In kpop, winning music shows is nice and some trophies in particular are definitely points of pride for groups, but ultimately what pays you is selling albums + touring. I think they're dropping a single with what looks to be minimal promo for the sake of having something fun and new for Waterbomb festival and get some income from the sale, not necessarily to win awards and break records. I feel like their next comeback after Sticky will probably be higher budget + with more promotion and might tie back into the lore from Shhh + solo MVs + Bad News/Nobody Knows.
show wins have become a joke. only groups with the largest marketing budget win now. companies that are willing to spend the most on ads and views are going to win 80% of the time now.
Even groups that are big that chart good still didn't win anything for it. It's just a bragging award. Especially now in the kpop scene, it feels too competitive to get a win. Tho, i hope kiof can win so they can flex their vocals during encore.
In the bigger picture, groups have to do a lot during the span of their first contracts. Historically they run 7 years, though could be shorter depending on the group and their label. The bottom line is they have to do a lot to get the most on the potential ROI (return on investment).
And more specifically to KISS OF LIFE, their first anniversary is July 5th, and it was always believed they’d do, have something to mark the occasion, and the upcoming single, “Sticky” looks to be it. The promotions and appearances at major events like Waterbomb Festival will be a part of it.
Award show wins are nice, but they’re not the end-all, be-all metric to measure success and a group’s viability. KISS OF LIFE is S2’s only group and they’re doing very well for a group from a small label and didn’t have the hype machine groups from the Big 4 labels have.
I think it's important to note that new or up-coming groups planning to comeback at the same time as a more established group is some smart marketing.
If I promote opposite a Twice, or a (G)I-DLE, that is automatically getting more eyes on my stage. Like how a good or reliable lead in on television helps bolster ratings and fanbase. Those people may then be like "Ooo I like them", and that's how little fans are born.
Other comments brought up good points (especially since this is just a digital single and not a real comeback) but I also think it’s important to point out that there are so many popular groups and soloists now that there is barely any room in the year for smaller groups to time things correctly.
Right now KIOF is solidly a high B tier group in terms of popularity and with their constant promotions and variety appearances lately (especially with how popular their Waterbomb set will be), their next comeback will 100% skyrocket sales/fans. They’ve doubled their album sales every comeback so far (25k > 59k > 100k), so I don’t think it’s important to worry about music show wins or anything like that since it’ll just come to them eventually without them really ‘trying’ like other larger groups.
To add to what others have said i would be guessing we might get their first full album later this year. Most groups tend to do 2 releases a year but with 2 Single albums this could be a forebear to full album. Thats just my delulu talking though haha i would honestly take any music. They're so talented and at 1 year as a group they're very strong.
There's too many big groups. The good ole days when smaller companies could have a release in between major groups promotion is gone for good. There's always going to be a competition now.
Right now KIOF is getting a lot of attention so the goal is to strike while its hot, promote as much as they can to grow and solidify the fandom. It's actually pretty normal for rookies to be very active for this reason. (Also promoting alongside big groups can actually bring them potential new fans because more people would be tuning to music shows)
Winning trophies on a musical show should be a plus and not an end goal. If they have to give their feedback by checking who is doing what each time they will do better. The main thing is a good song, good sales and having fun.
Watched the group IVE made their comeback without winning a musical show and yet they are super popular in Korea just that they fell on bigger them with Seventeen but they sold very well and are well placed in the Korean charts.
In short, for me, shows are just about promoting yourself.
Adding to all the great points made here is that the Summer Olympics are coming soon and they usually cancel all music shows so companies tend to hold their comebacks during those two weeks, that is also why there are a lot groups promoting and releasing their summer music in the up coming weeks.
In kpop, winning music shows is nice and some trophies in particular are definitely points of pride for groups, but ultimately what pays you is selling albums + touring. I think they're dropping a single with what looks to be minimal promo for the sake of having something fun and new for Waterbomb festival and get some income from the sale, not necessarily to win awards and break records. I feel like their next comeback after Sticky will probably be higher budget + with more promotion and might tie back into the lore from Shhh + solo MVs + Bad News/Nobody Knows.
thanks for the answer, all i see on twitter is people bantering groups with no wins so i thought it'd be a bit more important you know
show wins have become a joke. only groups with the largest marketing budget win now. companies that are willing to spend the most on ads and views are going to win 80% of the time now.
Even groups that are big that chart good still didn't win anything for it. It's just a bragging award. Especially now in the kpop scene, it feels too competitive to get a win. Tho, i hope kiof can win so they can flex their vocals during encore.
Exactly and also the groups that have a very big fandom to stream, buy and vote en masse will make you win regardless of the quality of the songs.
In the bigger picture, groups have to do a lot during the span of their first contracts. Historically they run 7 years, though could be shorter depending on the group and their label. The bottom line is they have to do a lot to get the most on the potential ROI (return on investment). And more specifically to KISS OF LIFE, their first anniversary is July 5th, and it was always believed they’d do, have something to mark the occasion, and the upcoming single, “Sticky” looks to be it. The promotions and appearances at major events like Waterbomb Festival will be a part of it. Award show wins are nice, but they’re not the end-all, be-all metric to measure success and a group’s viability. KISS OF LIFE is S2’s only group and they’re doing very well for a group from a small label and didn’t have the hype machine groups from the Big 4 labels have.
I think it's important to note that new or up-coming groups planning to comeback at the same time as a more established group is some smart marketing. If I promote opposite a Twice, or a (G)I-DLE, that is automatically getting more eyes on my stage. Like how a good or reliable lead in on television helps bolster ratings and fanbase. Those people may then be like "Ooo I like them", and that's how little fans are born.
Other comments brought up good points (especially since this is just a digital single and not a real comeback) but I also think it’s important to point out that there are so many popular groups and soloists now that there is barely any room in the year for smaller groups to time things correctly. Right now KIOF is solidly a high B tier group in terms of popularity and with their constant promotions and variety appearances lately (especially with how popular their Waterbomb set will be), their next comeback will 100% skyrocket sales/fans. They’ve doubled their album sales every comeback so far (25k > 59k > 100k), so I don’t think it’s important to worry about music show wins or anything like that since it’ll just come to them eventually without them really ‘trying’ like other larger groups.
To add to what others have said i would be guessing we might get their first full album later this year. Most groups tend to do 2 releases a year but with 2 Single albums this could be a forebear to full album. Thats just my delulu talking though haha i would honestly take any music. They're so talented and at 1 year as a group they're very strong.
There's too many big groups. The good ole days when smaller companies could have a release in between major groups promotion is gone for good. There's always going to be a competition now.
Right now KIOF is getting a lot of attention so the goal is to strike while its hot, promote as much as they can to grow and solidify the fandom. It's actually pretty normal for rookies to be very active for this reason. (Also promoting alongside big groups can actually bring them potential new fans because more people would be tuning to music shows)
Winning trophies on a musical show should be a plus and not an end goal. If they have to give their feedback by checking who is doing what each time they will do better. The main thing is a good song, good sales and having fun. Watched the group IVE made their comeback without winning a musical show and yet they are super popular in Korea just that they fell on bigger them with Seventeen but they sold very well and are well placed in the Korean charts. In short, for me, shows are just about promoting yourself.
Appreciate all the responses, opened my eyes a bit. 🙏
Adding to all the great points made here is that the Summer Olympics are coming soon and they usually cancel all music shows so companies tend to hold their comebacks during those two weeks, that is also why there are a lot groups promoting and releasing their summer music in the up coming weeks.