u/Carelessies

I was just looking through some old threads of K-pop songs from years ago and came across NMIXX's debut. This reaction post to O.O from r/kpop is basically a microcosm of what their reception was like at the time. Just look at the upvote to comment ratio. It has 1k upvotes and more than 2.1k whopping comments, with like 99% of them being negative 😭😭Literally not even BTS comebacks were pulling as many engagement with the comments at the time lol

And as harsh as that post may seem, it's actually pretty tame compared to what was being said elsewhere. They were getting absolutely DRAGGED without any filter on platforms like Twitter and Youtube. To make matters worse, the reception was basically the same in Korea as it was internationally.

I don't think newer K-pop fans realize just how badly NMIXX were received at debut. It may seem like everything is all fine and dandy for them now, but the hate train was REAL. They had to fight tooth and nail and basically crawl through the trenches to recover from that disastrous debut reception.

Thinking about all this made me realize just how important a strong debut really is. Like everything else in life, if a group makes a poor first impression, there will always be a lot of people who write them off and never give them another chance. In that sense, I gotta give NMIXX credit where it's due for recovering because I genuinely can't think of another group in history that had such a universally brutal reaction from K-pop fans right out of the gate.

edit:
u/alexturnerftw also reminded me that they lost arguably their most popular member in Jinni during their rookie year as well. Truly one of the worst starts a group could possibly have...

We all know groups don't always end up where people expect them to... so which group do you think deserves more recognition? Or if they're already pretty popular, who do you think should be even bigger than they are now?

It could be for any reason. Maybe they're incredible live performers, their choreography is insanely synchronized, or they have a genuinely great discography that somehow never gets the attention it deserves.

As for me, I know they're already one of the better known mid-tier groups, but I'd pick tripleS. They have many great songs, and I wish more people would check them out!

And my bias pick would be Billlie. They have a stellar discography and are just such a well-rounded group. I genuinely think they deserve to be ten times more popular than they are now!

Your pick doesn't have to be a nugu group or a group from a small label. Feel free to name popular groups that you think deserve even more recognition!

I've heard a lot of anecdotes lately about how many foreigners attend concerts in Korea, but having experienced it myself very recently, that's really not an exaggeration. I was at aespa's new tour at Gocheok recently and oh my gosh, I legitimately thought I was in a different country.

I got there pretty early, and there were already so many people around the venue which makes sense since it's a big concert. I wanted to buy some merch, but everything was way more expensive than I expected so I ended up saving my wallet LOL. The sweatpants were really cute but I couldn't bring myself to pay over 90k won...

Anyway, back to the main point. I know aespa is one of the most popular K-pop groups in China, but I didn't expect to feel their Chinese fanbase's presence to that extent at a Korean concert. Chinese fans were easily the largest demographic there. You could tell just from walking around outside, waiting in line, or even once you got to your seat. They REALLY came out to support them. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if my entire section was made up of Chinese fans.

Needless to say, Ningning got the loudest crowd support by far. The fans didn't react nearly as much during their Korean ments, but there was one moment when Winter greeted the Chinese fans in Mandarin and the entire crowd absolutely erupted LOL I think they were already very aware of the Chinese fans' attendance

There were also a bunch of Japanese fans and a noticeable number of other international fans. I honestly think there may have even been more Japanese fans than Korean fans, but I could be wrong. All I know for sure is that Koreans seemed to be the minority.

I enjoyed the concert overall. The girls riding around in those giant lemonade cans was definitely one of the highlights for me haha But the weather was HOT, and I'm just gonna call out the people around me because they were STINKY!! I could genuinely tell that some people hadn't showered or even brushed their teeth.

The crowd definitely could've been louder given the size of the venue though. I think that may have been partly because of the sheer number of foreign fans there, many of whom probably aren't as accustomed to singing along in Korean or doing the Korean fan chants.

It was a really cool experience overall. I've also attended a DAY6 concert in Korea before, and that felt like a basically 100% Korean audience. So it was interesting to see how much the demographic of a domestic concert can vary depending on a group's reach and the size of its fandom outside Korea.

It could be anything related to an idol's overall appearance and styling. Maybe you dislike the lack of vivid colors and experimentation with hairstyles compared to previous generations, or perhaps there's a specific fashion trend that you think has been overused like sagging pants. Maybe it's the increasing prevalence of veneers, a particular makeup style, or the way idols are being styled in general.

Are there any trends that you personally dislike or feel have become far too common in kpop? It doesn't necessarily have to be something objectively bad. After all, everyone has different tastes when it comes to style. I'm just curious to hear which styling choices or trends you personally wish would disappear.

