As the eventful year of 2024 concludes and 2025 begins, a shift is observed in the K-pop industry, marking the first year of full recovery to normalcy after the pandemic, showing trends different from those during the pandemic period.
Consequently, Hanteo Chart has analyzed the main characteristics and trends of the K-pop scene in 2024 alongside relevant data.
◇ Decline in Album Sales
A significant feature of the K-pop scene during the pandemic was the explosive increase in album sales due to fans being unable to attend concerts or fan meetings in person.
However, as restrictions were lifted post-pandemic, album sales naturally began to decrease.
A comparison of the album sales between 2023 and 2024 distinctly shows a downward trend. The total accumulated album sales in 2024 were about 87.77 million, approximately 15% less than the 101.36 million recorded in 2023.
Per artist, the trend remains similar. In 2023, the group that topped the album sales were SEVENTEEN, with their tenth mini-album 'FML' and eleventh mini-album 'SEVENTEENTH HEAVEN' selling 5,658,474 and 5,284,638 copies, respectively.
In 2024, SEVENTEEN continued to dominate the top two spots in album sales with their twelfth mini-album 'SPILL THE FEELS' and the best album '17 IS RIGHT HERE', though the sales significantly dropped to 3,293,149 and 3,174,625 copies, respectively, showing a decrease of over 40%.
This trend was not isolated to SEVENTEEN; it was common across most artists.
▲ Stray Kids (2023 career high: 4,794,975 / 2024 career high: 2,616,750),
▲ NCT DREAM (2023 career high: 4,029,719 / 2024 career high: 2,578,194),
▲ TOMORROW X TOGETHER (2023 career high: 2,685,292 / 2024 career high: 1,708,892),
▲ Zerobase One (2023 career high: 2,167,549 / 2024 career high: 1,388,161),
▲ aespa (2023 career high: 1,889,400 / 2024 career high: 1,278,906),
▲ NewJeans (2023 career high: 1,813,816 / 2024 career high: 973,142)
Most top-tier artists experienced a reduction in album sales of 30-40% compared to their career highs.
However, some groups saw an increase in album sales:
▲ ENHYPEN (2023 career high: 1,934,781 / 2024 career high: 2,776,115),
▲ IVE (2023 career high: 1,094,406 / 2024 career high: 1,355,852),
▲ (G)I-DLE (2023 career high: 1,315,499 / 2024 career high: 1,604,709)
These groups showed a significant increase compared to 2023.
Additionally, although overall album sales decreased, live performances increased. SEVENTEEN held six major concerts in venues like the Incheon Asiad Main Stadium and Seoul World Cup Stadium in Korea, totaling over 30,000 seats each. Stray Kids were in the middle of a world tour, 'dominATE', touring over 20 countries since August 2024.
Except for NewJeans, which could not perform normally due to disputes with their agency, most top-charting artists were actively engaging in world tours or planning solo concerts, which significantly increased their performance revenues compared to 2023.
◇ Market Polarization
2024 continued to see a disparity between large and small agencies.
The so-called Big Four of K-pop—SM Entertainment, HYBE (including its labels), JYP Entertainment, and YG Entertainment—accounted for 54.74 million of the total 87.77 million albums sold in 2024, making up 62% of the market.
Including other agencies like Cube Entertainment, Starship Entertainment, and KQ Entertainment, which had artists selling over a million albums each, this figure rises to 73%, or about 64.16 million albums.
This polarization is not unique to 2024; in 2023, these seven companies accounted for 79% of the total market with 81.79 million albums sold.
Considering there are about 420 members in the Korea Entertainment Producer's Association, this means over 400 companies are competing for less than 30% of the market.
The overall decrease in album sales has made it even tougher for smaller agencies, which often can't even consider holding a solo concert, let alone recover income through performances or merchandise like the major agencies can.
This polarization could lead to a loss of diversity and overall quality in the industry, potentially causing a decline in the K-pop industry. Associations and institutions, along with large agencies, must consider mutual growth strategies.
