How unusual is for boygroups to have strong vocal lines?

  • Aside from TVXQ and 2am (2nd gen) where all members were main vocals, and Suju/exo/btob powerful vocals when they were active as full groups, I can only think of nct 127 as another group with a strong vocal line. They officially have 4 main vocals (taeil, haechan, doyoung and jaehyun) and 1 lead vocal (jungwoo) with another member having the potential to be a lead (yuta). So 6 out of 9 members are vocalists.


    Now there seems to be a lack of vocal lines among active boygroups, most of the time it consists of only 1 or 2 members that aren't main-vocal-worthy tbh. And I missing more groups or is there a real lack of vocalists in recent times?


    So are nct 127 with their 4 main vocals and 1(2) lead vocals the norm or the rarity? Was it common in previous generations and 4th gen just changed everything ?

  • 4d-maknae

    Changed the title of the thread from “How unusual is for boygroups to be full of vocalists?” to “How unusual is for boygroups to have strong vocal lines?”.
  • NCT don’t feel like vocal group much because of the direction of their singles. For me they’re more of the same in kpop even with talent.


    But I guess in terms of vocalists NCT and 17 have some good ones. Pharmony in 4th gen have good vocalists as well. I heard a bit of treasure while I can't really say they’re strong they seem less hip hop inclined than their seniors so there is scope there.

  • up10tion has main, lead and vocalists with bit-to as the only one who only raps, though i think he can sing a bit, on this recent album kuhn gave off his vocals, jinhyuk can sing a bit as well, especially in his solo music.


    all of ateez can sing, even mingi and hongjoong proved that.


    so no i don't think it's unusual


    everyone in luminous can, everyone in e'last can, d-crunch can etc.

  • Just gonna plug an older active group here

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  • I heard jinhyuk when he was in produce and tbh he didn't really sound like a vocal. I'm not talking about "can sing" idols but actual singers that can hold main/lead positions. If not, I would have listed all nct members as example lol

  • NCT don’t feel like vocal group much because of the direction of their singles. For me they’re more of the same in kpop even with talent.


    But I guess in terms of vocalists NCT and 17 have some good ones. Pharmony in 4th gen have good vocalists as well. I heard a bit of treasure while I can't really say they’re strong they seem less hip hop inclined than their seniors so there is scope there.

    I'm not talking about concepts or title songs tho, I'm talking about the talent of the members. Even if they aren't singing ballads or focus on vocal songs, we can notice when there is a competent and strong vocal line. That makes some groups stand out.

  • I'm not talking about concepts or title songs tho, I'm talking about the talent of the members. Even if they aren't singing ballads or focus on vocal songs, we can notice when there is a competent and strong vocal line. That makes some groups stand out.

    Tbh if the songs are not vocally powered it’s a moot point to discuss. Hence I brought it up.

  • I heard jinhyuk when he was in produce and tbh he didn't really sound like a vocal. I'm not talking about "can sing" idols but actual singers that can hold main/lead positions. If not, I would have listed all nct members as example lol

    just listen to his solo work, produce isn't exactly something to go by. On produce he was doing what he knows best, rapping. he's also a lead rapper in up10tion, but that doesn't mean he can't easily be a lead singer. there's a combination in all of his 4 albums, here's some songs i recommend listening to (And I mean go listen to, not just the previews here it will not give you the overall picture):


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  • yes it would be weird, but since there are good male singers out there, it's not. most boy groups have strong vocal lines. the proof is everywhere idk why this is in question

    I don't really see most active boygroups having strong vocal lines that's why I asked, none of them have as many main vocals as previous generations had and I'm saying that based on the performances I saw on music shows, award shows, realities, etc

    Maybe they have showed their abilities in other places? Idk

  • I don't really see most active boygroups having strong vocal lines that's why I asked, none of them have as many main vocals as previous generations had and I'm saying that based on the performances I saw on music shows, award shows, realities, etc

    Maybe they have showed their abilities in other places? Idk

    Yes, variety shows, vlives, social media posts, vlogging/behind the scenes content, and other types of fan based media like those. It's kinda hard to show what you have on award shows and music shows when those are performance and dance based. So it's easier to do during a groups personal content to show to fans and potential fans. Not only that, but with the pandemic is hard to even get on one of these shows for a 4th gen group when South Korea doesn't even pay attention to them. Most people think that 4th gen is a dance competition because the most popular boy groups from big companies are "dance focused" (a false narrative). They do not take into consideration that kpop is not just the big4 and ignore smaller company groups. Newer boy groups who not only have amazing dancers, but also some of the best vocalists of the generation are: The Boyz, Treasure, P1harmony, Monsta X, and Ateez.


    Stray kids, Ateez, TXT, Enhypen and The Boyz (just to name a few). As I said before, two of these groups have some of the best vocalists of their generation (one even has one of the best vocalist in kpop not just 4th gen and we all know it's Jongho of Ateez) Even if Stray kids, TXT, and Enhypen aren't as vocally strong as the other two, they are definitely not weak. Seungmin alone is a standout vocalist with a good range. Even Han their rapper has the range, technique, and tone of a main vocalist. TXT and Enhypen aren't praised enough for their vocals. They have softer tones but that doesn't affect their stability which it impressive. And we've seen on I-Land that Enhypen are more than capable of improving and getting even better. TXT get better every era they went from bright and energetic Crown to dark and raspy Lo$er=Lover, that's not easy to do. And Taehyun and Hueningkai even talked about learning new techniques and improving their overall vocal tone and it shows.


    I don't think 4th gen's goal is to have a Mariah Carey Vs. Whitney Houston face off. It goes it's much deeper than "dancey songs" it's about technique, tone, vocal range, and emotions that go into a good vocalist. Strong vocals don't equal good vocals. Lots of people have strong voices but their technique, tone, vocal range, and ability to portray emotions is way off (not any idols that I can think of I'm just talking people that are interested in singing in general).

    And I didn't even mention the bunch of other smaller groups with amazing vocalists but it's already a long message :oops:

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