YG Entertainment’s fate rests heavily on the shoulders of BABYMONSTER
Earlier this month, YG officially launched its new girl group, BABYMONSTER, with various individual posters and visual films. This marks YG’s introduction of a new girl group, which includes multinational members from Korea, Japan, and Thailand, approximately seven years after the debut of BLACKPINK.
Initially, BABYMONSTER’ debut was announced for September. However, the debut was postponed, and the girl group are now set to officially release a digital single on November 27.
With “Batter Up” – a powerful hip-hop track, BABYMONSTER’s goal is apparent – to target both domestic and international music markets.
So far, BABYMONSTER is drawing huge attention from global K-pop fans, not only due to their debut but also because BLACKPINK, YG’s previous girl group, achieved overwhelming success in the global market.
In fact, BABYMONSTER have been meeting high expectations since even before their debut, surpassing 3.15 million subscribers on their official YouTube channel and accumulating over 50 million views for their pre-debut song “Dream” released in May.
Above all, the reason why BLACKPINK’s successful debut is drawing keen attention is because of the current crisis faced by YG. The company underwent a significant restructuring at the beginning of the year, led by Yang Hyun-suk, who announced his return to the forefront.
Previously, Yang Hyun-suk stepped down from all positions in the aftermath of the 2019 “Burning Sun” scandal and suspicions of drug cover-ups involving YG artists. However, after being acquitted of drug cover-up charges in December last year, he promptly returned to administrative and production positions at YG. Now leading BABYMONSTER’ debut project, but Yang Hyun-suk still faces a challenging situation with the recent appeals court decision finding him guilty and sentencing him to six months in prison, suspended for one year, for violating laws on specific crimes of aggravated punishment.
This is not the only crisis YG is facing. Following the departure of BIG BANG members, who were the mainstay of YG, and the expiration of exclusive contracts with artists, including iKON, YG is now confronted with the significant gap left by its key artists.
Even BLACKPINK, responsible for the majority of YG’s revenue, has yet to finalize their contract renewal since the expiration in August. While there were claims that BLACKPINK members would renew their group activities but had unclear individual contract renewal status, YG continues to maintain a stance of the contract renewals being under discussion.
In the current situation where major artists have left, YG’s revenue structure, concentrated on BLACKPINK, suggests that the failure to renew BLACKPINK’s contract would be a direct blow to the company’s foundation.
Amid the challenging circumstances, BABYMONSTER has become the protagonist holding YG’s fate. However, it is still premature to determine the success of BABYMONSTER.
The most significant variable is the departure of Ahyeon, a key member of BABYMONSTER who has gained huge popularity and attention, from the debut lineup. Having showcased vocal, dance, and rap skills, combined with a charming appearance reminiscent of BLACKPINK’s Jennie, Ahyeon’s absence will undoubtedly have a considerable impact on BABYMONSTER.
Of course, YG is claiming that Ahyeon is only taking break due to health concerns, but many fans still worry, considering that previous members of TREASURE and WINNER also took a break for similar reason before leaving.
It is not an exaggeration to say that the future of YG now seems to depend on BABYMONSTER. It is therefore important for BABYMONSTER to lead the 5th generation shift in the girl group market and unfold remarkable activities.
Source: Daum
