Showing posts with label future of idol groups. Show all posts
Future of Idol Groups: Wonder Girls' Edition
It's basically official--Wonder Girls is done. With their American advancement which took them from their reigning throne back in 2009, Sunye's wedding in 2012, her following pregnancy in 2013 as well as the indefinite hiatus it threw the five girls into, it seems like JYP Entertainment has dug the girls in a hole in which they have no way of getting out of. With the past editions of the Future of Idol Groups, I decoded and estimated the reigning time of the groups Girls' Generation and 2NE1 before they faced disbandment--this edition hitting the previous nation's girl group, Wonder Girls, hard and will be placing the five current members including Sunmi in order from greatest to least chance of staying in the limelight after disbandment.
Sohee - The group's face and most popular member Sohee stands tall on the number one spot despite her short stature. She recently started up her acting career in the drama Rose Day... and it's actually kind of good. Although I wouldn't expect her to be a singer in the future, the probability of her dropping idoldom and picking up acting (the career she wanted all along, by the way. She said she joined JYP as an aspiring actress however, was coerced into being an idol) seems the highest out of all the Wonder Girls. Sunmi - Not exactly a Wonder Girl anymore, this dropout has once again became active in the industry... this time, as a soloist. Holding her solo debut with 24 Hours, Sunmi showed that despite her resigning from the group a few years back to pursue her "studies" (in a more recent interview revealed the real reason was the stress), she's still got 'it' in her... and that 'it' could be enough to let her be a successful soloist.
Yubin - Having some appearances in media while the indefinite hiatus is still going on, Yubin seems as if she could maybe stay in somewhat famous post-WG. I wouldn't see her as a singer, dancer... or even a rapper but, she could pull a Sohee and attempt acting. In fact, I feel as if she did actually try to act and proved, much like Sohee, that she was good at it or much less, even average, she could probably use that as a starting point while expanding and improving it bit by bit.
Yenny - I had a bit of a struggle with Yeeun and Hyerim... but I found more of a reason to put Yeeun before Hyerim due to the possessing skills. Let's be honest--Yeeun's not the best at singing, dancing, rapping... or even looking good... but she does make songs. She may or may not be the same type of celeb after Wonder Girls (performing type) however, with this skill, it seems like if she worked more and more with music production and behind-the-scenes work, she could be a producer for companies in the future.
Hyerim - Similar to Yenny, she's not the best at anything including visuals... however with her, she doesn't have, or at least I've never seen her demonstrate, huge skills that could maintain her fame even after disbandment. Not to mention, she's the newest member of Wonder Girls and has among the smallest fan base in the group... if anything, I'd see her emceeing but other than that, she's done for.
Sunye - Sunye, Sunye, Sunye. If she didn't get hitched so soon, she'd be among the top 3 wonder girls with the largest chance of success post-disbandment. She had a pretty decent singing voice, a pretty decent fan following and a pretty decent image as the benevolent harmless and caring leader which could've kept her relevant... and even after the marriage, Sunye still had a chance of fame after Wonder Girls but she blew it--being that she put a bun in her oven, chose to stay in the group of youngsters who still had life left in them and push them in an indefinite hiatus while saying she'll do more missionary work in Haiti after her pregnancy to make people hate her. Even if she did want to go back (she seems like she doesn't), us netizens never forget and will bring this to her grave--the uncanny amount of spite she managed to pick up unshakable.
As usual, I'd like to end with the group as a whole this time, not including ex-member Sunmi. These girls had a long run starting from their debut and their what-seems-to-be last track Like This. Rumored by supposed insiders, their contracts are set to expire sometime next year, and there's no telling what'll happen when the time comes, most of us preparing for the worst--they
What's your take on Wonder Girls' future? Share your thoughts and opinions below, prophet!
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Comment-ception: "SM is fucked when SNSD disbands"
Recently, on an article reviewing f(x)'s Rum Pum Pum Pum by our extremely awesome and new addition to the staff, AndiSweets, a commenter (thanks for that, by the way!) said this:
At first, I was mentally shaking my head--I mean, come on! SM Entertainment is one of the most fearsome contenders of the elite-like 'Big 3'... is it even possible that they could fall from the throne? However, after giving a few more seconds of thought, I realized that the comment actually held some truth in it--SM Entertainment most likely being fucked after the disbandment of their power group, Girls' Generation.
