Why boygroups bside tracks trend to be more popular than girlgroups?

  • I don’t see many girlgroups bside tracks getting hype up in comparison to boygroup one 🤔


    Do you guys think there is a reason or this is just my perspective and actually girlgroups get more or both do get it equally?

  • girlgroups have many casual listeners who only check title tracks and boygroups are expected to have more fans who listen to everything and then decide whether they like it. probably the reason why companies seem more focused in giving girlgroups hit songs and for boygroups the title track is less relevant so their b-sides are often better than their tts at least in my opinion

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    Edited once, last by lialve ().

  • Girl groups literally get less b-sides than boy groups.


    aespa and Enhypen debuted less than two weeks apart. Both of them have had their debut and three comebacks (well Enhypen's 3rd comeback is on Monday).


    aespa - 4 title tracks, 5 b sides

    Enhypen - 4 title tracks, 12 b sides (I didn't count the intro/outros)


    I feel like because there's less overall music to check out people fixate on the title tracks. It also makes it harder to learn a group's musicality. Typically there are groups where I know that even if I don't like the title track, they have a strong track record on b sides. Girl groups are cheated out of building that trust with their casual fans.

  • Eh, twice has 6 years worth of music out and is the third most streamed kpop artist of all time on Spotify, and I don’t think they have a proper bside with over 30m streams even with all the attention they get, cmiiw though. People simply just don’t listen to gg bsides all that much compared to the guys, it’s not much more than that

  • I don't think there's an answer , some groups just have a different vision when it comes to that. For Twice, as an example, I wasn't interested in their earlies stuff at all, nowadays I feel like they tend to explore more in their bsides :eyes: Red Velvet is highly known by their bsides quality too


    Edit: Another way to see it it's that some girl group fans don't really focus on discussing music and would rather talk about visuals but I like to think this isn't the majority

  • ITZY really can't relate, tiktok ate SWIPE and Twenty up

    To answer though I'm not sure. I guess there tends to be less actual fans of ggs than casual listeners and vice versa for bgs so their b-sides are not usually trending by way of fandom engagement like bgs

    Some of Itzy b-sides are viral on tiktok. Shoot seems crazily popular among non kpop fans

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  • I don’t see many girlgroups bside tracks getting hype up in comparison to boygroup one 🤔


    Do you guys think there is a reason or this is just my perspective and actually girlgroups get more or both do get it equally?

    That’s because gp don’t look beyond your title tracks. Mostly it’s fans who do so. And we all know that ggs main numbers depends on gp.


    That’s why I don’t believe IU doesn’t have a fandom. U can say the whole Korea are her fans because all her bsides chart very high quickly on melon

  • That’s because gp don’t look beyond your title tracks. Mostly it’s fans who do so. And we all know that ggs main numbers depends on gp.


    That’s why I don’t believe IU doesn’t have a fandom. U can say the whole Korea are her fans because all her bsides chart very high quickly on melon

    She literally gets more than 100k people tuning in for her in the first hour on ONE platform every single time. Casual fans rarely do that. Non fans probably never.

  • That’s because gp don’t look beyond your title tracks. Mostly it’s fans who do so. And we all know that ggs main numbers depends on gp.


    That’s why I don’t believe IU doesn’t have a fandom. U can say the whole Korea are her fans because all her bsides chart very high quickly on melon

    If she has fans on that scale, then they don't fit the pattern, when it comes to album sales.


    Lilac is probably the first of her albums to have above average sales, and still nowhere comparable to other top acts or even matching her digital domination.


    Physical sales, is pretty much the test of fandoms.

  • If she has fans on that scale, then they don't fit the pattern, when it comes to album sales.


    Lilac is probably the first of her albums to have above average sales, and still nowhere comparable to other top acts or even matching her digital domination.


    Physical sales, is pretty much the test of fandoms.

    Nor voting

  • Some of Itzy b-sides are viral on tiktok. Shoot seems crazily popular among non kpop fans

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    Woah this song is so nice :omgr:

    Also they sampled the song I had to play on the saxophone in school so bonus points 😁

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    🍭 iite cool🍭

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  • Unless you are Twice, many girl groups do not have large, strong and stable fanbases who will buy their albums and listen to the whole thing. Most ggs, have casual listeners who will only tune in for the title track then dip if it's bad..kpop fans won't bother checking your discography out, or consider "stanning".

  • Nor voting

    True, infact voting is probably a better indicator.


    At least physicals, money needs to be spent.


    Whereas to do fan voting, is far cheaper but needs commitment - time and focus.


    And IU doesn't do well in fan voting either.


    It is not that she doesn't have a fandom, but just in the comparison scale, hers is not AA massive or organized, like those of top Bags,GGs.

    Yet that she crushes the charts digitally, could mean only one thing - GP.


    Maybe things are changing with Lilac, did well in sales.

  • What's been said


    There's a couple of girl groups, well established or very successful that manages to get some bside recognition and it often correlates with ggs that have big fandoms and enough buying/streaming power (blackpink then less so but still twice and itzy and red velvet too who is the most quoted ggs/groups with the best bsides).


    Produce/survival groups also have decent bside numbers, ofc due to their solid fanbase (iz*one and kep1er has good bsides numbers for a debut).

