The song is much more popular than the group. It's that simple.
People keep trying to force this idiotic narrative that ILLIT had a bigger debut era than NewJeans, when literally one group had one hit song and the other had the most successful debut and debut album EVER (most streamed in K-Pop HISTORY) and were a total cultural reset on the industry.
NewJeans have been Korea's favorite group since debut. Meanwhile, I don't think dozens and dozens of big brands are knocking at Belift's door looking to secure deals and ambassadorships with ILLIT
This isn't shade but let's be real. ILLIT had one big debut song (the rest of the songs weren't remotely close to being hits) and the rest of the noise they made was all about their similarities to NewJeans