The Most Popular Kpop Groups

Are you into kpop? These boy bands are the most successful and popular in the world. When “Gangnam Style” went viral back in 2012, several kpop groups were thrust into the limelight. Without further ado, here are the top five kpop bands.

1. BTS

BTS was launched in 2013. The group roster includes J-Hope, Jimin, Jin, Jungkook, RM, Suga, and V. Also known as Beyond the Scene and the Bangtan Boys, this South Korean septet was the first to score a Billboard Music Award and the first to play the American Music Awards.

BTS is also the first act from South Korea to garner at least 10 million Twitter followers. In fact, in 2017 they were deemed the official most tweeted about celebrities. Their followers retweeted and liked them over half a billion times across the globe. The group’s signature sound is a musical mix of multiple genres including K-pop, hip-hop, and dance music. The boys write and produce all their own material too.

2. EXO

EXO was founded in 2011 and debuted in 2012. Originally there were a dozen guys in the group. They were divided into two smaller language-focused subgroups and labeled EXO-K and EXO-M. The former performed in Korean and the latter performed in Mandarin until 2014 when the group went through additional personnel changes and became one again.

Based in Seoul, the current line-up features nine members. They are Baekhyun, Chanyeol, Chen, D.O., Kai, Lay, Sehun, Suho, and Xiumin. “Forbes” reported them to be the “most influential celebrity” and slotted them in on their annual Korea Power Celebrity list in 2014 and 2015. The group’s signature sound is a blend of several different music genres including electronic dance music, hip-hop, house, pop, R&B, synth-pop, and trap.

3. Wanna One

Wanna One hit the scene in 2017. It is the second act on this list that was born of the 2017 TV series “Produce 101 Season 2!” The present band roster features 11 members.

They are Bae Jin-young, Ha Sung-woon, Hwang Min-hyun, Kang Daniel, Kim Jae-hwan, Lai Guan-lin, Lee Dae-hwi, Ong Seong-wu, Park Woo-jin, Park Ji-hoon, and Yoon Ji-sung. “Billboard” deemed Wanna One to be the “Best New K-Pop Act” for 2017. Their signature sound is a melding of electronic dance music and pop. Their significantly-stylized dance choreography is credited in part for making them one of Korea’s biggest acts. Their initial contract expired on December 31, 2018. They performed in concert on January 24th through the 27th of this year and thus still qualified for inclusion on this list.

4. BToB

BToB stands for Born to Beat. The act was formed in Seoul in 2012. At present, the line-up of this group includes seven performers. They are Lee Chang-sub, Seo Eun-kwang, Im Hyun-sik, Jung Il-hoon, Lee Min-hyuk, Yook Sung-jae, and Peniel Shin.

Since taking the stage, they have scored several different awards including a coveted Ballad Award at the 25th Seoul Music Awards, the 2015 Singer of the Year award at the popular KBS Music Festival, and even the Best Vocal Group Award at the 30th Golden Disk Awards. They dropped their debut disc titled “Complete” back in June 2015. The group’s most recent release is the digital single ‘Sorry.’ The mid-tempo ballad hit the digital record racks this last April.

5. Seventeen

Also known as SEVENTEEN or SVT, this act first hit the road in 2015. Despite the act’s numerical name, this band only has a roster of 13 members. It includes S. Coups, Dino, DK, Hoshi, Jeonghan, Joshua, Jun, Mingyu, Seungkwan, The8, Vernon, Wonwoo, and Woozi.

Since the group never had more than 16 members at once why call the act Seventeen? Good question! 17 is actually the median age of the boys when the band was launched.

This boy group is separated into a trio of teams. Each sub-group has its own special field including hip-hop, vocal, and performance. Nicknamed the “self-producing” idol group, these boys are actually involved in the act’s choreography, production, and songwriting. They’ve put out six EPs and two studio full-length albums.

There you have it, music fans, they are the most popular kpop groups. Did we miss your favorite k-pop groups? Let us know.