  • If she has fans on that scale, then they don't fit the pattern, when it comes to album sales.


    Lilac is probably the first of her albums to have above average sales, and still nowhere comparable to other top acts or even matching her digital domination.


    Physical sales, is pretty much the test of fandoms.

    That’s a very flawed logic. I am an army and yet I don’t have any physical release of BTS. Does that mean because I can’t afford to buy an album, I am less of a fan compared to someone who does?

  • That’s because gp don’t look beyond your title tracks. Mostly it’s fans who do so. And we all know that ggs main numbers depends on gp.


    That’s why I don’t believe IU doesn’t have a fandom. U can say the whole Korea are her fans because all her bsides chart very high quickly on melon

    IU def has a big fandom and GP who love her music in SK.





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    Edited once, last by BRIYANI ().

  • That’s a very flawed logic. I am an army and yet I don’t have any physical release of BTS. Does that mean because I can’t afford to buy an album, I am less of a fan compared to someone who does?

    Actually to use oneself i.e. anecdotal, for anything, is considered flawed in logic.

  • not all fans purchase albums. I don't.

    I don't either, but the more fans you have, the more fans who would buy the albums. Bts, for example have a big fandom, even if a small percentage of their fans buys an album, there will still be a high number of sales than for groups who have a smaller fandom

  • not all fans purchase albums. I don't.

    Of course not. But it is not a robust argument to use oneself was evidence.


    The reasons why IU doesn't have a fandom comparable to top BGs and GGs are,

    #1. Her digitals ULs are far disproportionate to her physical sales.

    #2. She scores low on fan voting, again compared to her digitals


    It is not you, me or Afriyieau1 who are evidence, but statistical trends.

    Edited once, last by bbgc ().

  • But I am a great example. And I’m sure there are several others like me. From where I come from shipping costs discourage anyone to buy albums. And my point still stands. Not being able to buy a physical release doesn’t make you less of a fan.

    At a personal level, sure.

    Fan - needs no external certification.


    But when debating trends and dynamics, statistics are more relevant than individual preferences.

  • There are Some gg songs done excellent compared to bg songs too like OMG dolphin and twice cry for me it has 100m streams in Spotify and bp b sides almost all cross 100 streams

  • ikr. She basically sold 300k albums with no gimmicks and we know IU sales aren’t inflated by international sales too. Like the only reasons why idol groups sell a lot is because of the album content, not the music itself.

    Half of her sales came from china... She has one of the biggest fandom over there.

  • I mean IU sells over 50k fanclub memberships every year. Her music box figure merch thingy sold out within few hr.

    That would be a very good metric to measure fandoms,

    1. Fanclub memberships (of course all fans don't purchase memberships)

    2. Annual Merchandise earnings (ofc all fans don't purchase merchandise)


    Where did you get the 50K number? Is it possible to get the same for other groups?


    Of course IU has a fandom, but does she have one comparable to the top groups - even if not the size of ARMY.


    The exception with IU is the proportionality.

    BTS has the largest fandom, so have the most album sales, most fan votes and high digitals/ULs etc. - all proportional.

    But IU - has highest digitals/ULs etc., but when it comes to album sales, fan votes - not at all proportional.


    While all fans need not purchase or vote, it is logical that mostly fans will purchase and vote.

    Therefore IUs digitals are driven far more than just fandoms.

    All of the above only in a relative scale to other top acts.


    And then there are general patterns like,

    Groups have better fandoms than soloists.

    BGs have better physical sales than GGs.


    So IU could be compared with Taeyeon or Sunmi etc, but her digitals which outrank even BTS makes such comparison futile.

  • That would be a very good metric to measure fandoms,

    1. Fanclub memberships (of course all fans don't purchase memberships)

    2. Annual Merchandise earnings (ofc all fans don't purchase merchandise)


    Where did you get the 50K number? Is it possible to get the same for other groups?

    She mentions it herself in her 12th anniversary vlive. 50301 members to be exact.


    This is a screenshot of the waiting list for her 'strawberry moon' merchandise on her online md store. Almost 400k people waiting in line to buy her merchansdise.


    1642086113.png


    IU has more domestic fans than she is given credit for. She is currently the only female artist who can hold a concert and fill kspo dome(360°, 15000 capacity) for a full weekend. She was also planning to hold her 2020 concert at the seoul olympic stadium(40000 capacity minimum) but it was canceled due to COVID.


    I think the main reason that she lacks numbers in voting is because she doesn't have that many international fans. If you look at Korea only voting(mma for instance) her votes can get pretty high.

  • Thanks,


    But given that S.K's population is 50 millions, 50000 fan club is rather tiny. And we need the data for other idol groups for comparison. I don't suppose K-ARMY registered fans would be just 50000.

    OF course, the memberships will be restricted by the companies to create an artificial demand - true of all companies.


    Merchandise: Again would be good to know the comparison with other top acts.

    Because she sells very low on physicals, generally GGs sell low, soloists even further. Lilac probably has been the first time her album sales has been decent.


    I don't think concerts are a good way to measure fandoms, because both fans and non-fans will go to them. And the top 20-30 acts will not have trouble selling out.

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