Looking through some recommended threads and I'm seeing shit like
Quote
and
Quotewhat kick started 4th generation is COVID and the resulting lockdown.
Like ummmm. If we're saying 4th gen started in 2020 then wtf happens to idle and itzy 
I think the whole generational thing is kinda stupid and arbitrary, but Itzy have always been widely accepted as one of the first 4th gen groups by pretty much all Kpop fans who care about this sort of thing. I've never heard anyone call them 3rd gen.
I-dle is actually a good example of why you can't always cleanly differentiate, but if I have to categorize them, it would be as a "late to the party" 3rd gen group. They don't really have the vibe of these newer groups, and their actual ages put them more in line with 3rd gen groups as well (their maknae was born before everyone in Itzy.)
They are kinda like AoA and EXID in that they fall into the gap.
Personally, I put them both as 3rd gen groups because they don’t have the y2k or youthful vibes of 4th/5th gen, they are 3rd gen style girl crush and their peak years were alongside the peak years of Blackpink.
But many fans simply like to draw a line in the sand, and the commonly agreed upon date is 2018 onwards is 4th gen.
Yet, the line in the sand for 3rd gen is 2012, which would make both EXID and AoA 3rd gen groups, but people usually agree they are 2.5 groups instead. I think the gens for girl groups start and end a little later than boy groups (because the big 3 have always debuted their boy groups before their girl groups).
Display MoreITZY debut in 2019
Wonyoung, Yujin, Sakura, Chaewon made their debut in 2018 in IZ*ONE
Are you telling me that Wonyoung Yujin Sakura Chaewon is 4th gen while ITZY who debut after them is in 3rd gen?
Make it make sense
viviz debuted in 2022 but no one would group them with 4th gen lol. Redebuts are not that rare, and it’s not hard to acknowledge that some idols first debuted in a different landscape from where they permanently ended up
Similarly, one wouldn’t classify taeyeon and g.na as solo idols from different eras/generations just bc taeyeon made her official debut much later than g.na, which technically made the former the hoobae in the strictest sense of the word lol
Display MoreThey are kinda like AoA and EXID in that they fall into the gap.
Personally, I put them both as 3rd gen groups because they don’t have the y2k or youthful vibes of 4th/5th gen, they are 3rd gen style girl crush and their peak years were alongside the peak years of Blackpink.
But many fans simply like to draw a line in the sand, and the commonly agreed upon date is 2018 onwards is 4th gen.
Yet, the line in the sand for 3rd gen is 2012, which would make both EXID and AoA 3rd gen groups, but people usually agree they are 2.5 groups instead. I think the gens for girl groups start and end a little later than boy groups (because the big 3 have always debuted their boy groups before their girl groups).
Idle wasn't consider a top group until 2022 which falls in line with the other 4th gen girl groups. They were slow risers and became popular around 2020. I think they fall right in line with 4th gen groups because they were competing with the other top groups imo.
In regards to Itzy, they were the girl group that started 4th gen and many considered them the standard for what 4th gen girl groups should set their goals at.
I think the gen thing is messy and I think it's mainly marketing. I don't think companies decides a generation and it's more so the general public. It's why 5th gen has been somewhat messy because companies declared it too soon. They declared 5th gen started in 2023, but 4th gen groups didn't even hit close to their peaks which is why 5th gen has been getting overshadowed
Never made sense! There’s no such thing as 1.5, 2.5, 3.5 or 4.5 gens lol
Itzy are 4th gen, Idle are 4th gen and Stray kids are 4th gen
The one that confuses me most are Fifty Fifty
Fifty Fifty is a bit tricky because the original lineup debuted in late 2022, but the new lineup debuted in 2024. I think the concepts and vibe is much different than the OT4 lineup, and the group mostly consists of idols that would be considered 5th gen. I think they should be considered 5th gen because the style, concepts, music is much different. I guess we can say Keena is a 4th gen idol but the other 4 members are 5th gen idols.
Same. Personally, I consider 2020 when 4th Gen started. There wasn't too much to separate 3rd and 4th Gen between 2016 and 2019.
Same. Personally, I consider 2020 when 4th Gen started. There wasn't too much to separate 3rd and 4th Gen between 2016 and 2019.
People just did it because they couldn’t compete with 3rd Gen lol. No other reason.
I don't consider them as 3rd gen cuz they debuted much later than most 3rd gen group and it was pretty much the end of 3rd gen when they debuted
But i don't also consider them as 4th gen neither cuz there wasn't too much happening in 2019 and 2019 was still largely dominated by 3rd gen groups
To me 4th gen truly kicks off in 2020 when 4th gen group started to make some waves in korea and we started to have 4th gen group that were able to compete with 3rd gen group digitally and sales wise
So i would say they are more a 3.5th gen group
Like someone said previously they are kinda in the same position than AOA and Exid they debuted between the end of a gen and the start of another gen
I think most of us just count them with the 4th gen gg cuz they are closer to other 4th gen groups in term of age and most of their existence is during 4th gen also it's easier for people to count their achievements
But they are definitely to me more a 3.5th gen group
Also because as a group they also feels less "fresh" than aespa, ive, or NJ
There's just 1 or 2 years separating them and itzy debut
But itzy feels like a group that is 4 years older than the rest of the 4th gen group
In 2019, Itzy came up with 4th gen's first major shot across the bow, Dalla, which was a warning to 3rd gen that their time at the top was coming to an end.
I see that you quite like the phrase "shot across the bow" when referring to "Dalla Dalla":
Dalla Dalla was the initial shot across the bow. The warning.
Dalla Dalla was the shot across the bow, a warning to 3rd gen groups.
Itzy fired the warning shot, the shot across the bow at 3rd generation
Dalla was the warning shot across the bow to 3rd gen
Y'all are forgetting how huge Dalla was. It was the first 4th gen megahit, it was the shot across the bow
But Dalla was like the first shot across the bow
However, Dalla Dalla was the first shot across the bow.
Stray Kids debut in 2018 and are consider by the Korean Media as a 4th Gen BG, the same would apply to every GG that debut in 2018 or at least after SKz.
BGs are generally the measure for Idol Generations as they signify a changeover and it's usually SME that has set the standard but for this time it was JYPE.
I don't consider them as 3rd gen cuz they debuted much later than most 3rd gen group and it was pretty much the end of 3rd gen when they debuted
But i don't also consider them as 4th gen neither cuz there wasn't too much happening in 2019 and 2019 was still largely dominated by 3rd gen groups
To me 4th gen truly kicks off in 2020 when 4th gen group started to make some waves in korea and we started to have 4th gen group that were able to compete with 3rd gen group digitally and sales wise
But the 4th gen group doing that was IZ*ONE, who debuted before ITZY.
Itzy is 4th gen. Idle should be 3rd gen but they also feel like a 4th gen group because they peaked at the same time as other top 4th gen groups.
Also, Itzy ain't making it to top 5 whatever gen it is but I do think Idle fans should start calling them 3rd gen cuz if Idle was a 3rd gen group, they would be a top 3 GG EASILY.
Both are OFFICIALLY considered 4th gen groups, end of story.
Don’t have an account yet? Register yourself now and be a part of our community!
