There’s no question about it — girl groups dominated the K-pop world in 2022. From brand new groups like NewJeans, Le Sserafim and IVE, to (G)I-DLE‘s jaw-dropping comeback “NXDE” — the girls did not come to play! Keep reading to see the most talked about K-pop groups of 2022.
One of the most iconic debuts that K-pop has probably ever seen is that of NewJeans. The five-member girl group consisting of Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin and Hyein was produced by BTS’ company HYBE and managed by an independent label called ADOR. The CEO of ADOR, and CBO (Chief Brand Officer) of HYBE, is Min Hee-Jin, who is most well-known for her work with K-pop groups like Red Velvet, Exo, F(x), Girl’s Generation and NCT DREAM.
The K-pop genre is known for its large-scale debuts of new groups, which usually consists of months of video teasers, sneak peeks of the group and introducing the members one by one. What made NewJeans different was their complete subversion of that debut formula.
The girls released their first song and music video for “Attention” on July 21, 2022, without any warning — no teasers, no promo pictures, nothing. They then released four separate music videos for the same song called “Hype Boy,” another music video for “Hurt” and then their official debut song and music video for “Cookie.”
Speaking on NewJeans’ unique group concept, Hee-Jin said in a press release, “‘Attention’ brings not only the quintet’s faces to light but also highlights the group’s name, NewJeans. Pop music is a culture that is very close to our daily life, so it is like the clothes we wear everyday. Just as jeans have withstood the test of time and found popularity among many regardless of their age and gender, NewJeans aspires to become an icon of generations — one you never grow tiresome of putting on.”
Le Sserafim also made their debut a few months earlier under BTS’ label — and was the first girl group to do so in 10 years! The girl group consisting of Kim Chaewon, Sakura, Huh Yunjin, Kazuha, Hong Eunchae and former member Kim Garam (who exited the group in July 2022) debuted on May 2, 2022, with the release of their debut EP Fearless and lead single “Fearless.”
Scroll through our gallery to see the most talked about K-pop groups of 2022!
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