OMONA original: A look back at the 2022 second generation girlgroup revival

[goshipgurl]

2022 was a great year to be a girlgroup stan. Not only did girls dominate the entire K-pop industry all year long and took over the Melon top 10 in September, us hags even got the chance to see some of our 2nd generation faves perform again after years of being inactive. Let's sit back and relive this phenomenal year again.

Comments

[mil_lay]

kara def hit it out of the park for me, and i'll even bring in 2pm when mentioning this, they didn't release a flat song just for the fans their song was on the lines of what actually made them famous and it was a pretty decent attempt at recapturing that magic.

[xoxkenzxox]

yes - 2PM needs to be added to list of 2nd gen comebacks. Make It was great and still on my playlist.

[goshipgurl]

I know but this is a women only post though 😭

[mil_lay]

i knowww, i felt bad bringing up men in thisss T______T

[gathyou]

I always had hopes Soshi would make it happen, as S.E.S had a reunion album for their 20th + the members were vocally on board (just busy with their solo careers), but not so soon! I'm absolutely delightled that they released an album this year. And it was better promoted than Holiday Night lmao.
Then KARA!!! I wasn't expecting them, and my heart is just so full. A mini album is already great and I hope it's just a start and that they will release more. They seemed to have a blast!

Special stages like 2NE1 and Sistar are obviously amazing (also omg CL is really the MVP, getting her surprise 2NE1 reunions at MNET and at Coachella) but I feel like it's easier to do, and easier to expect of us fans, so they were both eclipsed for me by Soshi and Kara.

I want to say that Brave Girls' being revived when an old song became a surprise hit, and successfully promoting the old song as well as new releases, even though they were nowhere near as big as those mentioned here, really proved to companies that there is general interest for "older"

[broadcities]

hoping all your 2023 wishes come true💕 i would love a kara-style infinite and wonder girls comeback

interesting that you're tying the return of 2nd gen ggs to brave girls - i mostly just thought it was the nostalgia factor, helped by shows like jaejae's but maybe you're right in saying that brave girls showed that older ggs can chart well

[gathyou]

Right? Both groups are bound to come back by now!

I think nostalgia is the no.1 factor for general audiences - for example, of course SNSD releasing Forever 1 is going to tap right into it, that's why Kenzie was picked to work on the song, why they picked this genre, etc.
I was more thinking about companies - who are a lot more skeptical of girl groups promoting beyond 7 years and/or as adult women with their own lifes and careers. They have to be convinced before any nostalgia comeback happens, but I feel like it's undeniable now (and not just limited to a few outliers like SNSD who went beyond the 7 years).
It's also interesting that the biggest debut of 2022 is NewJeans, who capitalize A LOT on nostalgia for a time that the members themselves were too young to experience - I guess there's a larger trend about comfort in music and concepts that pop girl groups are really benefiting from

[sweetestbliss1]

I feel like an Infinite comeback is going to happen, BUT the question is if it will include Hoya.

[pikapika217]

Kara being the only group in kpop history to have music show wins in 3 decades is INSANE and ICONIC behavior!

This really was a year for the older kpop fans. The ONLY thing that could have been better is if we also got a Wonder Girls reunion. Several of them are still active and it was YOUR 15th anniversary TOO ladies 😭

[pseudo_shigure]

i never listen to kara back then. but with their cb and how they keep doing the medley of their old songs, i started to listen and really enjoy it. i like their old title songs more than when i move actually.

[rosiemotleymind]

Girls Generation having a comeback was everything to me like straight serotonin to my brain. And their variety show appearances and Soshi Tam Tam reinforced why they were so popular. They all are born entertainers and hilarious individuals but when they’re together they really shine. I really hope they’re able to do a season 2 of Soshi Tam Tam

I need a wonder girls comeback even if it’s only Sunmi, Yerin, Yubin, Hyelim. We could have had it all 😭

[goshipgurl]

Isn't Yerin in Gfried? lol

[rosiemotleymind]

Funny enough my phone seems to autocorrect Yeeun to Yerin lmao

[sweetestbliss1]

What is Sohee even up to? I know she has a YT channel...not sure if she's an acting gig recently.