'Reverse Myth' Fifty Fifty-Highkey, what is the secret to its popularity again after 2 years?

The heat of the heat wave that came a month earlier than usual is being cooled down by the refreshing music of two teams. The main characters are Fifty Fifty and Highkey, who debuted in 2022 and are celebrating their 4th anniversary this year. Their new songs 'Pookie' and 'It Was Summer', released in April and June respectively, are showing an upward trend as they appear on various popularity rankings.

Coincidentally, both teams have something in common, in addition to being K-pop groups that debuted in the same year, which is why they both garnered attention two years ago when they gained sudden popularity. While Fifty Fifty topped the global charts, including Billboard, with "Cupid" and was reverse-imported to the Korean stage, Highkey enjoyed a similar trend in 2023, enjoying a reverse surge in popularity with "A Rose Blooming Between Buildings."

Fifty Fifty 'Pookie', a song that will definitely rise

Fifty Fifty (Kina, Moonchanel, Yewon, Hana, Athena), who went through twists and turns such as sudden popularity → sudden withdrawal of members and legal dispute → reorganization with new members, are finally starting to receive attention now, two months after the release of their second mini-album and title song 'Pookie' after remaining as a five-member group.

'Pookie', which has a simple melody that is easy to hum, but actually has a considerable level of difficulty when singing, is the track that best shows the characteristics of the album that contains the journey of five girls who set out to find their true selves. The members' voices boasting delicate tones in a bouncy and cheerful atmosphere exude all kinds of charm. Through 'Midnight Special' and 'Perfect Crime', which were introduced as double title tracks, they fully show off Fifty Fifty's uniqueness to the point that they can be literally called 'the powerhouses of the easy listening world'.

Highkey 'It Was Summer', a band sound that revives old emotions

Two years ago, H1-KEY (Seo-i-Lee-ina-Hwi-seo-Yel) released 'The Rose Blooming Between Buildings', a song that was a reverse hit that created the so-called "miracle of a small agency" and a rare case of shaking people's hearts with the power of lyrics. The series of music based on lyrical ballads and rock band sounds was able to convey greater meaning because of that.

However, the huge shadow of the popular song had the negative effect of making it difficult for the follow-up song to get noticed. The songs that were released afterwards, such as 'SEOUL', '불꽃을 멸치지마', and '게러위지자', left relatively disappointing impressions, and they could not avoid a year-long hiatus for new songs until this fourth mini-album <Lovestruck>. At a time when they could have easily taken a step back, Highkey began to gain steady popularity with their signature band sound, refreshing high-pitched vocals, and '여름이야기', a rock-based song with a fast BPM that fits the summer atmosphere. Thanks to targeting the tastes of domestic music fans rather than overseas markets, Highkey's unique differentiation is being completed. Their efforts, which have been the top group on various event stages for the past two years, are finally bearing fruit with '여름이야기'.
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