◇ Rise of Bands
The keyword 'band' cannot be overlooked in K-pop in 2024.
The year saw not only the emergence of new bands but also existing K-pop artists venturing into rock band-based music and experiencing a resurgence of past hits.
In terms of data, the popularity of bands is evident. DAY6, after completing their military service, returned with their eighth mini-album 'Fourever' selling 159,618 copies and their ninth mini-album 'Band Aid' selling 146,957 copies, totaling 331,026 copies for the year.
This significant increase, twice the number of their last pre-military album 'The Book of Us: Negentropy - Chaos swallowed up in love', which sold 73,668 copies, made them the top-selling band of 2024.
DAY6's brother band, Xdinary Heroes, also made notable sales with their first full album 'Troubleshooting' selling 64,413 copies and their fifth mini-album 'LIVE and FALL' selling 79,951 copies, achieving a cumulative sales of 138,701 copies in 2024.
However, judging the popularity of the band scene solely by album sales may be insufficient, as bands often have a high demand for festivals and concerts.
Indeed, this year's Pentaport Rock Festival and Busan Rock Festival were hugely successful, and DAY6 also performed at the Gocheok Sky Dome. Additionally, many renowned international bands have held or announced concerts in Korea, further igniting the band scene's popularity.
As 2025 begins, the popularity of bands like DAY6 and others mentioned continues, and many artists are still exploring the band sound, indicating that this trend may persist for some time.
◇ Virtual Group's Activities
2024 has been notable for the activity of virtual artists.
The emergence of an outstanding virtual artist named PLAVE has sparked increased interest in the field, and with the trend of streamers rapidly shifting towards VTubers, the music market centered around them is also growing in scale.
However, so far, PLAVE is virtually the only virtual artist to record a meaningful achievement. PLAVE's second mini album 'ASTERUM: 134-1' demonstrated its popularity with sales of 652,978 copies, while the debut single 'LUMOS' by another virtual artist AEONIT, who debuted in August 2024, only reached a sales total of 6,340 copies.
Moreover, most virtual artists and VTubers are active primarily with cover songs rather than original tracks, and even when they do release original music, it is often only as digital singles, making it difficult to say they have gained popularity in the record market as of yet.
Nevertheless, the field of virtual artists is something to watch in 2025. Virtual artists like Naibis from SM Entertainment and Skins, who teased their debut at SBS's 'K-pop Festival,' have garnered significant attention even before their debut.
It remains to be seen whether virtual artists can transcend subculture to become a mainstream part of popular culture.
2024 was essentially marked by the dissolution of various artists who then announced surprise reunions. Notable groups such as Lovelyz, 2NE1, and Big Bang were prominent examples. At the KBS "Music Festival," the complete reunions of 90s icons Baby V.O.X and Jinusean drew significant attention.
This trend of reunions is expected to continue into 2025. Immediately, GFRIEND has announced a special album release titled 'Season of Memories' on January 13 and a solo concert scheduled from January 17 to 19. GOT7 is also set to release a full-group album on January 20.
Additionally, BLACKPINK is planning to release a new album and embark on a world tour in 2025, promising to enrich the K-pop scene further.
The news of these activities has also led to an increase in album sales. For instance, BLACKPINK’s second full album 'BORN PINK', released in 2022, sold 24,890 copies, with their previous albums selling a total of 60,440 copies throughout 2024.
Big Bang’s third full album 'MADE', released in 2016, recorded sales of 1,360 copies, with an additional 3,283 copies sold over 2024.
Even the sales of albums released well over 20 years ago, like Jinusean’s first album 'JINUSEAN' and third album 'THE REIGN', and Baby V.O.X’s sixth album 'DEVOTION', each sold one copy, highlighting an interesting point of attention.
The official announcements of reactivations or reunions by groups such as BLACKPINK, G-Dragon, GOT7, and GFRIEND, and their anticipated activities for 2025, are also expected to be a key aspect of enjoying the K-pop scene in the coming year.
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