K-Bops in K-Pop

I was going to title this something along the lines of “Comebacks I’m Looking Forward to in 2018” but there’s so much more than just comebacks that I’m looking forward to. There will be world tours, debuts, anniversaries, etc. I don’t want to exclude anything, so instead I’ll be talking about everything all at once.

Comebacks

I’m eternally looking forward to comebacks. I know a lot of them haven’t been set in stone, but there are quite a few groups we’re pretty much guaranteed a comeback from. BTS and Wanna One for example. BTS’s Love Yourself series is bound to continue this year and Wanna One will likely squeeze as much music as they can in the amount of time they have left together.

There is one group with a definite comeback scheduled: Oh My Girl. OMG gained public attention a few years back for a mishap upon entering the country. They were back in the spotlight not too long ago with some incidents during their Windy Day comeback. The girls suffered another hit at the loss of JinE this past year. That said, I like to believe that the girls have learned from their mistakes, have taken the time to look in at themselves and how they act and are now ready to be their best selves. I’m so excited for their upcoming comeback and all it will bring, especially with its soft twilight visual elements and dreamy teasers.

It’s odd to think that there won’t be a SISTAR comeback to save summer this year, but I’m still looking forward to releases from my other faves: Red Velvet, Twice, EXID, and WJSN.

Debuts

I’ve said it a few times before and I’ll say it again now: I have a soft spot for debut groups. I think about all that they’ve suffered and all the hard hours of work they’ve put in for an uncertain future. It makes my heart hurt.

So I’m always ready to give new groups a shot to see what they’re made of and what they’ve been working at this whole time as trainees. I’ll be honest, I don’t know what groups we can look forward to this year aside from the rumored new group from BigHit but regardless I’m excited and ready to stan.

Concerts

I’m an ARMY so I’m sure it’s no surprise to you that the concert I’m most excited about this upcoming year is BTS. Everyone’s been abuzz about another world tour and I’m getting my finances ready to attend right now.

That said, last year we saw both KARD and GOT7 hitting Miami, FL in their US tours and, as a Floridian myself, I was pumped to see Florida begin to be added to the usual lineup of states. I’m hoping this is a trend for more groups in the coming year and that we can see usually neglected states (and countries) get the love they’ve been lacking.

Other Important Things

So many groups have made it so far in their careers in the past year and it really is a testament that anything and everything can change in such a small span of time. With Wanna One and BTS alone, there were huge spikes in their popularity and I’m sure more is in store as the world takes notice of Kpop more definitively.

Another thing I’m looking forward to is healing. This past year has been hard and I think I can safely say everyone took a hit. Whether it was your favorite group disbanding or seeing someone you cared about so much leave us altogether, 2017 was not easy on anyone. I hope 2018 has beautiful, wonderful things for all of us and for all of those in Kpop too. I hope they get the healing they need from a difficult year and rest whenever they can. And I hope they all feel the love that we have for them.

What are you looking forward to this year? Any particular comeback or debut? Have you already got a concert that you’re going to attend?