Every company has their own power acts--YG Entertainment has Big Bang, JYP Entertainment has... 2PM?, Starship Entertainment has SISTAR, DSP Media has KARA... and so on and so forth. However, the fact is that most companies truly rely on one group to keep them afloat and then somewhat neglect or basically lack for the other groups--SM Entertainment being the prime suspect of this case.
Super Junior - Super Junior is basically done for. With some members either having to go to the military or are already in the military, some members exceeding the age of 30 and of course, maybe wanting to settle down and get married as well as the ONLY13 mumbo jumbo being long gone, I'd expect Super Junior not lasting that long or being enough to hold SM Entertainment up. In fact, I don't even expect them to pull a SHINHWA and last a bajillion years after SM Entertainment because of all these setbacks as well as their dwindling popularity and respect in the business.
SHINee & f(x) - My two favorite groups from SM Entertainment, SHINee and f(x), seem to have a long time left to die-hard fans... in fact, some even claimed that f(x) could've rised above Girls' Generation with their recent comeback song (which seriously seemed like a duller version of Electric Shock) however, I think that since they didn't already climb to the very, very top during their years of being together (SHINee - 5 years, f(x) - 4 years) because of SM Entertainment basically disabling them to (of course, these groups can't climb over our older groups SuJu and SNSD!!!11), they don't have much time left. In fact, to me, it feels like as soon as Girls' Generation disbands, the two groups would be nearing their expiration date, as well.
TVXQ & BoA - Though I'm not a huge TVXQ fan, unlike Super Junior, I think it's actually possible they could last kind of long... staying with SM Entertainment? Maybe. BoA is somewhat the same; unlike other acts, if she wanted to pull a Lee Hyori and get married, she'd still have her career in tact being that she's one of the most respectable and oldest acts in the business.
Last but not least is EXO, Henry and of course, SNSD. Honestly, I don't even know about EXO's future. From what it looks like, they're the equivalent to British boy groups like One Direction and such, marketing to little teeny-boppers then when the boys get a little older and the fans get a little older, they move on... but it could be different. Either way, I don't expect EXO's career to be as elongated as the group they've basically been sent to replace--Super Junior. Henry is also the similar, I don't know what to expect especially being that he just debuted... (but I think he has more going for him than EXO). And of course, the SNSD edition decoding my thoughts of their future can be viewed here.
To sum it up, with SM Entertainment's most recent group, EXO, and the impression that they won't be as strong or influential as older acts, I really can't see SM sustaining themselves at their high position after Girls' Generation starts to cool down... Super Junior probably disbanding or going into an indefinite inactivity around if not before that time, SHINee and f(x) not really even getting the chance from SM Entertainment to blossom to their full potential and overtake their older co-workers and TVXQ & BoA simply being awesome as hell.
What do you think of the claim? Is SM Entertainment fucked after Girls' Generation disbands or will they find another source of putting the dinner on the table? Comment below!
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The Future of Idol Groups: How Long Will the Hallyu Wave Last?
It should be a well-known fact that modern day K-Pop was at its peak during the year of 2012. PSY's revolutionary Gangnam Style was released, almost all top-tier idol groups came back with songs and albums that were decent at the very least, and of course, there were numerous unraveled scandals and American debuts that were beyond any of our wildest dreams. Now, in just one year, the Hallyu Wave has noticeably (or at least to me) began to either decline, slow growth or halt its growth, less and less people caring about K-Pop and more and more finding relief through other types of music, proving the Hallyu will probably end sooner than we all think.
•The Korean Pop music itself has been starting to suck, Korean Pop groups releasing basically garbage since their peak in 2012.
•Top-tier groups now are getting closer and closer to disbandment and (look at number 3)
•being that there's way too many groups debuting now, in which people are already starting to care less and less about, when the older groups retire, there won't be many if any at all to replace them because... they don't know them.
•Apparently, one of the main reasons why Hallyu is going down is because the content is extremely generic and typical.
•What K-Pop needs to keep them afloat is the international crowd (duh, the Hallyu Wave is the international appeal), especially from Japan which contributes most of the money that Korean Pop gets, today. However, now that Japan is becoming more and more anti-Hallyu by limiting Korean broadcast on shows and such, who knows what will happen between K-Pop in Japan in the future? Not to mention, Korean Pop hasn't gotten that amazingly far in other places like America or China that can support the music like Japan does... while even many Korean citizens and media themselves are caring less about Korean Pop and more about K-Indie groups like Busker Busker, all this adding up and making it seem likely that the only one who's truly going to be worrying about K-Pop Idols, their future and their money... are themselves.
however, there are precautions companies can take themselves to do so:
•Top-tier groups now are getting closer and closer to disbandment and (look at number 3)
•being that there's way too many groups debuting now, in which people are already starting to care less and less about, when the older groups retire, there won't be many if any at all to replace them because... they don't know them.
