Posts by harambelives
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Also there was that time Taeyeon sang Adele when we were young
External Content youtu.beContent embedded from external sources will not be displayed without your consent.Through the activation of external content, you agree that personal data may be transferred to third party platforms. We have provided more information on this in our privacy policy.A Korean singing in English (non fluent speaker) for a German crowd most of whom had no clue who she is and still she captivated them. Some cried. That's how special of a singer she is.
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They say AI will take over humanity at the pace it's advancing at but judging by that list I think humanity is safe for a long while lol. If AI has worse takes than freaking kpop fans then our future will be safe for a looong time
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Since it's all the rage I asked chatgpt for "who are the top 10 greatest kop girl group of all time" and the results are interesting. Here is the print out:
QuoteDisplay MoreDetermining the greatest K-pop girl groups of all time is subjective and often depends on criteria like cultural impact, longevity, and musical legacy. However, here’s a list of groups often regarded as iconic:
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1. Girls’ Generation (SNSD)
Why? Pioneers of the Hallyu Wave for girl groups, they redefined what it means to be a global K-pop sensation. Hits like “Gee” and “I Got a Boy” cemented their legacy.
Legacy: Longevity, cultural impact, and influence on future girl groups.
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Why? Global megastars with a massive following, breaking records on platforms like YouTube and Spotify. Songs like “DDU-DU DDU-DU” and “Kill This Love” resonate worldwide.
Legacy: Bringing K-pop into Western mainstream media and dominating global stages.
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3. TWICE
Why? Masters of addictive choruses and concepts, with hits like “Cheer Up” and “Fancy.” Their versatility and appeal helped them dominate Asia and beyond.
Legacy: Bridging the gap between cuteness and maturity in K-pop.
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Why? Known for their bold, edgy concepts and powerhouse performances. Songs like “I Am the Best” and “Fire” set them apart as trendsetters.
Legacy: Paved the way for non-traditional K-pop aesthetics and concepts.
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Why? The first K-pop girl group to break into the U.S. market with “Nobody.” Their retro-inspired music and style were revolutionary.
Legacy: Early global pioneers and key influencers of the second generation.
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6. Red Velvet
Why? Known for blending experimental sounds (“Red Flavor”) with mature concepts (“Psycho”). Their dual "Red" and "Velvet" themes keep them versatile.
Legacy: Queens of versatility and genre-blending in K-pop.
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7. S.E.S.
Why? One of the first-generation girl groups to achieve massive popularity. Songs like “I’m Your Girl” defined K-pop’s early years.
Legacy: Pioneers of the girl group formula in Korea.
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8. ITZY
Why? Known for their confidence and empowering themes in songs like “Dalla Dalla” and “Wannabe.” They’ve redefined Gen Z representation in K-pop.
Legacy: Leaders of the self-love and individuality movement.
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9. (G)I-DLE
Why? Their self-produced music, bold concepts, and global appeal set them apart. Songs like “TOMBOY” and “LATATA” showcase their creativity.
Legacy: Redefining what it means to be an "idol" through self-expression.
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10. f(x)
Why? Known for their experimental music (“Electric Shock” and “4 Walls”), they stood out for their unique sound and aesthetics.
Legacy: Pioneers of unconventional and avant-garde concepts.
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Honorable Mentions
KARA: Their success in both Korea and Japan made them international icons.
LOONA: Praised for their ambitious pre-debut project and unique storytelling.
Apink: Known for their consistency and longevity with both cute and mature concepts.
MAMAMOO: Vocally dominant with empowering themes and strong individuality.
Conclusion
While groups like Girls’ Generation and BLACKPINK dominate discussions, every group listed has contributed si
gnificantly to K-pop’s global rise. Their unique strengths and legacies make them irreplaceable pillars of the genre.
Yeah..... Starts off like most others lists but last few are questionable lol.
