This Is K Pop. 'K Pops? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Seo Taiji and Boys

Seo Taiji and Boys were only around between 1992 and 1996, but left a huge legacy in K-Pop. Their debut single, "I Know" (1992) combined pop with new jack swing and featured a healthy dose of rap too, a combination that was unheard of in South Korea at the time.
The track won several awards and is rightly recognised as being the pivotal moment when the hybrid of traditional Korean music and rap, rock and pop started a global phenomenon.

Answer: BoA

BoA (real name Kwon Bo-ah) released her first album in 2000, aged just 13. This album, "ID; Peace B" (2000) reached number three on the Gaon album chart and was no flash in the pan as every one of her nine Korean language albums over the following 20 years went top ten on this chart. Likewise her seven Japanese language albums released between 2002 and 2010, along with her three mixed language albums between 2001 and 2003. BoA's first English language album was simply titled "BoA" and released in 2009 and performed well, not only on the Korean Hanteo Pop chart where it reached number one, but also on the Billboard Dance chart and Billboard Independent chart in USA, where it peaked at numbers five and 16 respectively.

Answer: Baby V.O.X

The initial marketing of Baby V.O.X as a Korean version of the Spice Girls was their undoing as their sexy style didn't go down well in the country. By the release of their second album, "Baby V.O.X II" in 1998, the band had taken on a subtler, cuter image and the hits began with the single "Ya Ya Ya" (1998), followed by "Get Up" and "Killer" (both 1999), which both reached number one on the Korean pop chart. After a few lean years, Baby V.O.X were back in the limelight in 2002 as "Coincidence" was used heavily during the World Cup and the song took the band back to the top of the Korean charts as well as allowing them the opportunity to play a concert in North Korea, becoming just the second K-Pop girl band to perform in the country when they did so in 2003.

Answer: BTS

Not only did "Love Yourself: Tear" (2018) top the Billboard 200 in USA, it debuted at number one. The album also reached number one in Estonia, Japan and their native South Korea, as well as spawning a Billboard Hot 100 top ten single in USA, with the track "Fake Love".
It wasn't just teenage girls who thought highly of the album either, as "Rolling Stone" magazine placed it at number 13 in its list of the 20 Best Pop Albums of 2018.

Answer: Ddu Du Ddu Du

"Ddu Du Ddu Du" (2018) was the band's first hit on the Billboard Hot 100, and they went on to have further success with tracks such as "Kill This Love" (2019) and "How You Like That" (2020), as well as recording tracks with established western artists. These included "Kiss And Make Up" with Dua Lipa in 2018 as well as "Ice Cream" with Selena Gomaz and "Sour Candy" with Lady Gaga, both in 2020,
"Ddu Du Ddu Du" was also the first full Korean language song by a K-pop girl group to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, so was quite the milestone for the band and the genre.

Answer: Nicki Minaj

"Idol" (2018) was released in two versions, one with Minaj and one without, but both counted towards the track's chart position of number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in USA. The boys were certainly enthused about the collaboration, with band member RM describing the experience as, "our dreams are really happening", while Minaj reciprocated with tweets about her love for the boys.
The song was also responsible for an internet dance challenge, which saw people dance to the chorus, and was featured on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" in USA.

Answer: Seventeen

Seventeen are more like a small company than a band, with the members being divided up into three different sections, the Hip-Hop Unit, the Vocal Unit, and the Performance Unit.
After being formed in 2015, the band had a fairly quick rise to success with "Pretty U" (2016) being the first of three top 20 hits on the Gaon charts in South Korea. In 2017, that success reached a whole new level as "Don't Wanna Cry" peaked at number one on the Billboard K-Pop Hot 100 as well as hitting number 12 on the Gaon chart.
In 2020, Seventeen had further success, when their EP, "24H" went to number one on the Oricon Weekly Album Chart in Japan, giving them their fourth consecutive number one album on that chart, a feat last achieved by the Bay City Rollers in 1977.

Answer: Groove Over Dose

g.o.d have had many hits in South Korea but have never made the transition to global stars, possibly due to the fact that they were on hiatus between 2005 and 2014, just as K-Pop was gathering momentum.
Prior to 2005, they released seven albums, all of which were top five hits on the Gaon album chart and their debut album, "Chapter 1" (1999) included the track, "To Mother" (1999), which is now regarded as a 90s K-Pop classic.
Following their long period of inactivity, the band returned in 2014 with the album, "Chapter 8" which reached number two on the Gaon album chart as well as giving them a number one on both the Gaon singles chart and the Billboard K-Pop Hot 100 with "The Lone Duckling".

Answer: Girls' Generation

2010 was the year it all started taking off for Girls' Generation as they had three consecutive number one singles on the Gaon chart with "Oh!", "Run Devil Run" and "Hoot".
Their popularity continued to grow and by 2012, they had their first hit on the Billboard World Song chart in USA when "Dancing Queen" peaked at number five. A string of top ten hits followed on this chart, including "Catch Me If You Can" (2015) which was only kept off the top spot by Israel Kamakawiwoʻole's version of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow".

Answer: Zico

Rapper, Woo Ji-ho, better known as Zico, first tasted success while with Block B when their debut album, "Blockbuster" (2012) reached number ten on both the Gaon album charts and the Billboard K-Pop 200 in South Korea.
Although he released solo work as early as 2014, with the single, "Tough Cookie", and continued to release tracks and EPs while a member of Block B, it wasn't until 2018 that Zico officially left the band to begin life as a solo artist.
His first album was 2019s "Thinking" which was a number three hit on the Gaon album chart and gave him a big hit on the singles chart with "Daredevil" (2019), but it was 2020 and the release on the EP, "Random Box" that saw his big solo success.
"Any Song" from the EP was a number four hit on the Billboard World Song chart in USA as well as being a number one on both Korean charts and the track, "Summer Hate" featuring long time K-Pop idol Rain, attracted much praise.