Oh it doesn't have to be something current. Feel free to talk about something you weren't too fond of in the past as well! I just wanted to get a feel for the different styling choices and trends that kpop fans like or dislike, whether they're current or from a previous generation.

Hello, this is Upper Room.

We would like to extend our sincere apologies for the concern, discomfort, and disappointment caused by the vintage T-shirt that appeared in a recently shared photograph.

The garment was selected solely as a vintage wardrobe item. However, upon recognizing the historical significance and sensitivity associated with the symbol displayed on the T-shirt, we took measures to ensure that it would not be visible in any official content. Despite these efforts, the image was subsequently shared externally, resulting in the symbol being visible and causing understandable concern among members of the public.

Regardless of intent, we recognize that this matter should have been handled with greater diligence and care. We take full responsibility for this oversight.

Upper Room and the artist unequivocally reject and do not tolerate racism, hate, discrimination, or any form of intolerance. We understand the seriousness of the concerns that have been raised and deeply regret the distress this incident has caused.

We are also grateful to those who brought this matter to our attention. We value the feedback we have received and are carefully listening to the concerns expressed by our community. In response, we will strengthen our internal review procedures for wardrobe selection and content approval to help prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.

We sincerely apologize to everyone who was hurt, offended, or disappointed by this situation. We remain committed to acting with greater responsibility, awareness, and care moving forward.

Upper Room

This is the apology issued by Mark's self-founded label after a photo of him wearing a shirt featuring a Confederate flag surfaced online.

I think this is a disastrous look that comes right after he left SM to begin a new chapter as a solo artist, especially so when he appears to be targeting the North American market... I can't help but feel that this could've been avoided entirely. Also, what stands out to me is that the statement acknowledges they were aware of the symbol's historical significance and had already taken steps to keep it out of official content. If that's the case, then someone within his group clearly recognized that the shirt could become controversial. Which raises the obvious question... why was it allowed to be worn in the first place?? I'm glad they owned up and posted an apology promptly but ughhh I swear this could've been so avoidable🤦‍♀️

I wanted to make this post because lately I've been seeing more and more Kpop stans calling groups "flops" based on their Melon chart performance, with chart accounts on Twitter constantly amplifying the discourse by posting daily rankings and updates. I think this sentiment has only gotten stronger because we've had a pretty remarkable streak of hits over the past month from groups like Cortis, Illit, NMIXX, IOI, and aespa all making the Top 10 one after another. Now, even Rescene's two year old 2024 song, has managed to break into the Top 10 after going viral on youtube.

I know fans like to throw around the word "flop" all the time nowadays, but I just wanted to remind others that charting on Melon is never guaranteed (outside of aespa and IVE), and not charting doesn't automatically mean a comeback was a complete failure. Statistically speaking, most groups don't even make the Top 100 in the first place.

Let's look at some recent comebacks and where they currently stand on the daily chart. To preface, none of these groups would be considered nugu by any means.

Treasure — IF I (outside the Top 1000)
MEOVV — DDI RO RI (#104)
tripleS — Baby Flower (outside the Top 1000)
BABYMONSTER — Sugar Honey Ice Tea (#486)
IZNA — Metronome (#626)
BOYNEXTDOOR — VIRAL (#64)
SHINee — Atmos (#504)
MAMAMOO — 4 Flowers (#273)
FIFTY FIFTY — Like a Bubble (#357)
ZEROBASEONE — Top 5 (#948)

None of these groups are rookies, and they're all well-recognized names among Kpop fans. As you can see, outside of BND, not a single one is currently inside the Top 100, and most of them aren't even remotely close to entering it. I feel like fans have become desensitized to what constitutes a successful chart performance, and I hope this puts into perspective what realistic charting looks like for most groups outside of a select few.

The presale for the lsfm tour went live just a few hours ago, and more than excitement, I’m left with a sour taste in my mouth after getting tickets. Mind you, I even subscribed to the fearnot membership just for a chance at getting good seats.

There are two VIP tiers for the tour: Boompala and Celebration, both for floor seats. The Boompala tier includes soundcheck and send-off, while Celebration only includes soundcheck. After fees, a Boompala ticket comes out to around $685, while a Celebration ticket is about $470 (for newark). The pricing is pretty similar across all the U.S. stops too, with maybe a $20 difference depending on the city. My friend told me her Chicago Boompala ticket was $700. Regular upper bowl seats are over $300, and even front-row seats in the highest sections are still in the $200 range.

