know.
Got The Beat
They might only have one song to their credit, but there’s plenty of reason to believe that Got the Beat will go on to become a massively successful K-pop girl group. Why is that? Because the name may be new, but the members are all already well-known in South Korean. Got The Beat is the latest supergroup, made up of women from other beloved acts. The band features seven members—former Girls’ Generation stars Taeyeon and Hyoyeon, Red Velvet’s Seulgi and Wendy, Aespa’s Winter and Karina and solo powerhouse Boa.
So far, Got The Beat has only delivered one single, “Step Back,” but it was huge. The cut became an easy top 10 smash in South Korea, and it also reached the Billboard Global 200, meaning it was one of the 200 most-consumed tracks in the world at one point. That’s no small feat for a brand new outfit of any kind, even if it’s made up of previously successful artists.
Kep1er
Of all the entirely brand new girl groups coming out of South Korea, Kep1er is the most exciting, and while they only kicked off their careers officially in early 2022, they already have a lot to show for their time together. The band’s debut EP First Impact climbed to No. 1 on the Gaon Albums chart in their home country, which is a very impressive feat for an act just starting out. The set’s lead single “Wa Da Da” wasn’t a huge hit in South Korea, but it did perform very well on the Billboard Global 200, hitting No. 77. That’s a notable placement for any K-pop girl group, and it instantly makes it one of the biggest wins from a band that fits that description this year.
Viviz
Like Kep1er, Viviz has thus far only released an EP and one proper single, and their performance in South Korea is similar to the aforementioned act. The girl group’s Beam of Prism climbed all the way to No. 2 on the homegrown Gaon Albums chart, certifying it as a proper sales success. The title’s lead cut, “Bop Bop!,” wasn’t a huge win on the songs chart, as thus far it has failed to break into the top 100. The fact that it reached the ranking at all is noteworthy, and the immediate warm welcome their complete project enjoyed is a sign that their fan base is solid, and big things should be expected from this outfit.
Nmixx
Of all the girl groups mentioned in this article, Nmixx is the newest. In fact, they’re so new, they haven’t yet had a chance to chart anything in South Korea, where they formed, rehearsed and launched their career less than a month ago. The band, made up of seven members, just dropped their debut single album Ad Mare, which features their first two songs. Lead single “O.O” is being pushed in the Asian nation, and it could quickly reach audiences everywhere. With power and money behind them, the vocal troupe could quickly become the latest all-female act to score a big win on the Gaon charts, but at this point, not enough time has passed for that to happen.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2022/03/01/got-the-beat-kep1er-nmixx-and-viviz-meet-2022s-hottest-new-k-pop-girl-groups/