Was IVE the biggest surprise of kpop in 2021? (at least for GGs)

i guess so? although survival show members groups usually start well, then fade.

although I think Weeekly having After School being so popular internationally was more surprising. Or Lisa Money getting as big as it did considering the cringe fest lyrics

e/

I take it all back, Its Brave Girls going viral from a fanmade video

Yes. Lbr ive debut success is very close to big3 level. And no post produce group was ever this successful. Everyone thought they'll flop not do this good.

Edit : okay i forgot about brave girls. Yeah that too was a big surprise. Both of these.

I think Brave Girls is

No Brave Girls hands down

ONE of the big surprises

I would say aespa after BM I thought they would have a had a moderate success but they did better than expected especially when NL got a bad reception at first

Stayc too people forget them but ASAP was truly a sleeper hit after they went from selling 20k albums to 100k albums

Brave girls too

It is a surprise (a good one) indeed BUT like the others have said, not the BIGGEST.

Now I want to watch Cinderella. Thanks krell.

I barely know who IVE are, so can't say anything about them....

Biggest suprise? For me that T-ara (or 4/6 T-ara) acctually came out with news songs.

Well, the strange Brave Girls thing is also suprising and a bit odd.

Maybe a bit surpising BP felt a bit low-key this year, but I guess with the solos, not a suprise. Also not a suprise, Twice is like a machine with their songs, also two really good songs this this year.

Brave Girls is the cinderella story.

In terms of success yes, they were the biggest surprise along aespa that had a national hit. Eleven was one of the most successful debuts I ever seen - they did well in any type of measurement, not just one or two.

However the biggest surprise overall TO ME was Billlie's debut track tbh

Wasn't that much of a surprise to me tbh. Wonyoung was already well into her way of becoming 4th Gen It girl before IVE even had a name. The group was going to get attention in Korea no matter what. The group only needed a good song and other pretty members to cement the deal and that's exactly what happened.

I agree with everybody else that the Brave Girls thing was more surprising. Sakura joining HYBE also blew my mind

Not really honestly. Of all the post produce groups I knew IVE would be the most successful even before they debuted. Having Wonyoung and Yujin helped IVE garner some success right away but Starship did a really good job introducing/teasing the members. Their debut single was solid and showcased all the members equally unlike other post produce groups.