If I told my past self that one music video would change my music taste, I would probably get a confused reaction. A few years ago, I stumbled across the music video for a song called “FANCY” by TWICE. The combination of bright and energetic vocals, colorful effects, and mesmerizing choreography led me down a rabbit hole of other K-pop songs where I eventually discovered the groups I still support today. This is my beginner’s guide to exploring K-pop as a genre and eventually finding your favorite group!
The first step is to find a concept or subgenre you enjoy. K-pop has a variety of songs with different aesthetics, from futuristic fantasy to cute and youthful. I highly recommend exploring some recent releases from multiple artists to get an idea of what kind of vibe and sound best piques your interest.
Since I mostly listen to girl groups, the songs I recommend starting with are “Birthday Wish” by NMIXX, “Looks Can Kill” by IVE, “LEMONADE” by Aespa, and “Motto” by ITZY.
Once you start finding a group with music that you like, the next step is to start getting to know the members. A really helpful resource is KProfiles, which is a website that has information for each member of any K-pop group you can imagine, including birthdays, age, group position (such as main dancer or lead vocalist), and other fun facts. It also includes pictures of each member, making it easier to associate the face with the name, a common struggle when starting to follow a new group.
Most K-pop groups also have a YouTube channel where they post not only their songs and music videos, but also miniseries involving the members. It’s really fun to see the groups bonding through games, challenges, or daily vlogs while getting a sense of each person’s personality. Watching interviews of your selected group through outlets like Teen Vogue, BuzzFeed, or WIRED is also a great way to get to know the members. The puppy interviews are my favorite!
Arguably, the most difficult part of stanning a group is picking a bias, or your favorite member. There are a variety of factors to consider when choosing your bias from a member’s skills in dancing and singing to their overall personality and likeability, which can make it challenging to know what to look for.
In my experience, the biases I chose were the members who really stood out to me in their group’s performances. For instance, Jihyo is my bias in TWICE because she has incredible energy and charisma when performing onstage and is a talented songwriter and leader.
Everyone’s reason for picking their bias is both different and personal to them, so there’s no wrong answer. Some fans even choose the whole group as their bias!
The final and most important step is to have fun listening to the group’s music! The beauty of K-pop is that every group brings something new to the genre through experimenting with their discography or telling well-developed stories in their music videos. Explore both the title tracks and the B-sides — you might just find a new song to add to your playlist!
I hope this guide inspired you to learn more about K-pop or find a new group to support. Just remember to stay clear of the toxic fans and just have fun!
