The 'Neo-noir' Era in K-pop: NewJeans, IVE, and LE SSERAFIM's Powerful Impact on the Industry

The current K-pop industry is in the age of "Neo-noir" not "Noir."

The term "Neo-noir" is not a reference to Hollywood noir of the 1950s or Hong Kong noir of the 1990s but rather a newly coined term for the "Top 3 4th Generation K-pop Girl Groups": NewJeans, IVE, and LE SSERAFIM. These groups are not just 4th generation K-pop girl groups but are also delivering a fresh impact on the K-pop industry, leading the scene with their powerful presence.

Firstly, their domestic chart performances are remarkable. NewJeans rewrote the chart history with "Deeto," maintaining the No.1 spot for 99 days on Melon, Korea's largest music platform. IVE has held the top spot on music charts like Melon for a month with the title track "I AM" and the pre-released track "Kitch" from their first full album "I Have IVE." LE SSERAFIM is causing a stir on the music charts with the title track "Unforgiven" from their first full album "Unforgiven," released on the 1st.

In terms of physical album sales, all three teams have each released two million-seller works so far. The sales competition between them is fierce, with NewJeans's "OMG" selling 480,000 copies on the first day, IVE's "I Have IVE" selling 600,000 copies, and LE SSERAFIM's "Unforgiven" selling 1,020,000 copies. NewJeans is expected to set new records in album sales when they make a comeback this summer.

A notable commonality among these groups is that they are expanding their fan base across all age groups based on a strong Gen Z fandom. NewJeans has caused an analog craze among Gen Z and became a syndrome among the 30-40 age group. IVE, which includes Jang Won-young and An Yu-jin from the Korea-Japan project girl group IZONE, has won the support of their parents' generation with the nickname "Super President." LE SSERAFIM, which also features IZONE alumni Kim Chae-won and Sakura, is gaining the support of K-pop fans of all ages with their stylish representation of young women's subjectivity.

All three teams are receiving love calls for advertisements from various industries based on these factors.

What's more, all three teams possess messages that won't easily fade away, giving them the potential for longevity. NewJeans shows the truth about how people of all ages can move forward together with shared nostalgia, IVE demonstrates how self-love can be iconically sublimated, and LE SSERAFIM displays how to break through hardships and prejudices that anyone can face.

There have been many instances of K-pop groups being grouped together, such as TREVEL (TWICE, Red Velvet, BLACKPINK), EBS (EXO, BTS, SEVENTEEN), and ZZZ (Stray Kids, ATEEZ, THE BOYZ).

Among them, the most representative example is WONKASO (Wonder Girls, KARA, Girls' Generation), who laid the foundation for the Hallyu wave as the "Top 3 2nd Generation K-pop Girl Groups" from the late 2000s to the early 2010s. They created the term "national girl group." Many people compare the New-Ar craze to WONKASO's success, which produced numerous influential results in popular culture beyond K-pop. Fans are hopeful that Neo-noir will create a new chapter in K-pop history, albeit in a different context from WONKASO.

The creation of neologisms like WONKASO and New-Ar signifies the presence of phenomena that define their respective eras. An industry insider said, "The meteoric rise of Neo-noir goes beyond the popularity of K-pop girl groups and continues to create opportunities to explore aspects of culture, fashion, and distribution." They added that the fact that two of the Neo-noir teams (NewJeans and LE SSERAFIM) belong to HIVE Labels demonstrates the successful entry of a "multi-label" system into a stable structure.

With the powerful impact of these three teams in the Neo-noir era, the K-pop industry is witnessing the dawn of a new age, and fans are eagerly awaiting what comes next for NewJeans, IVE, and LE SSERAFIM. (Source: Newsis)

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