2025.06.26
This time, to commemorate the 10th installment of Season 2, instead of delving into a single topic, I thought I would change things up and talk about various KPOP topics that have been trending this month.
In order to break the monotony, KPOP Chit-Chat is evolving every day.
The first topic is that all members of BTS have completed their military service and returned.
There are rumors that they will make a comeback this year or next year, but in any case, BTS's full group comeback will be the first since "Yet to Come (The Most Beautiful Moment)" in June 2022 (they did release a digital single "Take Two" in June 2023, but since JIN and J-HOPE were already serving in the military at the time of release, they did not engage in music activities as a full group), marking a comeback after 3 or 4 years.
During the absence of BTS, the initial sales record for KPOP albums held by BTS's "MAP OF THE SOUL : 7," which was 3,378,600 copies, has been surpassed by three groups: SEVENTEEN, Stray Kids, and NCT DREAM. Among them, Stray Kids held a world tour on an unprecedented scale, performing concerts in stadiums across Asia, North America, South America, and Europe.
The younger generation of KPOP groups has successfully taken the lead during the past 2 to 3 years, which was previously driven by BTS.
Now that BTS is back, what will happen to this dynamic? To be honest, I have no idea what to expect.
Currently, it’s hard to imagine that fans of Stray Kids, who are arguably the number one KPOP group right now, would stop being fans just because BTS has returned, and it doesn’t seem like BTS's popularity has decreased at all since before their military service.
Even during their military service, BTS continued to supply pre-recorded content, a strategy that made their absence hardly noticeable.
However, when it comes to the overall sales and excitement in KPOP, it seems that 2023 and 2024 might have been the peak.
Especially in Japan, tickets for joint concerts have noticeably stopped selling well.
Despite many popular groups performing at INGALIVE held at Tokyo Dome on April 12 and 13, the stands were empty, creating a rather lonely sight.
The main reason is that while fans want to see their favorites, they can't justify paying 20,000 yen for a joint concert that only features 2 or 3 songs.
It’s definitely much better to attend a solo concert of their favorite artist.
However, it cannot be denied that BTS has the potential to reignite KPOP, which has been stagnant.
This is because many countries, including Japan, have not held concerts since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since the pandemic, the only concerts BTS held before their military service were in Korea and the United States.
There’s no doubt that many fans around the world are eagerly waiting.
In such a situation, if they release a new song, it’s unimaginable how many copies it would sell.
Will they leap back to the top of the KPOP world despite their absence? I can’t wait for BTS's comeback.
And the second topic is "BOYSⅡPLANET," also known as Boipura 2.
Boipura 2 is a survival audition program hosted by the South Korean television network Mnet, which is the male version of "Girls Planet 999," the show that produced the author's favorite group, Kep1er. It is a successor to "BOYS PLANET," which aired in 2023 and produced ZEROBASEONE (commonly known as ZB1).
Although Boipura 2 is set to start airing on July 17, there are still three weeks until the program begins, yet in Japan, there is already a buzz as if the show has started.
So why is that?
Recently, among the announced participants, there was a surprising individual.
This individual is Yumeki, who appeared as a dance trainer in "PRODUCE 101 JAPAN THE GIRLS," which produced the currently popular girl group ME:I, and gained attention for her strict yet passionate and kind guidance.
Yumeki is also a successful choreographer, working with various famous artists, including ME:I's "Click," Kep1er's "TIPI-TAP," ITZY's "WANNABE," and NCT127's "Fact Check."
With Yumeki participating in a survival audition program alongside trainees aiming to become idols, she has already garnered intense attention even before the broadcast, ranking as the most popular among the approximately 160 participants in Japan.
It has also been announced that Kep1er's Shaoting will appear as a dance master to guide the trainees, making the author excited for the upcoming broadcast.
The third topic is the news that ROSÉ's "APT." has achieved the longest chart run in Billboard history for KPOP.
It has accomplished the remarkable feat of charting for 34 weeks on the main single chart "HOT100" of Billboard in the United States.
"APT." has appeared frequently in this column, and despite being released in October 2024 and having passed eight months, it still holds a strong popularity, ranking 24th on the chart dated June 21.
Recently, while watching the latest season of the popular American drama "AND JUST LIKE THAT... Season 3 / Sex and the City New Chapter," I was reminded of its penetration into not only the American music industry but also the general public when "APT." was used in a club scene.
In July, BLACKPINK, to which ROSÉ belongs, will also begin their world tour, and a full group comeback since 2022's "BORN PINK" has been announced.
Following BTS, it wouldn't be surprising if BLACKPINK, the KPOP queen, returns in the second half of 2025, marking the highest momentary wind speed in KPOP over the past one or two years.
Additionally, there are other topics I wanted to cover, such as the news about the temporary injunction against independent activities without going through ADOR, the agency of NewJeans, and the story of a member of THE BOYZ who withdrew after being spotted in a secret meeting with Japanese adult actress Asuka Kirara. However, discussing those would significantly exceed the word count, so I will leave it here for now.
See you next month with more topics.
Annyeong.
The End
Neko-machi Peko
Head of the KPOP Team at SKOOTA
〈Originally a rock music enthusiast who once considered working for Rockin' On. Started listening to KPOP due to BTS and later became obsessed with BLACKPINK, fully immersing in the KPOP scene. Became a hardcore fan of Kep1er, who debuted from the survival audition program 'Girls Planet 999,' after getting hooked on it.〉