Top Five K-Pop Debuts of 2013

I got into K-Pop January of 2011. So it's just about been three years since I first heard Girls Generation's Run Devil Run, which is what started it all. Since then, I've been a part of the K-Pop community -- in spirit if not in person -- for a lot of debuts. 2012 had a ridiculous amount of great new groups taking the stage, and now 2013 has had a lot as well. While there weren't as many debuts that I was excited for, there was a handful of groups that really stuck out of the masses, at least in my eyes.

These are in no particular order.

Global Icon (A.K.A GI) is a girl group, the only one this year that I really liked. I'm not a big fan of a lot of girl groups, mainly because I don't like the over-sexualized look, and I don't really dig the cutesy look either. But most Korean girl bands are either of the two, so it's kind of lean pickings for my taste.

GI came out in April with a song called Beatles, which has nothing to do with the music icon or the bug. It was a fun, really catchy song that was all hip-hop and spunk and it was pretty different than most girl groups. The five girls all had short punk hairstyles, something I've always thought was awesome though it never quite looks right on me. The girls had a hip-hop, punk concept, and I think it really worked for them. Their voices were not shrill and were just my range, so it was easy to sing along. Or rap along, as the case may be. And the dance to the music video was made of moves that would have looked just as good performed by a boy band. Which I thought was awesome.

Speed is actually a sub-unit, but the larger group -- Co-Ed School -- hasn't been active the beginning of 2011, so it's almost like a new debut. They had their 'official' debut early 2013. New members added to the line up, and a chance for these boys to shine without standing in the shadow of the girls from the main group, and this group really took off.

On top of the fact that the seven boys all have great voices, their debut music videos were drama videos and told the story of the Gwangju Massacre from the early 1980s. It was a heartbreaking story and not a shining moment in Korea's history, but it was a very well done set of two videos, and it fit their music very well. And not only that, but the rest of the songs on their albums have all been good and worth the money I spent on the repackaged albums. I look forward to more music from them.

Bangtan Boys, otherwise know as BTS, is a hip-hop group that debuted in June 2013. This is the one group that I had heard about before their debut, and was pretty excited for them. I love hip-hop groups because they put a lot of their focus on dancing and choreography, which is one of my favorite parts of K-Pop as a whole. And BTS did not let down. Their dancing is just amazing, and their vocals are great as well, which is always a good combo.

While their albums were mostly fluff, the few extra songs other than their singles have been pretty good, and each one has been better than the last, so I'm pretty excited for what they have to offer in 2014.

LC9 is a group that was advertised about a lot on some of the K-Pop websites I follow before their debut. They debuted in May, and while I was not impressed by their music video, the vocals for their single was pretty good. Their music video was just a gimmicky video full of weird violence meant to be an attention grabber, and it just wasn't my thing. Sure, it sparked a story idea, but that's something else entirely.

So at first, the group didn't impress me very much. But then I listened to the rest of their album, and loved it. The one ballad from their album is one of my favorites -- and is in English, bad though it is -- and I love all of the instrumentals from the four songs on the album. So despite the poor impression of the music video, this is one group to watch out for, because they'll surprise you.

M.Pire came with little fanfare in August, and since their debut they've had a little bit of a line-up change. And so far they've only had one music video and I haven't had a chance to listen to their latest single, but their first single was really good. They kind of have a vampire theme, with their name being a mix of Music and Vampire, and their debut music video had them all posing as vampires. It's pretty interesting, and goes along with the whole theme of 2013 for K-Pop, which seemed to be supernatural.

They have good vocals, and their song was pretty catchy, so I'm going to keep my ears open for when they come out with more stuff. Hopefully soon. I should probably also note that M.Pire now includes Lumin, who was originally Lee U from F.Cuz, which is one of my favorites. And I know his voice is like a gift from heaven, so I can't wait to hear what he adds to the group.

I know some of you readers watch K-Dramas. Do you listen to K-Pop too? If so, tell me who are some of your favorites!

Thanks for reading!