9 K-Pop Releases That Prove Women Are Ruling 2022

Sep 23, 2022

From solo debuts to comebacks that were heard ’round the world, there’s been a lot of amazing releases in K-pop this year. In particular, girl groups and female soloists have been ruling the charts and winning music show trophies by the dozen – the numbers just don’t lie! If you want a quick recap of some of the best that K-pop’s leading ladies have released this year, just keep reading.

1. TWICE’s Nayeon – “POP!”

Surpassing 100 million YouTube views on the music video and garnering five music show wins (making her a music show triple crown winner), TWICE member Nayeon really made a splash with her solo debut. Her mini album “IM NAYEON” was also breaking records left and right – she really popped off, pun intended!

2. LE SSERAFIM – “FEARLESS”

Making their debut with “FEARLESS” back in May, HYBE’s first girl group LE SSERAFIM (an anagram for “I’m fearless) really made a splash with their first mini album. “FEARLESS” garnered four wins, and hit 100 million views in August. The group is also confirmed to be prepping for their first comeback, so keep an eye out for more great music!

3. IVE – “After Like”

IVE has been ruling the charts with their releases, including their most recent comeback track “After LIKE.” The song garnered the group their first perfect all-kill and has taken a whopping nine music show trophies so far. They also had the third-highest first-day sales of any female K-pop artist – even more impressive when you consider that they’re still rookies!

4. aespa – “Girls”

Becoming their fourth music video to top 100 million views, aespa has been killing the K-pop scene this year. The “Girls” mini album became the best-selling K-pop girl group album of all time in August, an achievement that made history. As if that wasn’t enough, they were also the fastest female K-pop act to enter the Billboard 200 Top 3!

5. TWICE – “Talk that Talk”

Three weeks after the release of “Talk that Talk,” TWICE’s latest comeback is still breaking records! Their newest album spent the last three weeks at the top spot on the Billboard World Albums Chart, making it their second album to do so – and they’re the only K-pop girl group to have had two albums reach this achievement so far! They’re iconic for a reason.

6. NewJeans – “Attention” and “Hype Boy”

Breaking records from day one, HYBE’s second girl group NewJeans garnered the highest first-day and first-week sales of any girl group debut with their first mini album “New Jeans.” Not to mention the fact that they also reached the highest number of pre-orders for a girl group debut – they were making waves before they even hit the stage!

7. Girls’ Generation – “FOREVER 1”

The return of K-pop legends Girls’ Generation has completely cemented the fact that 2022 is the year of the girl group! Making a full-group comeback for the first time in five years, their album “FOREVER 1” hit the top spot on iTunes charts in dozens of countries around the world. Fans all over the world were filled with nostalgia upon seeing all eight members performing together!

8. (G)I-DLE – “TOMBOY”

Taking the triple crown on the charts and achieving the first perfect all-kill of 2022 back in March, there’s no denying that (G)I-DLE’s latest comeback was all that anyone could talk about! “TOMBOY” garnered an impressive eight music show wins, and the album “I NEVER DIE” swept the iTunes charts. They’re also prepping for another comeback this year!

9. BLACKPINK – “Pink Venom” and “Shut Down”

With YouTube MV views quickly soaring into the hundreds of millions, BLACKPINK did not disappoint with their long-awaited comeback album “BORN PINK.” Title tracks “Pink Venom and “Shut Down” quickly took over the charts, and the album itself is the first K-pop girl group album in history to surpass one million first-day orders. They’re also headed out on a world tour this year!