I haven't listened to all rookie debuts this year- especially most of the boygroups, still this is a list based on which debut stood out the most to me.
1. StayC
Black Eyed Pilseung's group StayC immediately got me with this catchy debut, great vocals and amazing visuals. They've actually charted pretty decent for a rookie group too (only Aespa has done better), and already sold 18K plus on Hanteo in a month. Big potential.
2. Weeekly
Weeekly came as a breath of fresh air- offering innocent but high energy teen pop with a more fresh image in today's Kpop scene oversaturated with edgy/badass concepts. The girls are all really skilled with an amazing vocal and dance line, and they have some great B-sides too esp "Hello". They were my #1 but follow up single Zigzag wasn't as good, still I see good things lying in wait for them.
3. Cignature
Cignature is interesting, the most experimental sound of any rookie group in 2020- you can find traces of Itzy, but also cutesy girl groups that sing in really high pitches. Sometimes it feels like too many things happening at once but it somehow works- anchored by Jeewon's charms and YeAh's strong vocals. In terms of consistency tho, they're def #1- Nun nu nan na was followed by the even better Assa, and then the amazing Arisong. They need more promotions and visibility but they're on the right track.
4. Enhypen
I didn't watch I-Land and Idk any of the members, but this is a fairly solid debut. Nothing too unique, gives you TXT Runaway vibes- which is a good thing, but it's not enough to stand out from the rest of the BigHit groups. The weird BigHit vocal processing is also there, but the song/melody is pretty catchy and just about avoids going into emo/moody territory pretty well.
5. Aespa
The most anticipated debut of the year, initially I was a little underwhelmed but it was almost impossible to live up to those expectations. Upon a few relistens and watching some lives it's grown on me, there's nothing bad about Black Mamba. As a standalone track, it's actually pretty good but doesn't really convey Aespa's musical identity that well. It seems their promotional stuff and MV had more effort put into it in that regard. But I'm Ningning trash and also appreciate Karina visuals lol, and they'll no doubt be huge in the future.
6. Treasure
The group I was most hyped for, knowing how insanely talented they are and all their predebut stuff (including the amazing Going Crazy), but they had to take them down the typical YG path, which really isn't a good fit for the boys imo. Boy is still catchy enough, but the 10/10 verses and prechorus are let down by the same ol' underwhelming hook you've come to accept from a YG track. The follow up singles weren't much better in that regard, although Mmm was a lot more consistent. The boys have everything required to break out, they just need that song/concept that most fans have wanted and they'll be set.
I didn't rank soloists like Yooa, Woodz, Ryu Sujeong and others, or subunits of already established groups like WJSN Chocome.
Tags: @Treasure Maker @My @AnotherKpopTrash and others lol.
1. StayC
Black Eyed Pilseung's group StayC immediately got me with this catchy debut, great vocals and amazing visuals. They've actually charted pretty decent for a rookie group too (only Aespa has done better), and already sold 18K plus on Hanteo in a month. Big potential.
2. Weeekly
Weeekly came as a breath of fresh air- offering innocent but high energy teen pop with a more fresh image in today's Kpop scene oversaturated with edgy/badass concepts. The girls are all really skilled with an amazing vocal and dance line, and they have some great B-sides too esp "Hello". They were my #1 but follow up single Zigzag wasn't as good, still I see good things lying in wait for them.
3. Cignature
Cignature is interesting, the most experimental sound of any rookie group in 2020- you can find traces of Itzy, but also cutesy girl groups that sing in really high pitches. Sometimes it feels like too many things happening at once but it somehow works- anchored by Jeewon's charms and YeAh's strong vocals. In terms of consistency tho, they're def #1- Nun nu nan na was followed by the even better Assa, and then the amazing Arisong. They need more promotions and visibility but they're on the right track.
4. Enhypen
I didn't watch I-Land and Idk any of the members, but this is a fairly solid debut. Nothing too unique, gives you TXT Runaway vibes- which is a good thing, but it's not enough to stand out from the rest of the BigHit groups. The weird BigHit vocal processing is also there, but the song/melody is pretty catchy and just about avoids going into emo/moody territory pretty well.
5. Aespa
The most anticipated debut of the year, initially I was a little underwhelmed but it was almost impossible to live up to those expectations. Upon a few relistens and watching some lives it's grown on me, there's nothing bad about Black Mamba. As a standalone track, it's actually pretty good but doesn't really convey Aespa's musical identity that well. It seems their promotional stuff and MV had more effort put into it in that regard. But I'm Ningning trash and also appreciate Karina visuals lol, and they'll no doubt be huge in the future.
6. Treasure
The group I was most hyped for, knowing how insanely talented they are and all their predebut stuff (including the amazing Going Crazy), but they had to take them down the typical YG path, which really isn't a good fit for the boys imo. Boy is still catchy enough, but the 10/10 verses and prechorus are let down by the same ol' underwhelming hook you've come to accept from a YG track. The follow up singles weren't much better in that regard, although Mmm was a lot more consistent. The boys have everything required to break out, they just need that song/concept that most fans have wanted and they'll be set.
I didn't rank soloists like Yooa, Woodz, Ryu Sujeong and others, or subunits of already established groups like WJSN Chocome.
Tags: @Treasure Maker @My @AnotherKpopTrash and others lol.