I go to bookstores a lot and there is a section showing mags about various pop stars in circulation.
At BTS' height half of that section was about it.
However, with the crazed K-O-R-E-A-N incels getting their wish, mags about BTS mostly disappeared ,replaced by Harry Styles an other acts. BlackPink is the last holdout but there is virtually zero interest on 4th Gen acts in the West.
There will be some kind of niche for 4th Gen acts, but the way the companies are promoting these act does not really help to promote them for the West.
With the possible exception of NewJeans, all 4th Gen girl Groups are now concentrating in Japan since it is easier money. NJ remains to be seen. I don't really see Baemon as anything more than a younger version of BlackPink, They already saw the original. Why would they see a copycat?
If BTS had a couple more years, the 4th Gen would have started from a higher ground , with some time to adapt. But with the K-O-R-E-A-N incels and crazed conservative politicians destroying it, the 4th Gen are like sprouts facing a hurricane, or a number of hurricanes .
NewJeans finally removed IU from the picture, ending the greatest threat against 4th Gen, but Min Heejin , who was involved in a lot of SM acts, might see the temptation of a quick buck from Japan, a danger every 4th Gen girl group has fallen into.
So, with the exception of New Jeans where the jury is still out, it is unlikely for any extant 4th Gen act to rekindle the enthusiasm for KPop.
