Pop Base: Is The K-Pop Bubble Bursting?

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YG Entertainment’s Profits Expected To Go Down 98.9%

We might be witnessing the downfall of YG Entertainment in real-time. As you may know, YG Entertainment's biggest group, BLACKPINK, has not been very active as a group lately. The group's last album, "BORN PINK," was released in 2022, and their latest tour, "BORN PINK WORLD TOUR," concluded on September 17, 2023.

While all four members—Jennie, Jisoo, Rose, and Lisa—have been active as individual artists under their own labels, group activities have been minimal to non-existent. This absence has led to a significant drop in YG Entertainment's profit.

Recently, Kim Hye Young, a Daol Investment & Securities researcher, analyzed YG Entertainment's sales and profit. Hye Young stated, "YG Entertainment's consolidated sales for the second quarter of this year will decrease by 35.8% year-on-year to 101.7 billion won (approximately $73,521,000 USD), and operating profit for the same period will decrease by 98.9% to 300 million won (approximately $217,000 USD)."

K-Pop Album Export Decrease For The First Time In 9 Years

On July 15, 2024, MBC News revealed that South Korea's physical album sales for the first half of 2024 had decreased compared to the same period last year. According to the Korea Customs Service's import and export trade statistics, album exports from January to June this year amounted to 179.4 billion won (approximately $129,721,287), a 2% decrease from the same period in 2023.

While it is easy to conclude that the K-Pop bubble is bursting, one reason for this 2% decrease in physical sales could be that 2023 was one of the biggest years for K-Pop sales in history. SEVENTEEN alone sold around 10 million albums in the first half of 2023, including over 6 million units for "FML" and around 4 million units for their out-of-print re-released albums.

The More You Know:

• aespa has made history with their latest album. The group's latest album "Armageddon" was released in Korea and on digital platforms in May. However, the physical album was released in the USA in July due to some delay. After this release, "Armageddon" ended up charting at no. 25 on the Billboard 200. This is aespa's fifth consecutive album to enter the chart after “Savage,” “Girls,” “MY WORLD,” and “Drama," making the group the first K-pop girl group in Billboard's history to score 5 albums in the top 40!

• Ador's CEO Min Hee Jin and HYBE's feud is still ongoing. Recently, officials from Source Music, a HYBE subsidiary representing Le Sserafim, confirmed that the label has filed a lawsuit against Ador's CEO Min Hee Jin, seeking damages. The official did not disclose the amount; however, Sports Seoul reported the amount to be around 500 million won (approximately $390,000).

• SEVENTEEN's Woozi has denounced AI, again! In "Maestro," the title track of SEVENTEEN's latest album "17 Is Right Here," SEVENTEEN revealed their stance against generative AI. In the SEVENTEEN Is Right Here Global Press Conference, Woozi said, "The 'Maestro' music video is based in a world where everything can be made with AI or new technology. In that world, SEVENTEEN becomes the conductors and asks what it truly means to create something. We tried to show how SEVENTEEN brings everyone together to lead the world toward a better future together."

  On July 15, 2024, he made his stance clear once again when he posted a now-deleted story on his Instagram account saying, "All of SEVENTEEN's music is written and composed by human creators."

• No matter what crazy inclusion you might have received in your K-pop album, it cannot be crazier than what came in Engenes' mail. ENHYPEN's latest album "ROMANCE: UNTOLD," which was recently shipped, came with a small real outfit piece worn by ENHYPEN members. Only 150,000 units included this inclusion and each piece is one of a kind.

Video Of The Week???

@lalalalisa_m

Rockin’ out w/ Mingyu 🎸 @SEVENTEEN #rockstarchallenge

After making the internet go crazy for their Bvlgari interaction on March 14, 2024, the 97-liner BFF duo is back with a bang!

On July 20, 2024, BLACKPINK’s Lisa and SEVENTEEN’s Mingyu, did the “Rockstar” dance challenge on her TikTok. This made Mingyu the first K-pop idol to do the challenge with Lisa and the first male K-pop idol to debut on her TikTok page.

Our Favorite Songs From Last Week

Consisting of 11 songs, NCT 127's 6th album "WALK" is one of the most cohesive albums from last week. The entire album has a soft, 90s vibe, filled with one great song after another, making it difficult to choose a favorite. Although, "No Clue," "Orange Seoul," "Pricey," and "Time Capsule" are definitely tracks that everyone should check out!

Lee Seunghoon, a Korean singer and rapper, and a member of YG Entertainment's early 3rd gen boy group WINNER, recently released his debut solo album "MY TYPE," and it is definitely our type. The title track of the same name is a groovy song with old-school funk that melts in your ears. Not only are the vocals smooth, but Lee Seunghoon's rap is also mellow and matches the flow of the song perfectly.

Stray Kids are known for their noise music with heavy instrumentals that rearrange your insides, and the majority of their recent album "ATE" is no different, staying true to their energetic style. However, one song that stands out the most is "Twilight," a comparatively slow-paced song with piano and beautiful vocals. Co-written by Stray Kids' Han, the lyrics "Did it burn and turn into ashes? / No trace, only black ash remains / It became a sad memory that only we knew" do justice to the members' beautiful vocals.

Last week was mainly about boy groups and male soloists' comebacks, except for TWICE's "『DIVE』." Paired with an equally dreamy music video, "『DIVE』" gave us the catchy summer song we all needed to survive the hot summer.

Lastly, this list would be incomplete without mentioning BTS' Jimin's 2nd solo album, “MUSE”. The superstar’s latest offering “MUSE” is a cohesive album featuring one summer bop after another. However, the songs "Be Mine" and the title track of the album "Who" totally take the cake. Jimin's soft vocals and catchy beat take you to a tropical retreat with the click of a play button.

This Week's K-Pop Comeback Schedule

Saturday, July 20, 2024

• YURI: Title Track "CLOUNGE"

• XENEX: Album "NEXT STEP"

• tripleS: Japan Pre-Debut Song "「###」"

Sunday, July 21, 2024

• from 20 x HELLO GLOOM: 1st Single Album "Your Love"

• Shin Ye Young: Title Track “With a smile”

Tuesday, July 23, 2024

• SUHYNN: Title Track: “Never Have I Said I’m Sorry”

• UNICODE: Japan Debut Album "HELLO WORLD"

Wednesday, 24, July 2024

• Stray Kids: Single “SLASH” for Marvel Movie “Deadpool & Wolverine”

• Julie & Natty (KISS OF LIFE) x Mark Tuan (GOT &): Single “SUPERPOWER” for VALORANT Champions 2024 Anthem

• KARA: Special Digital Single "I Do I Do"

• DIGNITY: 1st Mini Album "[DIGIMOTION]"

• KAVE: 1st EP Album "Fight of Ideas"

— Javeria Yousuf

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