The Rise of NewJeans, K-Pop’s Newest Sensation
By Matt Landsman
February 21, 2023
Image Credit: Melissa Askew for Unsplash
When HYBE Entertainment's newest sub-label ADOR (All Doors One Room) debuted their first group consisting of five members in July 2022, they didn’t realize NewJeans were about to take over the entire world.
With success that even propelled them to have more monthly listeners on Spotify currently than BLACKPINK, NewJeans is music’s new biggest thing.
The group consists of Hanni, Minji, Danielle, Hyein and Haerin, five young girls that never could have anticipated such success so quickly. They have broken numerous records in both South Korea and internationally. Some of these achievements include the fastest K-pop group to have multiple entries on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, breaking their own record for most albums bought in a day by a K-pop female group, the most followed female group globally and more.
NewJeans’ success could be attributed to being under fellow K-pop group BTS’ label, but the music they put out speaks for itself. It has a retro feel with beautiful vocals and lyrics that the girls themselves help write. They currently have only 2 projects out: their debut mini album, “NewJeans 1st Ep NewJeans,” and a single album titled “Ditto” consisting of two tracks.
According to NewJeans’ Spotify page (https://open.spotify.com/artist/6HvZYsbFfjnjFrWF950C9d), “As jeans have been a staple in every wardrobe for generations, NewJeans hope to present tasteful songs that will be adored timelessly through your playlist.”
The girls have put in a lot of work towards their debut and they have officially put their name on the map with their recent releases. Every song they have out currently has over 100 million streams. And don’t think they’re done yet; it’s likely they will release more music throughout this year.
My current favorite song by them has to be “Ditto.” It sounds so unique from the beat to their gorgeous howling vocals that start the song. The music video forDitto went for a very touching and dark concept. It explores the relationship between K-pop idols and fans. In the “Ditto” A and B music videos, we see a “6th member” who thinks NewJeans are her friends, but they are invisible to everyone else around her. It is to showcase how NewJeans are there for you throughout your music and in part B, the 6th member outgrows NewJeans but reflects on the memories they share which is like idols and their fans. Even if they outgrow NewJeans, they will remember all the amazing times they had with the group and how they helped them during difficult times, which music does for people all over the world, including me.
I love how NewJeans are exploring these deep concepts and it makes me want to stay engaged with what they do next. The CEO of NewJeans’ sub-label ADOR, Min Hee-jin, used to work for SM Entertainment until HYBE offered her her own sub-label and creative freedom.
I asked people around the University of Maryland who like NewJeans why they love them, and why they think they’ve had such massive success.
Sophomore speech and hearing major Paige McGinnis said, “I love NewJeans because I feel like their concept is unique. They sound like nothing I’ve heard before in K-pop and I feel like their concept is age appropriate for them being so young, which I feel like helps their appeal in being a massive group.”
“I love NewJeans because their songs are so catchy and I can’t get them out of my head,” said sophomore criminology major Natalia Ortega. “I feel like they’re massive because they all have amazing personalities and their label has been very smart with NewJeans’ roll out. I can’t wait to see what concept they do next!”
Sophomore business major Marta Janerio said, “NewJeans are like a breath of fresh air in K-pop which is why I love them. I feel like other groups tend to go for this crazy and chaotic sound, but NewJeans have this clean classic retro pop sound going for them which makes you want to keep listening to their songs. They’re on top of the world right now because people appreciate amazing music and they have so much content to keep you engaged with each member. Props to Min Hee-Jin and ADOR for knowing exactly how to manage them properly!”
NewJeans are quite young ranging from 14-18 years old so they have a lot of time to grow, and I can’t wait to see what they do with their next comeback. Will you be tuning in?
With success that even propelled them to have more monthly listeners on Spotify currently than BLACKPINK, NewJeans is music’s new biggest thing.
The group consists of Hanni, Minji, Danielle, Hyein and Haerin, five young girls that never could have anticipated such success so quickly. They have broken numerous records in both South Korea and internationally. Some of these achievements include the fastest K-pop group to have multiple entries on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, breaking their own record for most albums bought in a day by a K-pop female group, the most followed female group globally and more.
NewJeans’ success could be attributed to being under fellow K-pop group BTS’ label, but the music they put out speaks for itself. It has a retro feel with beautiful vocals and lyrics that the girls themselves help write. They currently have only 2 projects out: their debut mini album, “NewJeans 1st Ep NewJeans,” and a single album titled “Ditto” consisting of two tracks.
According to NewJeans’ Spotify page (https://open.spotify.com/artist/6HvZYsbFfjnjFrWF950C9d), “As jeans have been a staple in every wardrobe for generations, NewJeans hope to present tasteful songs that will be adored timelessly through your playlist.”
The girls have put in a lot of work towards their debut and they have officially put their name on the map with their recent releases. Every song they have out currently has over 100 million streams. And don’t think they’re done yet; it’s likely they will release more music throughout this year.
My current favorite song by them has to be “Ditto.” It sounds so unique from the beat to their gorgeous howling vocals that start the song. The music video forDitto went for a very touching and dark concept. It explores the relationship between K-pop idols and fans. In the “Ditto” A and B music videos, we see a “6th member” who thinks NewJeans are her friends, but they are invisible to everyone else around her. It is to showcase how NewJeans are there for you throughout your music and in part B, the 6th member outgrows NewJeans but reflects on the memories they share which is like idols and their fans. Even if they outgrow NewJeans, they will remember all the amazing times they had with the group and how they helped them during difficult times, which music does for people all over the world, including me.
I love how NewJeans are exploring these deep concepts and it makes me want to stay engaged with what they do next. The CEO of NewJeans’ sub-label ADOR, Min Hee-jin, used to work for SM Entertainment until HYBE offered her her own sub-label and creative freedom.
I asked people around the University of Maryland who like NewJeans why they love them, and why they think they’ve had such massive success.
Sophomore speech and hearing major Paige McGinnis said, “I love NewJeans because I feel like their concept is unique. They sound like nothing I’ve heard before in K-pop and I feel like their concept is age appropriate for them being so young, which I feel like helps their appeal in being a massive group.”
“I love NewJeans because their songs are so catchy and I can’t get them out of my head,” said sophomore criminology major Natalia Ortega. “I feel like they’re massive because they all have amazing personalities and their label has been very smart with NewJeans’ roll out. I can’t wait to see what concept they do next!”
Sophomore business major Marta Janerio said, “NewJeans are like a breath of fresh air in K-pop which is why I love them. I feel like other groups tend to go for this crazy and chaotic sound, but NewJeans have this clean classic retro pop sound going for them which makes you want to keep listening to their songs. They’re on top of the world right now because people appreciate amazing music and they have so much content to keep you engaged with each member. Props to Min Hee-Jin and ADOR for knowing exactly how to manage them properly!”
NewJeans are quite young ranging from 14-18 years old so they have a lot of time to grow, and I can’t wait to see what they do with their next comeback. Will you be tuning in?