Cut The Cute, Pretty Please: This was perhaps presumptuous because what is cute never truly dies, especially in a market like Kpop. Sure there was plenty of unconventional music, and some of the top girl groups this year didn't do cute pop (Dreamcatcher, Mamamoo, etc.) but probably every other release was some sort of cutesy bullshit. Don't get me started on Twice. Too much cute makes my brain hurt. This was speaking from the perspective of girl groups anyway. Boy groups don't really do cute and even when they do it's nowhere near the same level of tryhard.
The Next Big Thing: When we talk about Kpop's 2018, most of the established names come to mind. The rich got richer and the poor got poorer. Don't get me wrong it's not like there were less popular names that didn't achieve success. Rookies like Stray Kids and Loona did very well for themselves, and other older groups found their groove (think iKON). Still, I'd never classify any of these aforementioned names as having a breakout year. If anything, the breakout was the continuous rise of project groups.
Choose One - Comeback Or Disband: Surprisingly? People actually did this shit. Groups like Secret, Stellar, and BESTie confirmed disbandment which everyone saw coming but again, having the closure is nice. Lesser-known groups like Tahiti and Melody Day also bit the dust, along with Homme and JBJ. Then there was Hyuna's departure from Cube which terminated Triple H. Of course not all the groups that needed disbandment news got it, putting fans back in the torture chamber for if f(x) or After School will ever have a comeback again.
Hey! Listen! Happy Stories: Sort of like my kill the cute prediction, there's no way this would have been 100% right or wrong. If the latter were true we'd be living in one really dark world. From all the fantastic music, to the dankest memes, 2018 was a pretty good year. IU donating cash money to the less privileged and Mexican radio playing Kpop during the World Cup were also other happy highlights.
Not bad, not good, but hey everyone can always go for better, right? Let's see how I'll fare with Kpop hopes and predictions in 2019.
Tropical House Fade
Don't get me wrong, KARD and other artists have done this genre well but all (sometimes) good things must come to an end. If this train is not stopped now, it will never stop and every summer will be stuffed to the brim with tropical house and I'll throw up. This is more lenient than my cute music hope since that is way more ubiquitous in Kpop. At least that's currently the case, pray I'm not wrong on this.
The Next Bad Break
Ah yes, the pessimist in me can't wait to write this part. Somebody will end up on the short end of the stick again and all hell will break loose. Whether it's something petty (think YG vs. Jennie's lazy videos) or more serious (Hyuna, E'Dawn, and Cube) there will be at least one moment during 2019 that will rock the Kpop world and not in a good way. My money is on a girl group this time, the successors to the infamous T-ARA shenanigans are coming.
Veterans Reclaim The Throne
Most of the girl group titans are dead and gone, but we saw some hope at the end of last year with Girls' Generation debuting a "subunit." Apink and Girl's Day are among some of the oldest girl groups nowadays and I expect them to have a superstar year in 2019. Apink is already on the comeback train (and with what should be a spiritual successor to "I'm So Sick" to boot!) so hopefully Girl's Day does something this year. Also Brown Eyed Girls hello? Anytime you want to grace us with your presence, we will be forever grateful. In the boy group landscape this is less likely thanks to those in military service, but hey if the dudes from 2PM and Super Junior wanna do some spectacular things this year be my guest! Speaking of...
Top Song Of 2019
...will belong to a boy group. Going back the eleven Best Of 20XX installments, boy groups have only claimed the #1 spot four times since then: Big Bang in '08, Super Junior in '09, EXO in '15, and BTS in '16. With the rise of groups like Seventeen, iKON, and the omnipresent BTS they are due for a new #1 appearance. The younger talent pool is no slouch either, as Stray Kids had a very impressive rookie campaign. Watch it be some group out of left field like UP10TION or post-scandal Pentagon.
f(x) Finally Return
Call me Naruto because I fucking believe. Luna already has a song this year, with Victoria, Krystal, and Amber cheering her on. We're already at the point where people getting into Kpop recently could in theory have no idea who f(x) was and their unique role in SME's history. For crying out loud give them a comeback later in the year. I don't care if it's after their newest girl group and or after seven Red Velvet comebacks. The Kpop world needs f(x) back in their lives. Surely SM can't screw this one up (just watch them).
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