Now let's also talk about Ticketmaster. They can genuinely go screw themselves. A lot of the lower bowl seats were listed as Official Platinum tickets, meaning dynamic pricing was applied to them. I saw some seats going for as high as $800 without any VIP benefits at all. On top of that, they were releasing the VIP tickets sporadically, so even if you got an earlier queue number, there was still a good chance you wouldn’t see any Boompala tickets available. Also, it wasn't even indicated in the beginning whether the tickets were Boompala or Celebration. What's up with that??

I'm so let down by the fact that going to a kpop concert has become the ultimate luxury experience now. These ticket prices are ridiculous. I was literally in the pit for the Kendrick and SZA concert at MetLife last year for $100... From what I’ve seen, they opened up almost all the seats during presale, and there are still plenty available for general sale. I think that reflects how put off fans are by the pricing for this tour, especially on top of the tough economy right now, because their previous tour had most of the seats sold out during presale alone.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot after Billlie released WORK. I think it’s a great song and definitely one of the best house tracks released this year. Since they started promoting on music shows, it’s been gaining traction and has now climbed to around #560 on Melon. But I can’t help but feel that if this had been released by a more popular group, it would’ve easily made the Top 100. Are there any songs you think would’ve had a much better chance if they’d been released by a bigger group?

Major feast for us multistans! We’ve been blessed with an avalanche of girl group comebacks from April up to now. Probably the most stacked lineup of comebacks in a short period we've seen in years? To better recall the releases, I’ll list the comebacks during this period:

YOUNG POSSE – we don’t go to bed tonight
KISS OF LIFE – Who is she
KATSEYE – PINKY UP
RESCENE – Runaway
ILLIT – It’s Me
Le Sserafim – CELEBRATION, BOOMPALA
BABYMONSTER – CHOOM
Billlie – WORK, ZAP
aespa – WDA (feat. G-Dragon)
NMIXX – Crescendo, Heavy Serenade
ITZY – Motto
I.O.I – Suddenly

Listing it out like this shows just how stacked this nonstop wave of girl group comebacks has been. It felt like we were getting a new comeback every other day lol

How would you rate them, and what kind of impressions did they leave on you? What stood out as great, and what didn’t work as well for you? Did any of them make it onto your playlist? Feel free to talk about anything about these releases. You can also talk about the b-sides from the albums as well! Let me know if I missed any!

edit: why do people downvote a post like this?

When it was revealed that Macarena is being sampled for BOOMPALA, I can't lie I’ve been a bit nervous about the release... Macarena is such a global iconic song that it makes the whole thing feel quite risky imo. Literally everyone in the world knows the melody. I was curious but unsure about how fimmies would be able to incorporate the song without the original completely overshadowing this new track.

After watching the teasers and the full performance from their Spotify Live today, it does feel closer to a remix version of Macarena featuring Le Sserafim if I'm being completely honest. The intro starts off with the Macarena hook, both post-choruses heavily leans into Macarena’s chorus and dance, and the final 20 seconds of the song are essentially the original hook and its iconic dance.

It’s always a huge risk when you sample such a popular song because it’s so hard to surpass the original most of the time. I do feel like they could’ve integrated more of their own color into the track, both in the sound and the choreo, or made Macarena’s presence a bit more subtle within the overall composition. I just feel that the original Macarena was too deeply embedded into BOOMPALA.

I think I have a pretty solid perspective on this because I’ve stanned groups ranging from complete nugus, to groups from smaller labels, all the way to groups under the Big 4 companies. Outside of the usual petty fanwars online, stanning a Big 4 group honestly isn’t that stressful. Though ngl, the constant ITZY doomposting over the past 3 years has definitely been annoying and gotten to me at times. But aside from that, it’s been a pretty comfortable experience overall.

What really sucks about stanning smaller groups is that every comeback feels like survival mode. Realistically, you know they’re probably not going to top charts or anything, but you still desperately want them to achieve some level of success because you never know when, or if, the next comeback will happen if the results aren't as encouraging.

With bigger groups, there’s at least a sense of stability. You’re pretty much guaranteed regular music releases, decent-to-good promotions, and opportunities to see them tour globally. Even if a few comebacks underperform, you know the company has enough resources to continue pushing the group.

For smaller groups, one underperforming comeback can genuinely change the trajectory of their entire career. Budget cuts become noticeable, promotions become shorter, content output slows down, and eventually you start seeing long hiatuses that make fans anxious. Sometimes the members themselves start looking visibly discouraged because they’re putting in the exact same amount of effort without getting much in return.

That's why every moment feels so special. Getting a music show win on The Show (which sadly stopped running atm), or even something as small as getting a viral moment online feels incredibly rewarding as a fan. Idk, the journey just feels a lot more personal and emotionally invested as a fan.

Have you guys ever felt the same way stanning smaller groups? What has your experience been like?