The world of K-pop is witnessing the dominance of fourth-generation girl groups. Not only are these groups taking over the top spots on music charts, they're also consistently achieving 'Million Seller' status for their albums-a feat that no longer raises eyebrows.

Looking at the second week of May on the music site Genie, girl groups claimed seven out of the top ten spots. IVE dropped two songs, 'I Am' and 'Kitsch,' while Le Sserafim climbed one spot with 'Unforgiven.' Blackpink's Jisoo with 'Flower' placed fourth, and aespa's new song 'Spicy' landed seventh. NewJeans's 'Dito' and 'Hype Boy' secured fifth and sixth places respectively, demonstrating their ongoing popularity. The situation was similar on Melon, where IVE, Le Sserafim, Jisoo, aespa, and NewJeans all found their way into the top ten. STAYC's track 'Teddy Bear' also demonstrated its appeal by ranking 15th. In essence, the charts were swept by girl groups.

In the album sales department, girl groups also exhibited their prowess. aespa's third mini-album 'My World,' released on May 8, broke records by selling 1,698,784 copies in its first week (Hanteo Chart), setting the highest record among SM artists and claiming the title of highest first-week sales ever by a girl group. Le Sserafim's recently released 'Unforgiven' surpassed 1.25 million in its first week, while IVE's first studio album 'I've IVE' sold over 1.1 million, setting a new record. (G)I-DLE, with their 6th mini-album 'I Feel,' launched on May 15, has already sold over 820,000 copies in three days, setting their sights on 'Million Seller' status.

Traditionally, girl groups leaned on mass appeal, while boy groups were powered by hardcore fandoms. In the past, this resulted in girl groups trending on music charts, while boy groups excelled in album sales. However, this trend has changed recently. Fourth-generation girl groups have not only captured the public's attention, but they've also established strong core fandoms, effectively catching two rabbits-both album and digital sales. They're gaining spotlight and growing daily, not only domestically but also in the global market.

So, how did girl groups come to dominate the K-pop scene? Industry insiders point to their 'music.'

"One difficulty in the male idol market after BTS is finding 'easy listening' songs. While there are plenty of songs with amazing performances, it's difficult to find songs that are easy to listen to," an industry insider explained. "On the other hand, girl groups are producing a variety of music, from powerful tracks to 'easy listening' ones, and this appeals to the public." They added, "While flashy K-pop is great, there's also room to compete with 'easy listening' songs. In that respect, girl groups are more flexible."

Another industry insider emphasized the importance of the lyrics. "If you look at the lyrics of fourth-generation girl groups, many are based on 'self-love' and show a strong, independent image," they explained. In the current context where more women are seeking an autonomous life, girl group lyrics that reflect this are resonating with the audience and gaining popularity.

Short-form content also plays a part in girl groups' popularity. Idols have been drawing attention by taking on trending challenges on short-form platforms, and shorter edited stageperformance videos are often uploaded. One prominent example is the 'new song challenge.' Singers showcase their new song's choreography, which then gets consumed by the public through platforms like TikTok, Instagram's Reels, and YouTube's Shorts. This process naturally promotes the new song, with girl groups' content generally receiving more attention. "When girl groups present diverse short-form content, it's received well visually, and it has a greater exposure effect," an insider explained.

Moreover, girl groups' music is often used as background music in various video content. This exposes the song to the public, boosting promotional effects. Another insider noted, "A lot of girl groups' music falls into the 'easy listening' category, which works well as background music for short-form content." They explained, "As a result, the song becomes familiar to the public, and this familiarity often translates to significant reactions." They concluded by predicting that "For the foreseeable future, girl groups' popularity will continue to reign in the K-pop scene."

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