•Apparently, one of the main reasons why Hallyu is going down is because the content is extremely generic and typical.
•What K-Pop needs to keep them afloat is the international crowd (duh, the Hallyu Wave is the international appeal), especially from Japan which contributes most of the money that Korean Pop gets, today. However, now that Japan is becoming more and more anti-Hallyu by limiting Korean broadcast on shows and such, who knows what will happen between K-Pop in Japan in the future? Not to mention, Korean Pop hasn't gotten that amazingly far in other places like America or China that can support the music like Japan does... while even many Korean citizens and media themselves are caring less about Korean Pop and more about K-Indie groups like Busker Busker, all this adding up and making it seem likely that the only one who's truly going to be worrying about K-Pop Idols, their future and their money... are themselves.
How can it be stopped: There's nothing you and I can do alone to prolong the Hallyu,
however, there are precautions companies can take themselves to do so:
•Release audible songs. No more trash, please.
•Try harder with your newer groups. If you release trashier songs, more and more people won't think twice to disregarding them no matter which company you're from. Give them at least decent sounding songs and maybe try to make them... well, talented. Ever heard of that word?
•Since standardized content is supposedly a big issue, maybe try moving away from the norm. Songs about love, sex, empowerment where they sing and dance in boxes... all cliche ideas but if an entertainer was to release maybe... a song about societal issues with a bad ass music video, it could possibly get the attention it was looking for.
•Arguably, K-Pop could actually make it in places internationally and expand the Hallyu however, probably only if K-Pop companies tried hard enough--which is something they're not willing to do. With all those years of training, you would expect people to be Christina Aguilera's when it comes to singing, Michael Jackson's when it comes to dancing and U-Kiss Alexander's when it comes to languages however, they aren't. It's because companies just don't try to go passed the norm--they want to appeal to the Korean market and the anti-Hallyu Japanese market, yet, barely even attempt to understand how to appeal to non-typical markets like the American market or the European market and continue to use their shitty methods towards unresponsive industries that could give a rat's ass about them.
In a nutshell, the Hallyu Wave, no matter how much we try to deny it, is already starting to slow down. Although K-Pop itself won't completely disappear, there'll definitely be a turning of tables in a few years, whether it's with less groups debuting as there were in the years 2012 and 2013, or maybe, less production of K-Pop music, merchandise and many more goodies overall.
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The Future of Idol Groups: 2NE1 Edition
A few weeks ago, Girls' Generation's future was the topic at hand on this short and unconventional series "The Future of Idol Groups", me, predicting and explaining the possibility of fame after disbandment one-by-one and putting the 9 girls in order from least to greatest. Likewise, on this article of YG Entertainment's leading girl group, 2NE1, I will state my prediction of the possibility of fame after disbandment, ordered from least to greatest.
Falling in last place is 2NE1's maknae, Minzy. She can dance the best in the group, she can sing the best in the group... heck, she even has pretty amazing stage-presence... but I just don't know what she can exactly do after 2NE1 disbands. Dance? Similarly stated in the Girls' Generation edition for main dancer, Hyoyeon, I haven't seen people have famous careers in dance alone. Sing? She sings pretty well yet, has two obstacles standing in her way:
1. She's still has yet to hold their solo debut (she's actually the only member of 2NE1 who has left to do that!)
2. Let's be honest, Minzy isn't exactly matching Korean beauty standards... without that, is her singing talent that great to make up for her lack of visuals?
3. Lastly, even if she did have a solo debut, I would expect it to do the poorest out of all of 2NE1's solo debuts... for what reason? I don't know. It just seems like out of all of them, she has the least overall presence in the group regardless of the fact that she has the most talent.
In third place is the unnie who's not bad meaning bad but bad meaning good, CL. Having her solo debut with The Baddest Female only a few weeks ago and all-killing despite the overall deficit of the song, she proved that she could hold a music career without the other three 2NE1 girls at her side. Regardless of her placing in such a low spot, I think she has a much greater chance than fourth place's Minzy, her biggest tools being her large fan base and of course, her charisma.
