K-analysis: 4th gen boy group, worries about popularity
It is now the era of the 4th generation idols. Since their debut in late 2010, they have recorded rapid growth in domestic and overseas music markets, signaling the full-fledged change of generations in the K-pop idol market.
Active two-way communication using a differentiated worldview* (I think they mean universe/storyline), solid musicality, and social media led to the rapid growth of 4th generation idols, and they quickly established their position in the global market after their debut and inherited the baton of the K-pop syndrome. In fact, the achievements of many 4th-generation groups such as Stray Kids, ATEEZ, Espa, N Hyphen, Ive, Tomorrow X Together, are noteworthy. At the same time as their debut, they succeeded in entering the major charts of the US Billboard, as well as being able to record million-sellers with ease.
In terms of performance, it can be said that the 4th generation groups have already achieved a perfect K-pop generational replacement. However, there is still work to be done in order to call this generational change a complete success.
The remaining homework in front of the 4th generation idols is to secure the popularity of boy groups. Compared to girl groups that have gained recognition by producing popular hits since their debut (for example, Espa's 'Next Level', Ive's 'Love Dive', and Stacey's 'Sunglasses'), the 4th generation boy This is because the public awareness of the group is relatively low.
Why is the 4th generation boy group so low in popularity?
However, the relatively low popularity does not mean that the quality of the song is lacking. Rather, compared to the previous generation, the quality of the songs of the 4th generation boy group (the same goes for girl groups) has improved further thanks to the collaboration with world-class staff members to advance into the global market at the same time as their debut.
What was the difference between the popularity of girl groups and boy groups in this situation? This can be found in the fundamental difference between the girl group and boy group market.
From the past, the primary target of girl groups in the idol market has been 'the public'. This is because securing popularity was more important than anything else in order to overcome the weakness of relatively weak fandom power compared to the boy group's fandom and lead the team's success.
On the other hand, boy groups mostly targeted the fandom rather than the public. This is because, in the case of boy group fandom, a thick and strong fandom is immediately connected with overwhelming profitability as it is centered on female fans who have relatively high appeal in the fan market. Given this situation, securing a fandom with strong firepower was enough to offset the risk from a rather low popularity.
Under these circumstances, it was natural for a boy group to aim for a 'fandom-type idol'. In addition, as the stage of K-pop gradually expands to the world, the 4th generation boy groups are even more passionate about their strategies targeting the global fandom. It is in the same context that they gradually focused on differentiated worldviews and minor concepts. However, as this trend continued, the boy group and popularity gradually became distant. For those who do not know the worldview, the lyrics and concept with a rather profound message have become quite an obstacle to the influx of the public. In fact, even though Stray Kids and Tomorrow by Together are teams that have already recorded 'million sellers', their public awareness is still low.
For this reason, 4th generation boy groups have a lower entry rate on music charts compared to girl groups. Of course, as K-pop becomes a genre and expands its presence in the global market, it is natural to pursue music and concepts that can target it, but the boy groups of the previous generation (eg BTS and Big Bang) are able to achieve popularity and fandom together. For those who remember how popular it was while capturing it, the 'generation change of the 4th generation boy group' can still feel sluggish.
Of course, as K-pop has expanded its spectrum to the world, unlike when it was simply staying within the domestic music market, such a choice is perhaps a natural step. It is also difficult to deny that their actions had a significant impact on the expansion of the global K-pop market. Nevertheless, the reason why the 4th generation boy group wants to solve the dissatisfaction with popularity is because of the desire for a 'generation change' in a broader sense. Their global status has already risen to a certain level. If they successfully complete the task of securing popularity after attacking the fandom, the '4th Generation' will unfold with the true meaning of the K-pop spectrum expansion.