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Ah but of course your pro child killing self would defend them so here's some here not so subtle hints that higher ups think tiktok is a danger to poor ol isreal's image
TikTok faces calls for ban amid claims of anti-Israel ‘indoctrination’US lawmakers renew calls to restrict app amid anxiety about growing pro-Palestinian views among young people.www.aljazeera.com
Blinken blames social media for disrupting Israel’s narrative of war in GazaSecretary of state said social media allows history context to ‘get lost’www.independent.co.uk
Mitt Romney Has a Wild Theory About the TikTok BanThis idea could have been ripped from, well, a TikTok video by conspiracy-curious teenage power users.slate.com
Israel is banning Al Jazeera, America is banning TikTok. We know why | Seth SternWhat the two laws have in common is desire to silence Israel-Gaza war criticswww.theguardian.com -
Not American but it's obvious it was done because A it's not controlled by America so they can't control the narrative and B it was crucial in exposing isreal genocide and America complicity.
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Didn't I already mention that.
But my point is that the dynamics of the Kpop industry drastically changed, that Soloists merely by vocal ability, would not have achieved the current levels of success.
There are few successful solo vocalists pre-2010, but they were all overtaken by the "groups" wave, how many would remember say Son Dambi?
If Taeyeon did not join SNSD, then she would not have had as great a career as now, no matter how many hit OSTs she delivers.
It is not that they were not aware of it, the Rookie IU pretty much says so in Heroes.
So to succeed in Kpop as a soloists, mere vocals are not enough, you need something more. And Taeyeon's is SNSD.
You said her "success as a soloist is because of Soshi" but isn't correct as I pointed out she was having success as a soloist before SNSD blew up (same with Yoona who was gaining popularity before SNSD)
Yes it's true pure singing ability in most cases won't get the best results because it's more about the overall package like looks, popularity, image (good or bad), song catchiness etc. Basically they need to be an idol more than just a vocalist. It's why many weaker singers are popular because they have great publicity whereas many stronger singers like Wendy, Luna never reach the same heights (that and SM not pushing them enough but that's another issue lol). Even someone like Hyolyn who was once considered Taeyeon rival back in 2G fell off hard ever since because of meh songs and image issues like her bullying scandal.
Taeyeon is obviously heavily boosted by her SNSD connection but at the end of the day Taeyeon got popular initially and remains popular to this day is because she is Taeyeon the singer. SNSD hasn't been full time active group since 2017 so when her previous CB was top 10 for weeks you can't say she's being propped by the SNSD brand, it's down to her (same with all the others who get acting jobs or touring without relying on SNSD connection). The only other female idol that comes to mind for having a long career as a good singing in recent times is Hwasa which shows how difficult it is.
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She is one of the best.
But great vocals in Kpop is as relevant as great cooking skills in a McDonalds.
Bad skills will be noticed, but superlative will be ignored and redundant.
Taeyeon was noticed as a formidable vocalist even before Soshi debuted, yet her success as a soloist is because of Soshi.
Because mere great vocals aren't enough in Kpop.
Otherwise EXID Solji, Kim Boa etc. would be the top tier stars.
You need something more,
IU went with Lyricism and good acting career.
But other vocalists largely struggle, if they aren't from top groups or have an additional X factor.
If I want to hear great vocals, I would rather look at classical or opera singers, not Kpop.
She had 2 explosive OSTs If and Can You Hear Me both in 2008 with If charting on Melon OST for over a decade consecutively. She was a household name as a singer before SNSD had Gee. She literally got famous because of her singing ability, that's how well regarded she is too this day. SNSD catapulted her existing popularity to mega stardom.
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They ain't that girl (group). Haven't been for years.
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Always has been.
Some might sing higher or lower but there’s very few that have the versatility to pull off any type of sound to an amazing degree. Her voice tone is not only beautiful to listen to on its own but what makes her unique is she carries so much emotion; when she sings about sad feelings it truly sound she herself is down and depressed and on the flip side when she’s happy and joyous it sounds like she is smiling while singing. You can see that happening when you see her perform live. Even her earliest stuff like If sound like a seasoned veteran sang than them but actually it’s a fresh rookie from an idol group. There’s simply no one that has everything as total all rounder like Tae.
Letter to myself the album is Tae using her voice as a musical instrument. Most songs are more stripped back from instrumentals so her voice goes hard. Blur and Hot Mess final parts are just taeyeon going wild and it sounds amazing. If other idols did that it might be among their greatest bits of singing in their career, for Taeyeon it’s another Tuesday in her long career
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It’s a very different type of album form Tae from past albums. It’s less pop than usual but very vocal oriented and more downbeat. I dunno if it’s one of my faves because I’m more partial to her more grand upbeat songs lol
Saying that it’s still a fantastic album. Letter to myself is anmazing especially when it picks up after the chorus and songs like blu, disaster and Hot mess an are great as well. Taeyeon voice is the star of the show, she sings her heart out in every track. Her voice is the best musical instrument.