After a pretty hard decision, 2NE1's visual, Sandara Park, placed in second place. She can sing pretty meh, she can dance pretty meh... but, she is pretty. Not to mention, she already had her 2NE1 solo debut which topped charts as well as prior to 2NE1's debut, she was a arguably successful actress in the Philippines, having two career paths she could choose from.
Lastly, my 2NE1 love Park Bom places first place. Even though she is my 2NE1 bias, I placed her in first because I actually do think she has an extremely large chance of becoming a solo singer after the disbandment of 2NE1. Her previous solo songs, You & I and Don't Cry (which both left me sniffling after watching the videos), both all-killed as well as the song she featured in, I Had an Affair. And although every time we see her she looks worse and worse, I have no doubt in my mind that she could definitely be the next Baek Ji Young.
In addition, I'd like to end with their future as a whole. With YG Entertainment's management hints as well as their video "Future 2NE1 (4 Years Later)", it seems somewhat evident that they're not planning to keep 2NE1 around for much longer. Debuting in 2009 with their unexpected song, Fire, which made them skyrocket to fame almost immediately, 2NE1 has been together for four years already, and this year in 2013, them, being proudly able to proclaim themselves as one of Korea's top girl groups. With my guess, 2NE1 will probably last 2 more years before fading out or going their own separate ways, mostly because:
a) As said in the Girls' Generation post, they are females. Of course, they're not females whom men tend to fetishize over due to their tough-girl concept, but they are females who may have future goals, dreams and aspirations towards the future... don't understand? you can look at b for further clarification.
b) Park Bom and Sandara Park are either 30 years old or are almost in their 30's... meaning, they'll either have thoughts of settling down soon or have thoughts of leaving the group and pursuing a solo career. Usually, girl group members who're near their 30's or have members in their 30's (for example: Brown Eyed Girls) aim towards a sexy and mature concept because it's appropriate for their age, but being that the 2NE1 girls are still mixing themselves with the cute, tough and basically juvenile/teenage image, they have to begin expunging themselves from that... the conflicting ages making it somewhat hard for them to follow through on that.
Furthermore, I expect at least 2 girls from 2NE1 to remain in the spotlight, the others, fading into the darkness.
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In addition, I'd like to end with their future as a whole. With YG Entertainment's management hints as well as their video "Future 2NE1 (4 Years Later)", it seems somewhat evident that they're not planning to keep 2NE1 around for much longer. Debuting in 2009 with their unexpected song, Fire, which made them skyrocket to fame almost immediately, 2NE1 has been together for four years already, and this year in 2013, them, being proudly able to proclaim themselves as one of Korea's top girl groups. With my guess, 2NE1 will probably last 2 more years before fading out or going their own separate ways, mostly because:
a) As said in the Girls' Generation post, they are females. Of course, they're not females whom men tend to fetishize over due to their tough-girl concept, but they are females who may have future goals, dreams and aspirations towards the future... don't understand? you can look at b for further clarification.
b) Park Bom and Sandara Park are either 30 years old or are almost in their 30's... meaning, they'll either have thoughts of settling down soon or have thoughts of leaving the group and pursuing a solo career. Usually, girl group members who're near their 30's or have members in their 30's (for example: Brown Eyed Girls) aim towards a sexy and mature concept because it's appropriate for their age, but being that the 2NE1 girls are still mixing themselves with the cute, tough and basically juvenile/teenage image, they have to begin expunging themselves from that... the conflicting ages making it somewhat hard for them to follow through on that.
Furthermore, I expect at least 2 girls from 2NE1 to remain in the spotlight, the others, fading into the darkness.
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The Future of Idol Groups: Girls Generation Edition
Yesterday, I've basically encountered two signs from the heavens to create this post, a friend asking me to write posts about idols in the future and me seeing a comment on netizenbuzz that basically just called to me to write an article about Girls Generation's in particular.
8. [+100, -23] It's a worry since all of the kids need to find a career path for themselves but everyone failed their drama attempts last year. It was only that unit with the kids who can sing that fared favorably ㅋㅋ Aside from Yoona and Taeyeon, I fear for all of their futures.So without further adieu, I present you with my prediction of Girls' Generation's individual and group future chances of staying in the spotlight ordered from least to greatest chance.
