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Girl Groups Now: 4th and 5th Generation

From newcomers Katseye, Babymonster and Illit back to Le Sserafim, NewJeans, Ive, Aespa and I-dle, past the end of Unis, and out to the full list of girl groups.

Start the path →

This course begins with Katseye, Babymonster and Illit — girl groups formed in 2023-2024 — then steps back to the already-established Le Sserafim, NewJeans, Ive, Aespa and I-dle. It passes Unis, which ended its run in 2026, before reaching the full list of South Korean girl groups, measuring how fast this generation turns over.

  1. 1KatseyeK-pop groupsOpens with Katseye, a Los Angeles-based global girl group formed through Hybe and Universal.
  2. 2BabymonsterK-pop groupsMoves to Babymonster, the seven-member group formed by YG, starting a label-by-label survey of new girl groups.
  3. 3IllitK-pop groupsContinues to Illit, the five-member group Belift Lab formed through a survival competition show.
  4. 4Le SserafimK-pop groupsLe Sserafim, from Hybe's Source Music label like Illit, places Hybe's girl groups side by side.
  5. 5NewJeansK-pop groupsNewJeans, also formed by Hybe's ADOR, marks a central axis of the 4th-generation lineup.
  6. 6IveK-pop groupsShifts to Ive, from Starship Entertainment, a leading 4th-generation group outside Hybe.
  7. 7AespaK-pop groupsContinues to Aespa, SM's group built around a metaverse concept, adding another 4th-generation act.
  8. 8I-dleK-pop groupsCrosses to I-dle, from Cube Entertainment, noted as a self-producing group that succeeded outside the big four labels.
  9. 9UnisK-pop groupsUnis, formed by a survival show and disbanded in 2026, shows that formation and disbandment are both part of the same industry.
  10. 10LList of South Korean girl groupsK-pop groupsEnds at the full list of South Korean girl groups, placing every name seen so far within a much larger landscape.

Related issues and features

IssuesUNIS contract expiry and disbandmentIssuesHYBE–ADOR–NewJeans disputeIssuesKATSEYE Paris concert touching incidentIssuesYENA's 'Catch Catch' — the 100M-view milestone and the China challenge boomResearch featuresFrom Virtual Idols to KPop Demon Hunters

Where to go next

Deep dive · 10 articlesThe HYBE Empire and Its DisputesHow one group's success became a multi-label company: through the acts of Big Hit, Belift Lab, Source Music and ADOR, the Japan and US labels, to the fan platform Weverse. Starter · 10 articlesK-pop Generations: From Seo Taiji to KatseyeStart at BTS, rewind to Seo Taiji and Boys in 1992, then ride forward through the groups that reset the game in every generation, back to Katseye today. Deep dive · 10 articlesHow Agencies Make Idols: Big Four, Auditions, PlatformsStart from the fact that Stray Kids belong to JYP: J.Y. Park and Twice, SM and YG, HYBE founded by a former JYP composer, CJ ENM and the Mnet audition that formed Iz*One, and the fan platform Weverse.