K-pop has garnered massive recognition and cultural popularity worldwide. The swift rise and ever-multiplying fandom of K-pop groups have shaken the music industry all over the world. A perfect mixture of catchy beats, scintillating performances and costumes blended together with visual and audio effects screams entertainment.
The K-pop market still belongs to heavyweight groups Blackpink and BTS. However, with talent agencies working tirelessly to woo K-pop fans, a new group seems to be debuting every other week.
Till the end of this year 2022, the music industry of K-pop has put forward several thrilling K-pop groups. Here are a few emerging K-pop artists you must listen to:
1. Girls on Top – SM Entertainment:
The up-and-coming group ‘Girls on Top’ is no short of talent and hunger for success. It already contains an arsenal of talents that include BoA, Hyoyeon and Taeyeon of Girls’ Generation, and others. After their debut as a K-pop newcomers and with the “Got the Beat” crew of artists, the agency launched an electrifying music video on the 1st of January, 2022.
The girls’ group gave a memorable concert during New Year’s SMTOWN LIVE 2022: SMCU, by SM entertainment. Following that, they released their new song “step back” on streaming platforms officially.
2. Tempest:
Launched by Yue Hua Entertainment, the boy group with seven members, “Tempest” made its debut in 2022. The boy group debuted with the release of their first ever album named ‘It’s me, It’s we’, on the second of March 2022. The song Bad News was presented as a leading song of the album and the group consists of Hyungseop, Eunchan, Lew, Hanbin, Taerae and Hwarang as artists.
3. Purple Kiss – RBW
After launching their much-awaited professional debut in March 2021, PURPLE KISS, which comprises seven great artists featuring Park Ji-Eun, Na Go-eun, Dosie, Ireh, Yuki, Chaein, and Swan, is presently one of the trendiest all-girl K-pop groups.
The 7 performers’ varied range and multifaceted melodic and dancing abilities were expertly displayed in their foot-tapping lead single “Ponzona” (2021).
This multi-talented & self-producing group’s members produce, compose, and choreograph their own tracks, which feature irresistible tunes like “My Heart Skip A Beat” (2020), which was influenced by grunge and hip-hop, and the heartfelt Rhythm and Blues (R&B) song “Can We Talk Again” (2021).
4. ENHYPEN – Belift Lab:
The seven-member band, ENHYPEN, was formed through the Mnet survivor competition show I-Land. It is a collaborative project of two South Korean media moguls, Hybe and CJ E&M. The group was given the name ENHYPEN, which is a play on the word “hyphen,” to represent the “connections, discoveries, and growth” that their music allows listeners all over the world to experience.
The R&B, dance-pop duo captivated fans with the spectacular release of their EP, Border: Day One, in 2020, and racked up a massive following across multiple social media platforms.
Border: Carnival, which topped the Japanese and Billboard World Albums charts in 2021, came after the premiere. Jungwon, Heeseung, Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo, and Ni-ki are the seven members of the boy band, a heterogeneous ensemble made up of musicians from South Korea, the United States, Australia, and Japan.
The boy band’s debut studio album, Dimension: Dilemma, which featured the song “Tamed-Dashed” as its lead single, was released in October 2021.
5. YOUNITE – Brand New Music
Record company Latest Music has unveiled a new K-pop boy group called YOUNITE, made up of nine multi-talented K-pop rookies, due to make their premiere during the first half of 2022.
Hyunseung, Eunho, Steve, Hyungseok, Woono, Eun-sang, DEY, Kyungmun, and Sion will be a part of the group, marking it Brand New Music’s much-awaited boy band premiere after over three years. As apprentices, several of the performers have already made debuts in 2021.
The nine-member squad features well-known K-pop stars including Psy’s P NATION and Kyungmun of the popular Television series LOUD fame. The group’s goal is to scout international potential and provide the winner with the chance to make their boy band launch.
6. NCT Hollywood – SM Entertainment:
A fusion of NCT, which will be located in the United States, will launch its debut as an all-American guy group named NCT Hollywood in 2022. The group was discovered through the reality television program K-pop Goes Hollywood. 23 members make up the founding NCT, a boy band that rarely performs as a whole but is more frequently seen as smaller units like WayV, NCT Dream, and NCT 127.
The 21 male artists, ranging in age from 13 to 25, who will compete for a seat in the band, will be chosen for tryouts that will be done on the TV show. The tryouts will be focused on aesthetics, dancing, and singing abilities. If a contender is successful in impressing the assessors, they will have the chance to go to Seoul, South Korea, and take part in a “K-pop boot camp” organized by the record company, SM Entertainment.
Lee Soo-Man, the pioneer of SM Entertainment, and other outstanding NCT performers will serve on the prestigious judging panel and counsellors. K-pop enthusiasts will have to stay patient, though, as the show’s launch schedule has not yet been made public.
7. Kep1er – Wake One and Swing Entertainment:
Kep1er is a nine-member multinational K-pop group that includes outstanding Chinese, Japanese, and Korean musicians. They came together for the first time on the Mnet reality series Girls Planet 999: The Girls Saga, which has female competitors from China, Japan, and Korea competing to realize their shared dream of a major girl-group premiere.
In October 2021, the program’s series finale was aired. Following that, on January 3, 2022, Kep1er, whose title was inspired by the German scientist Johannes Kepler, released their debut with their first Extended Play (EP): First Impact.
8. WOODZ:
Cho Seung-you achieved stability on his own as WOODZ & 2020’s earworm “Love Me Harder” after years of switching between groups. On his sophomore EP, Woops! (2020), he found a stride with soothing, acoustic-led pop-rock.
His initial EP, Equal (2020), was indeed a dizzying whirl through arguably too several genres and tones. “Feels Like” (2021), his most recent hit, is possibly his greatest.
This is WOODZ artistically extending himself to the extent wherein he feels like nobody else in the present K-pop landscape, and that alone deserves attention. Breathtaking and enticing with treacherous guitar licks.
