Two iconic K-pop girl bands leave legacy
Wonder Girls / Courtesy of JYP Entertainment
By Kim Jae-heun
Wonder Girls of JYP Entertainment and 2NE1 of YG Entertainment have undoubtedly been the two most iconic girl bands in recent K-pop history. However, the two bands were also unable to break a jinx that most girl groups break up within a decade. The break-ups of Wonder Girls and 2NE1 were both abrupt but the former was surprising while latter was somewhat expected.
Wonder Girls walked an uncertain path from the beginning with former member Hyuna leaving the team less than a year after they debuted in 2007. Sunye also left the group to get married and Sohee left to pursue an acting career in 2015.
Still, JYP Entertainment managed to bring in two additional singers Yubin and Hyerim to maintain its group that was writing new history to become a legendary K-pop girl group.
It was popular singer-songwriter Park Jin-young’s first girl group ambition after he took the boy band g.o.d. and R&B singer Rain to unprecedented successes. Some doubted Park’s ability to produce a girl group, which is totally different from producing male musicians, but he proudly put Wonder Girls into the spotlight with their first lead single “Tell Me” that instantly topped local music charts as well as made them top stars in Thailand. The choreography of the megahit song went viral on TV and the internet and they earned the title “Korea’s Little Sisters,” and made a sensational dance craze in the country.
After reaching huge success in Korea, Wonder Girls entered the U.S. market in 2009 as an opening act for the Jonas Brothers’ World Tour. They performed their hit single “Nobody,” the English version of which later that year charted at 76th on the Billboard Hot 100, and made Wonder Girls the first K-pop group to enter the main chart.
The group went on hiatus from 2013 to 2014 when Sunye left the group to focus on her married life and Sunmi rejoined the band after pursuing a solo career. Wonder Girls, this time, became a real band writing their own songs and playing instruments on the stage with the single lead “Why So Lonely.” It was nominated for the “Song of the Year” at the Korean Music Awards this year. Their album “Reboot” was also nominated as the “Best Pop Album” for the second consecutive year followed by their achievement in 2016, making them the first girl group to do so.
However, the girl band failed to negotiate for a contract renewal and the members split to pursue their own interest at different agencies _ releasing their last single “Draw Me” last Friday to celebrate their 10th anniversary.
2NE1 / Courtesy of YG Entertainment
2NE1 appeared in 2009 with the irreplaceable concept of “girl crush.” It did not take long for YG Entertainment’s super rookies to win the “Best Dance & Electronic Music Award” with their album “2NE1” in 2011. They targeted the American market from the early stages, putting their album “Crush” on 61th on Billboard 200 in 2014.
However, unable to bear the rumor that singer Park Bom was embroiled in a drug smuggling case to Korea and fans turning their backs on the group, 2NE1 disbanded on Nov. 26, 2016, and released the last single “Bye,” on Jan. 31 that ranked 34th on the U.S. iTunes chart.