"What if Hyuna stayed with the Wonder Girls?"
Welcome to a new series I've decided to call "Wild Kpop." This post is inspired by the Reckless Speculation posts over on the NFL subreddit, which in turn was inspired by the "N-if-L" series by Dave Dameshek. The "wild" is a reference to the wild format of Hearthstone where any and all cards are available. In short, it theorizes how a single decision or event being altered would create a series of domino effects and change the future. Granted, the world of Kpop is more rigid than the world of football (there's no free agency, different contracts, etc.), but it's all for fun speculation and puts my imagination to the test, and that's precisely why I decided to take a crack at it. In today's pilot episode, we explore the status of three girl groups if one member decided to stay with her original group.We now know that shortly after the group's debut in 2007 dance machine Hyuna would withdraw from the group, citing health concerns as the primary reason. Hyuna would end up being replaced by Yubin, and the former went on to revitalize her career a few years later with 4minute. But what if Hyuna never left? Say she never had any health issues, therefore erasing any worries from her parents. Well for starters, she obviously stays put, and the Wonder Girls' roster remains Sunye / Yeeun / Sunmi / Hyuna / Sohee. Their debut year is pretty average, backed by the support of being under a Big 3 company, but then they hit jackpot and "Nobody" becomes a sensation in 2008! Wonder Girls rise as a girl group titan, and something else significant happens: they don't go off on their American adventure the following year! Instead, 2009 is spent expanding on their luxuries as a top tier group: appearing on variety shows, shooting CFs, raking in the cash, and going to school. Hyuna is also hard at work preparing for her solo debut. By the way, without an American tour looming over her head, Sunmi never goes on hiatus to focus on school - she's doing that already. She and the rest of the Wonder Girls cheer from the sidelines as "Change" begins Hyuna's ascension to the very top of the Kpop world.
Meanwhile across the pond in 2009, Cube Entertainment was looking to debut a new girl group 4minute, with hopes they will become the flagship artist of the company. Remember, this was a year in which groups like 2NE1, f(x), and T-ARA would debut and we know the competition would be fierce. Things are looking good because they recently acquired a talented (and gorgeous) trainee in Yubin. She would handle rapping responsibilities while Jihyun remains the leader and face of the group. However, without a certain Hyuna in their roster, they don't gain nearly as much media attention prior to debuting. So with their "Hot Issue" beginnings, the member lineup is: Jihyun / Yubin / Gayoon / Jiyoon / Sohyun. They string together good chart placings, but despite the powerful vocals from Gayoon and equally strong rapping from Yubin, they don't really get their fame kickstarted. Without anyone really capable of being soloist material, Cube tries a Gayoon and Jiyoon subunit but even then, 4minute struggle to break out of contain for many years. That is, until "Crazy" and 2015. This addicting dance number jolts them to life and suddenly, this song is everywhere and the group starts gaining traction. Yubin and Jiyoon snag berths on Unpretty Rapstar 2, and the variety offers increase. As 2016 rolls around, they drop "Hate" much to their fans' delight. Piggybacking off the high of "Crazy," "Hate" does very well (despite the obnoxious horns of the chorus) and 4minute get shiny new contracts as Cube believes they can keep this momentum rolling, and avoid (more) group drama after Hyunseung's departure from B2ST.
Now let's rewind to the summer of 2010. Wonder Girls are cruising, and JYP wants to capitalize by putting together another girl group. He already had a set of trainees many coined as "the Chinese Wonder Girls," and a few changes later, miss A debuts with Fei / Jia / Min / Hyelim / Suzy! They prove to be phenomenal in their debut year, sweeping shows, charts, and hearts with "Bad Girl Good Girl" and "Breathe," in addition to receiving much interest from China. Outside of Lim being in the group, the next few years pan out like the real world miss A, but in this timeline, Fei has her solo debut in 2014. "Fantasy" is the first stepping stone into a more rigorous advance into the Chinese market, and comes at a time without any political shenanigans rearing their ugly heads around. Fei's promotions help bridge the gap year between "I Don't Need A Man" and "Hush." However, as 2016 gets underway, their contracts expire. Jia, knowing that the miss A China ship can set sail, doesn't leave the group and resigns. On the other hand, Min is the member that parts ways, going the Minzy route and hoping to get her deserved solo debut with another label. Miss A is now a quartet and holds off any possible comeback, letting the members focus on individual activities (because in any universe, Suzy is still bae and still the Nation's First Love).
If you're curious about the Wonder Girls post-2010, there are a few things of note. Hyuna becomes a superstar with "Bubble Pop." It's safe to say that her solo career arcs out the same way. She, Sunmi, and Yeeun drop solo works which dominate the '13-'14 years, receiving plenty of praise. Sunye still leaves the group to raise her beautiful baby daughter, and the group still revamps as a band in the summer of 2015 as a breath of fresh air. Oh and Sohee is still here, as she managed to find a healthy balance between idol and actress activities. She's on the keyboard, which puts Yeeun on guitar. So to recap! Wonder Girls (Yeeun / Sunmi / Hyuna / Sohee) have enjoyed eight straight years of high-level success and still going strong, 4minute (Jihyun / Yubin / Gayoon / Jiyoon / Sohyun) started off slow but things are looking up, and miss A (Fei / Jia / Hyelim / Suzy) is the only group of the three to suffer a member loss via contracts. It's a different world out there, but that's the world of Wild Kpop.
Agree? Disagree? What do you think would've happened? Have suggestions for future editions? Let's talk about it!
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