Tours, Bichwo, Rise... Selected as 'K-pop Rookies to Watch This Year' by the US Grammy

Announcement of the Roster for 11 Rookie Teams

Grammy.com in the United States has selected 11 rookie K-pop acts to watch this year.

Group RIIZE. [Photo by SM Entertainment]

On the 26th (local time), Grammy.com announced the list titled "11 Rookie K-Pop Acts To Know In 2024" on its homepage. The list includes names such as Baby Monster, Boy Next Door, and RIIZE.

Among the 11 teams, four are from HYBE Labels. They were evenly selected from each of its subsidiary labels: Boy Next Door (KOZ Entertainment), TWS (Pledis Entertainment), ILY:1 (Belift Lab), and Katseye (HYBE America). SM Entertainment and JYP Entertainment each have two teams on the list, while YG Entertainment has one. Additionally, one team each from smaller agencies S2 Entertainment (Kiss of Life) and Modhaus (TripleS) were included.

Regarding Baby Monster, introduced by YG, Grammy highlighted the six members as "Batter Up," continuing the girl crush legacy of senior girl groups from the same company, 2NE1 and BLACKPINK. They noted that the group released their second song "Stuck In Middle" on February 1 and will release their first album (with Ahyeon joining) in early April.

Grammy also mentioned HYBE's group ILY:1. Alongside NewJeans and Le Sserafim, this group is composed of HYBE's other female powerhouses and formed a fanbase last year through the reality show "R U Next."

Multinational group in the spotlight.
[Photo by JYP Entertainment]

About Kiss of Life, Grammy described them as exuding a femme fatale vibe and mentioned member Natty's smooth solo track "Sugarcoat," which evokes Y2K R&B and was one of the most surprising hits in Korea last year.

Regarding Boy Next Door, it was emphasized that rapper and producer Zico produced this first boy band under KOZ Entertainment, a HYBE subsidiary to which BTS belongs. As the team name suggests, they convey a sense of both familiarity and approachability, as if they could be your neighbors.

About Katseye, which HYBE is producing in partnership with the American label Geffen Records, Grammy reported that the team is focused on the U.S. market and will be introduced through a Netflix documentary series highlighting diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds.

JYP Entertainment's Japan-based girl group NiziU was introduced as not a new team but one that released their first official K-pop song last year. Grammy described them as one of the fastest-growing girl groups in recent years, showing potential to continue growing as they transition from the J-pop scene to the K-pop world.

Grammy also named SM Entertainment as a busy major K-pop agency this year, noting that RIIZE is on a successful path with several hits in Korea, including "Love 119." They highlighted that RIIZE is a large K-pop band that has not been part of the NCT multi-team project since 2016.

Boy Next Door (KOZ Entertainment), TWS (Pledis Entertainment), Aileat (Belif Lab), KATSEYE (HYBE x Geffen Records).
[Photo by HYBE]

Regarding NCT's final unit, NCT Wish, Grammy described it as a joint project between SM and Japan's Avex dance music label Avex Trax. Ahead of their official debut, they released "Hands Up" and "We Go" last year, delivering dynamic and bright energy.

About the six-member group TWS, Grammy mentioned that Pledis Entertainment launched this boy group nine years after SEVENTEEN (SVT) and called them the most anticipated rookie K-pop group this year.

Regarding TripleS, currently composed of 24 members, Grammy said it feels like choosing your own adventure book and introduced that Jayden Jung, who played a key role in the early production of LOONA, planned the group. Last year alone, five teams under TripleS were announced, and this process was described as a journey that fans immerse themselves in.

About VCHA, a global girl group introduced through the survival show "A2K" co-produced by JYP and American Republic Records last year, Grammy explained that the team name comes from the Korean word meaning "to shine." They also shared that VCHA is scheduled to perform as opening acts for TWICE's stadium tours in the U.S. and Latin America in February and March, respectively.

Grammy concluded, "Some of the rookie K-pop groups introduced this time aim to bring K-pop energy to other regions," diagnosing that teams not based in Korea are a trend among K-pop companies this year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.