This is an issue very close to my heart. I'm always sad whenever I think about this too much and notice this, especially nowadays when K-Pop is more mainstream than it used to be back in the days.
I don't actually consider myself an "old-school" K-Pop fan, I started listening to Korean music in 2014 but it's still been 4 years already and I still remember a time when BTS wasn't as big as they are now. That being said, the time of truly legendary groups such as TVXQ were long-gone when I first got into K-Pop, I only learned about them later on and the glory days were behind them (I don't mean that in a bad way, btw). As for TVXQ, the original line-up of 5 members was long over in 2014 so I never truly knew the power group in their prime but still. I do pride myself in knowing and appreciating a lot of old groups and songs that don't get the recognition and appreciation they deserve nowadays. I don't want to offend anyone but to me, a true K-Pop fan is someone who still knows anthems like Mirotic by TVXQ, the early songs by Super Junior (like Twins) and groups like Secret that have long been disbanded. As unimaginable as it might seem now, there was a time when EXO and BTS didn't exist yet and other groups dominated the market. The one group I always feel especially bad for is (as you might have guessed by now) TVXQ. Yunho and Changmin will always have a special place in my heart because even though it took me some time, I grew to love them and their music because even the latest TVXQ songs are bops. Another example is BoA. She is truly a pioneer for the entire Korean music industry but gets easily overlooked by newer fans. She was 13 when she debuted as a soloist after 2 years of training at SM and still works for the company today. She's been active for 18 years, that's more than half of her life and recently she released her 9th full-length album Woman which is seriously so so good and everybody needs to listen to it! To me, BoA is like a bridge between K-Pop generations. Most of the first generation groups like H.O.T, Shinhwa, Fin.K.L, Baby Vox, Chakra, S.E.S, g.o.d and Sechs Kies were still promoting in 2000 and then the second generation of idol groups started with TVXQ, Super Junior, Big Bang, 2PM and 2AM, and F.T. Island. I haven't really thought about when the third generation of groups starts (for me) but whenever that may be, BoA promoted through the years until today. Lastly, Super Junior. I don't wanna say they're not popular anymore because I certainly still love them but keeping in mind that they once dominated music charts, their success nowadays is definitely more reserved although in my opinion, the Replay album was one of their best records overall (I loved all the songs so much). I'm not sure whether newer fans are aware but their song Bonamana (which was released in 2010) stayed as the #1 song on a Taiwanese chart for 61 consecutive weeks - that's more than a year! Of course, with SuJu I do kind of know where the "loss" of popularity came from as ever since 2012 members were completing their military service. But this year with Kyuhyun as the last member serving, the end of SuJu's military days is near. Now, with all of that being said. I strongly urge you to maybe pay attention to the groups I mentioned. You should at least check out their music, you will not regret it, I promise! I'll recommend a few of my favorite songs: TVXQ: 주문 (Mirotic), 왜 (Keep Your Head Down), Catch Me, Humanoids, 수리수리 (Spellbound), 운명 (The Chance of Love), 평행선 (Love Line), Jealous BoA: No. 1, 아틀란티스 소녀 (Atlantis Princess), My Name, Girls On Top, Eat You Up, Hurricane Venus, Copy & Paste, Who Are You, Camo, 내가 돌아 (Nega Dola), Everybody Knows, One Shot Two Shot, Woman Super Junior: Twins (Knock Out), U, Sorry Sorry, 미인아 (Bonamana), Mr. Simple, Sexy Free & Single, Spy, Mamacita, This Is Love, Devil, Magic, the entire Replay album, One More Time |
AlinaI'm a 20 years old from Germany. I am studying Asian Studies and Korean at university and I fell in love with Korean music, television and culture (also the food) a few years ago Go to the NAVIGATION page to find the categories & an overview of companies / groups / members.
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