The more I think about it the more I understand aespa is a well thought-out calculated group!

all hail LSM!!!

Unsure about hitting the jackpot because it seems most groups these days are including more than 1 foreigners

4th gen

LSF - 2 Koreans, 1 Korean-American, 2 Japanese. 1 native English speaker

NewJeans - 3 Koreans, 1 Korean/Australian, 1 Vietnamese . 2 native English speakers

I-DLE - 2 Koreans, 1 Taiwanese, 1 Chinese, 1 Thai. 2 fluent in English

5th gen

Meov - 2 Korean, 1 Japanese, 1 Korean American, 1 Half Korean - 1 native English speaker

Babymonster - 3 Korean, 2 Thai, 2 japanese. Don't watch enough of their content to know English speaking level

Kiss of life - 1 Korean, 2 Korean-Americans, 1 Thai. 2 Native English speakers

Illit - 3 Koreans, 2 Japanese

Then there's large groups like H2H and tripleS with a very diverse background

I think it's just something that is more common to attract more markets to include foreigners. They most likely watched how SEA fans gravitated towards Lisa and how strong Twice did with MiSaMo and wanted in on multiple markets. I think it's a smart decision to look outside of Korea for talent because there's a lot of talent outside of Korea and I can't imagine certain groups without foreigners. I would like kpop to look into the Philippines. There are so many good vocalist with a Filipino background and I am surprised there's not more idols from there. Plus, there's Bini that is performing well globally and they seem to be liked in many markets.

Quote from foreveraespaaa

I meant SM hitting the jackpot finding an idol that speaks 3 main languages within kpop and is of Japanese and Korean descent

I have a theory I’m still researching on but I believe idols get more support if they’re from a country compared to idols from Korea that speaks the language

A Japanese or Chinese or Thai idol will get more support from their country just because they’re from the country compared to a Korean idol who speaks these languages this is just my opinion btw and I’m still researching!

I think it's true because there's something the market can relate to. For example, Yuqi and Minnie are fluent in English but I don't think it did much for them to have more stans in English-Speaking countries. However, if we look at Chinese market Yuqi is one of the biggest idols there and I think having somebody they can champion adds a lot to a group. I believe Minnie is very popular in Thailand too and I notice many Thai entertainers follow her.

I know many don't like speaking about them these days, but I think a major thing for Kiss of Life was having 2 American idols. I think that was an easy way to have a lot of support because people were able to relate Julie and Belle. I think that's why they were able to get out of NUGU quickly tbh.

I think what matters is how much a region will back an idol. I think if we look at North America, NZ/AU, and Europe they don't always fully back idols from that region. However, it seems their stronger support for idols if they're from Asia. I guess those regions are more into kpop than western countries, which might explain why we stronger support form those regions compared to western countries.