K-POP IN REVIEW 2025: PART TWO – Rookies
Let’s take a look at the important new groups this year. This is one of the cool things about South Korean pop music; there are always exciting new groups arriving on the scene to keep things interesting. It’s a lot unlike rock music in this way.
Babymonster: the Baemons hit the scene in 2023 as YG Entertainment’s most recent girl group. Following their elder sisters BLACKPINK and their dangerous aunties 2NE1 before that, they had some enormously big shoes to fill, and they’ve been delivering, particularly with Hot Sauce this year. Then again, Hot Sauce sounds a lot like it’s trying to grab the same sort of energy as Young Posse (more on them in a later episode). But if you’re going to imitate; choose strong models.
ALLDAY PROJECT: this five piece debuted in June this year on The Black Label which was formed by the famed producers Teddy Park and Kush, which is the same deal as MEOVV later in this review, but the interesting part here is that ADP are what is known as a co-ed group; there are both male and female members. There are only about four or five groups like this in K-pop. A K-pop ABBA is barely thinkable. Also their name was chosen but no lesser luminary than Will.i.am of Black Eyed Peas, so maybe if he takes an interest, so should you. Thus far there are only four tracks out, but they’re all good. We could go with Look at Me, which has a fucking insane video, or we could go with Famous, which we cannot get out of our head, so we’ll have to choose that, right?
MEOVV: when MEOVV came out last year their debut track was critically panned. Then again when NMIXX put of their debut that was also savagely panned, which only proves that sometimes the public just doesn’t get what you are doing first time around. So they regrouped and tried again and this time it sounded brilliant, and in fact going back and listening again, so does their debut. We’re going with Drop Top as the pick of the crop, but it’s all excellent stuff.
KiiKii: we mostly know Starship Entertainment for IVE, and that’s enough for most people, but KiiKii are their newest girl group and they’re totally worth watching. Yeah, we didn’t get them immediately, because of a very nature kids image and the unfortunate title I Do Me, but the power pop banger Dancing Alone should get anyone on their feet, although we’re going with Groundwork because it’s gnarlier and more badass. Expecting great things from them.