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SNSD in 2009, 2010 and 2011. Sheer dominance from them and tons of variety
How to look like a noob in 1 go. SNSD are literally famous for being the most diverse gg ever, they pulled off a lots of concepts and music styles almost every CB in an era when ggs would either stick to 1 thing (2ne1 always being girl crush, Apink always cute, Sistar sexy etc) or everyone copying whatever the popular trends were.
Gee was super cute and they switched up to Genie sexy in 1 CB. 2 of the biggest hits of the year were widely different.
They did that again in 2010. Oh was cute, RDR girl crush, hoot sorta retro. 3 of the biggest hits of the year were very different and from the same group.
The Boys was their first full English song and focused for a western audience. In Japan they went full EDM (imo their best style of music and best style from any kpop group).
2013 saw the most unique song in kpop history arguably to this day - IGAB. It’s so wacky it could be released today and everyone would be still be like it’s unlike anything.
Mr Mr, Party, Lion heart, CMIYC, Holiday, All Night etc all very different to each other.
After a long hiatus Forever 1 brought back SNSD’s signature singing together in harmony for choruses that had become a rarity in Kpop during 3gen.
There’s a reason why they’re the inspiration and the standard for many many ggs that came since
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SNSD easily.
NGG, culture icons, face of SM, hallyu leaders, digimon, the outright best album sellers for a bit, endorsed everything in the universe, constantly on TV etc etc.
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It's Bruno Mars, dude is a hit machine
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If we talk about just the money that the group generated for SM, it's probably Exo. It's not just that they had better sales/touring numbers but also they peaked during the 3rd gen when the market was in general bigger and easier to make money. I think SNSD made more money with CFs in Korea but I still don't think it's enough to make up for the crazy amount of money big bgs fandoms can make.
However if we talk about "indirect" money I think SNSD wins. Some people have already mentioned SNSD had more impact but that doesn't translate directly into money. While I agree I think if we want to analyze the situation properly that's too simple. SNSD had a huge impact in Kpop being the top act for a long time, and the impact that had on SM's brand was also huge, making the debuts of the upcoming groups more anticipated and being acknowledged as the top company of Kpop for a long time (also thanks to other groups like SJ or SHINee ofc, but SNSD was the "face" without any doubt), actually EXO themselves and their super fast success were a consequence of SM's status those years.
Might be me but I tend to value this impact more than direct moneymaking, but I understand there will be many people that disagree.
Yeah this a a good point as well. SNSD was not only the face of SM but the face of Kpop as a whole as well during their peak years so they generated a ton of interest and brought in a ton of fans internationally. That in turn greatly helped SM grow exponentially as they were on the world stage.
You could easily argue SNSD was the turning point for SM from being a very successful domestic label with access to Japan to a worldwide label and the biggest Kpop label for years to come. Same way Big Bang blew up YG, Twice to JYP, BTS to Hybe. So in that sense SNSD had a massive benefit, arguably the biggest, to SM but it's hard to put those achievements into raw numbers like say x number of albums sold.
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If it's just for SM benefit then likely Exo. Musical related sales like tours and albums Exo were bigger and SM would keep a larger share of revenue of those activities, I see figures like SM keeps 80%-90% is domestic albums sales
SNSD were the bigger brand and individually had more success in other other fields like CF, acting and TV but SM gets less share of those activities so SM don't benefit as much.
One thing in favour for SNSD was they were mega popular in Japan so sales and tours there would generate a lot of money than in majority of other countries Kpop was popular in. I think during their first tour in Japan they made $20m USD with a dozen or so smaller scale stops which was insane and unheard of at the time and those numbers kept rising with later bigger tours. SM was known to keep lower share of overseas activities as they shared with partners in Japan and China but still with high numbers like SNSD even 30%-40% (usually the number I see am keeps from overseas) is a nice $6-$8m (of $20m) in the bag which is probably more than they get from Korean album sales.
