The Class of 2021: Girl Group Edition
With the end of 2021 slowly approaching, K-Pop fans have been honored and blessed to encounter the new and fresh talents that made their debut this year. With new groups’ careers starting off amidst a worldwide pandemic, these artists still caught our eyes with refreshing concepts and styles. In this week’s Ladies Corner, we’ll be looking back on a few girl groups that made their debut in 2021 and are on the road to success in the new year!
Billlie
MYSTIC STORY’s Billlie is the most recent girl group to debut on November 10, 2021 with their debut mini-album the Billage of perception: chapter one, featuring their title track, “RING X RING.” The seven-member girl group features Moon Sua, Suhyeon, Haram, Tsuki, Siyoon, Haruna, and their final addition, Sheon (or Kim Suyeon from Girls Planet 999). Before their debut, Billlie was set to include artists like Takeuchi Miyu and Lee Soomin, however, both left the company and are not part of the final lineup. Prior to their debut, the girls participated in a series of dance covers in partnership with 1MILLION Dance Studio, revealing three dance covers featuring the members of Billlie between September and October 2021.
bugAboo
Six-member girl group bugAboo made their promising debut on October 25, 2021 with their single album and track of the same name, “bugAboo.” As A TEAM Entertainment’s first girl group, these ladies stood out from the rest with a Western and horror concept for their music video. Featuring members Eunchae, Yoona, Rainie, Cyan, Choyeon, and Zin, these girls are off to a great start with their debut release the week before Halloween. You can check out more about bugAboo and their debut in The Kraze’s coverage here!
ICHILLIN’
From KM Entertainment, we have the quirky and refreshing seven-member rookies ICHILLIN’ featuring E.Ji, Jackie, Joonie, Chaerin, Sohee, Yeju, and Chowon. With such a unique group name, the inspiration came from a combination of the words “Aisling” and “Chillin’.” On September 8, 2021, ICHILLIN’ released their debut single and music video for “GOT’YA,'' putting an adorable and modern spin with clips of the girls shown through a variety of cameras’ point-of-views. Their current release “FRESH” showcases the girls in a cute and bubbly style that deserves some recognition for their interactive choreography during the dance break.
SKYLE
On August 4, 2021, Good Luck Entertainment debuted their first girl group SKYLE with their first single, “FLY UP HIGH.” Ginny, Chaehyeon, Erin, and Ujeong make up SKYLE, and their name stands for “Show the Kinetic and Youth Leading a new Episode.” Their debut single gives off an EDM vibe that’s certain to pique your interest if you love a mix of K-Pop and electronic music. Currently, the girls released a new single titled “DA DA DA,'' which showcases the girls’ sheer talent in a soft and adorable music video.
LIGHTSUM
LIGHTSUM, Cube Entertainment’s newest girl group, was already being eyed by fans before their official debut on June 10, 2021 with their cute single “Vanilla.” The final lineup for LIGHTSUM consists of eight members: Sangah, Chowon, Nayoung, Hina, Juhyun, Yujeong, Huiyeon, and Jian. Some interesting facts to know about the group is that Chowon, Nayoung, and Yujeong were contestants on the survival show Produce 48 and Juhyeon was a contestant for The Unit and Dancing High. With such promising talent in the group, these girls debuted with a single that fits the bubblegum pop style that we appreciate and see often in girl groups. Currently, their latest release “VIVACE” gained popularity as it is vastly different from their debut, showcasing their charisma in an addictive and fun music video. Check out The Kraze’s coverage for “Vanilla” and “VIVACE!”
MINIMANI
The trio MINIMANI debuted on June 2, 2021 with a music style that’s been familiar and popular in Korea for some time now: trot. This particular style of music has been around for over a hundred years and is considered one of the oldest forms of Korean pop music. MINIMANI brought back the style and made the track into a newtro sound to give it a modern feel in their debut song, “STOP.” It’s a song that’s under the radar and makes you want more from the CMG Stars trio, featuring the vocals of Yu Soohyun, Han Songyi, and Choi Rin! Check out their latest single “나에게 (To me)” below!
HOT ISSUE
S2 Entertainment’s HOT ISSUE has been on our radar even before their debut. With a recognizable name, their name derives from the abbreviations of “honest, outstanding, terrific” for HOT and the word “issue.” Their debut single “GRATATA (그라타타)” definitely caught the attention of fans with their girl-crush concept. You can check out The Kraze’s coverage for their debut here! At the moment, HOT ISSUE’s latest hit “ICONS” has fans addicted to the bridge of the single, with some even saying they cannot go a day without listening to the track.
PURPLE K!SS
Following the footsteps of their seniors MAMAMOO from RBW Entertainment, seven-member girl group PURPLE K!SS made their debut in early 2021. With their pre-debut release singles “My Heart Skip a Beat” and “Can We Talk Again,” the girls gave fans an early taste of what’s to come before their official debut on March 12, 2021 with their first mini-album INTO VIOLET. Their debut album includes the single “Ponzona,” which was co-written by members Na Goeun, Swan, and Yuki! Check out The Kraze’s coverage of their debut album here! They made their first comeback with a Halloween-inspired music video and single, “Zombie.” It’s a fun and lively pick-me-up, as stated in The Kraze’s coverage for it here.
MAJORS
After ANS Entertainment’s previous girl group ANS disbanded due to several allegations and contract terminations, the company created a new girl group in hopes of better success called MAJORS. The six-member lineup features Minju, Jimin, Suji, Yerim, Chaeyoung, and former ANS member Bian. On March 9, 2021, MAJORS launched their debut with their single “Spit it out” from their debut digital album, The beginning of legend. Since then, the girls have released five other songs: “Rain on me,” “Dancing in the starlit night (별빛에 춤을 추는 밤),”
“Shining star,” “Obvious,” and “Vacation.”
PIXY
Among the early debuts in February is ALLART and Happy Tribe Entertainment’s six-member group, PIXY. These ladies are featured in two Ladies Corner articles, “7 Female Groups to Pay Attention to in 2021” and “The Dark and Edgy Ladies of K-Pop,” highlighting more about the group's music style and aesthetic. The Kraze has also covered their single releases like “Wings,” “Let Me Know,” and their most recent comeback, “Addicted.” If you love a horror/fantasy concept style in K-Pop, look no further than listening to PIXY!
TRI.BE
One of the first girl groups to debut in 2021 was TR and Mellow Entertainment’s promising seven-member group, TRI.BE. These ladies were also featured in the previously mentioned Ladies Corner articles, as they were a girl group that had many excited to see their girl-crush concept in their debut single, “DOOM DOOM TA.” Since their debut, TRI.BE has released songs like "RUB-A-DUM,” “Loca,” “WOULD YOU RUN (우주로),” and their holiday release, “Santa For You.”
Aside from these ladies, we still have plenty of girl groups to look out for within the next month and next year in 2022 (ex: KEP1ER, IVE, etc.), so keep an eye out on the next generation in K-Pop! Let’s help these ladies ring in the new year with love and support as they begin their careers as K-Pop idols.