Hyoyeon has nothing going for her in her future. I feel bad because Hyoyeon is actually one of my biases in the group. She can dance the best in Girls Generation however, she's always placed in the back during music videos, given the least amount of lines and sometimes, not even getting a dance solo. And what's funny to be is how people always say that Hyoyeon should leave Girls' Generation and go solo, but I always think to myself, as what? A solo singer? She has the worst vocals in the group. A solo dancer? I haven't heard of one that actually stayed in the public eye. An actress? She still has left to debut in acting let alone prove that she can act well. And though there's a rumor going around that Hyoyeon is in a relationship as well as her saying that she wants to get married quickly and settle down, if she ever changed her mind and decided to pursue staying in the spotlight for longer, she's stuck at a dead end. I think the only thing that she can choose is the be a Korean gagwoman like Jung Juri.Sunny is stuck at a dead-end, too however, unlike Hyoyeon, she's not the best at anything.
She can sing, but someone can sing better. She can dance, but someone can dance better. I haven't seen her act before and to be honest, Sunny has a 'cute' concept tied down to her which will limit her from elongating her career. I mean, how long can she keep doing aegyo before either everyone gets tired of it or she gets too old and wrinkly for it to be cute anymore? 
she can use in the future however, isn't that great at it, calling the need for years and years to better her acting. Likewise, her singing is at most average and wouldn't enable her to pursue a singing career while her dancing is pretty good however, not actually considered an outstanding and notable solo career. |
| Tiffany singing Rolling in the Deep |
Taeyeon is next and after Jessica which may surprise most people. Taeyeon is undoubtedly the best vocalist in SNSD and has the largest fanbase however, there's two things that I really have to point out.
1. She has the possibly the second to least stage presence in the group next to Seohyun. In fact, sometimes when you watch her lives her facial expressions like in the Twinkle performance mentioned above, she looks like she's either acting but hardly trying or just uncomfortable. I mean, at least Seohyun tries to act like she's having fun but still looks awkward... Taeyeon just looks like she's not having fun and still looks awkward.
2. And without stage presence, is Taeyeon that great at singing to keep her singing career afloat? I mean, Lee Hyori's singing is average at most but she can kill the stage... Taeyeon's singing is okay but she can't prove that she can take on a stage single-handedly. Also, Taeyeon even admitted herself
What I can't do, the other members can so they complete it. I think I'm more cut out for a group than a solo.
Jessica is second to last after Taeyeon. Jessica is one of the best singers in Girls' Generation and, she actually isn't half-bad at dancing if you watch her older videos... but she doesn't try at all. Yes, SONEs. I said it. She has gotten lazy. When you compare the Into the New World days to the I Got a Boy performances, you can see it's undeniable. I mean, she could probably have charisma on stage if she tried but it looks like she just doesn't even want to. And I don't even think it's the "Ice Princess" image. Her best bet is probably acting.
In addition, I just wanted to add Girls Generation as a whole for kicks. Girls' Generation has been around for nearly long 7 years, starting back in 2007 with Into the New World, proving themselves with Gee in 2009 and now in 2013 being South Korea's top girl group. Though they're still going strong as of now, I don't think the strength will last for much longer (my guess is 2 years a most) because:
a) Look at all the long-lasting groups. SHINHWA lasted for 15 years. They're men. Super Junior lasted for 7 years. They're men. If you want to be die-hard-fangirl about it, TVXQ as 5? 9 years. They. are. men. The only groups I can think of that are females and lasted long were probably Jewelry (all of their original members were replaced and they're pretty unpopular now) and The Grace (locked up in SM Entertainment's dungeon. Haven't heard a comeback with all 4 of them in a while), The Grace being a powerful vocal group while Girls Generation on the other hand? Not really. If you still don't understand, look at b.
b) Even if they've been pushing a more mature look as seen in their previous comebacks, they're still fetishized by Korean men as the young, beautiful and perfect girl. Contradicting the young, what happens when the oldest member, Taeyeon is already in her mid-20's and the youngest member is now 22? For beautiful, as said before,what happens when members of the group like Tiffany are already starting to lose their girly sheen and beauty? And for perfect, what happens when girls like Hyoyeon, what happens when that perfect girl wants to settle down and start a family like Sunye did?
c) SM Entertainment. It's as if SM Entertainment is already turning them into the next Super Junior, letting them reach the peek of their careers (right now) and when they stop charting so well and doing as good, they'll let them shrivel into the dirt to fend for themselves. Although, SM Entertainment already knows SNSD has a large and strong fan base so they realize they can continue releasing songs that are just meh and people will just eat them up, they're already starting to see a downfall in results and open mouths after the release of I Got a Boy. Like, really, let's be realistic here... how long will the "Power of 9" last?
