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| Girl group BLACKSWAN / Courtesy of DR Music |
By Dong Sun-hwa
One of the most noteworthy trends in the K-pop world today is the rise of groups composed of members with nationalities other than Korean. Whether they fall into the category of K-pop is still being debated, but their emergence is a testament to the growing diversity and expansion of the genre.
Girl group BLACKSWAN ― which consists of Senegalese-Belgian (Fatou), Brazilian-German (Gabi), American (NVee) and Indian (Sriya) members ― claims to be a K-pop act. It had Korean members when it debuted in 2020, but they all left the team.
"It was really challenging to learn Korean etiquette such as the use of honorific expressions and we are still on a rollercoaster ride," BLACKSWAN said through its management company, DR Music. "But we are so glad to form a K-pop girl group that we dreamed of."
The quartet's latest release "Karma" has been going strong on music charts across the globe, with its music video exceeding 5 million views on YouTube as of Sunday. It also plans to embark on a tour of Asia in September.
XG is another girl group without any Korean members, being comprised of seven Japanese members: Jurin, Chisa, Cocona, Hinata, Maya, Juria and Harvey. Although they were trained under the K-pop system and are currently based in Korea, they prefer to be called a "global group" transcending boundaries.
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| Girl group XG / Courtesy of XGALX |
"We want to showcase XG's music and performances to the global audience without being bound by prejudices and regulations related to regions and languages," XG's executive producer JAKOPS said on Instagram. "People may find XG unfamiliar because it is an unprecedented group, but we will strive to show its own color and diversity ... (In addition,) XG has been singing in English because we want to bring its music to the international market."
After debuting with its English digital single, "Tippy Toes" in March, the septet has had smooth sailing in its career. "Left Right" ― a song included in its January EP, "Shooting Star," ― secured a spot on major U.S. radio chart Mediabase Top 40 Radio Airplay for 10 weeks in a row.
XG also made headlines in May for performing at the Head In The Clouds New York Music & Arts Festival (HITC), a popular music festival that drew some 60,000 people in California in 2021.
HORI7ON, which will debut in Korea with its 21-track album, "Friend-SHIP" on July 24, is a boy band made up of seven Filipinos ― Vinci Malizon, Kim Ng, Kyler Chua, Reyster Yton, Winston Pineda, Jeromy Batac and Marcus Cabais. It was created by Korean record label MLD Entertainment and Filipino media company ABS-CBN through the survival reality show, "Dream Maker" (2022).
HORI7ON will be based in Korea, but it aims to become a "world pop group that goes beyond K-pop and P-pop." It is already enjoying popularity in the Philippines, bringing some 7,000 fans to its performance in March.
"The septet will signal the beginning of its musical journey in Korea with the upcoming release," MLD Entertainment said.
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