[instiz] STRAY KIDS WHO SEIZED THE GLOBAL AUDIENCE, THEY'LL HIT DAEBAK THE MOMENT THEY GET THE DOMESTIC AUDIENCE... WHY CAN'T THEY?

bypannchoa August 07, 2024
The group Stray Kids is showing an impressive momentum with their latest release, "EATOR." As the first fourth-generation boy group to enter the Billboard Hot 100 for the third time, they have set a new personal best, demonstrating their global dominance.

Stray Kids' title track "Chk Chk Boom" from their mini-album **'8'**, released on July 19, has made it onto the Billboard Hot 100 as of August 3. This follows their previous entries with "Rock" (90th place) and the digital single "Lose My Breath" with Charlie Puth (90th place), and marks their highest position yet. Stray Kids is currently the only K-pop boy group, aside from BTS, to make it onto this chart.

The Hot 100 is a chart with a high emphasis on radio airplay, serving as a measure of a song's popularity in the local market. Although Stray Kids did not surpass the local radio airplay barrier, they scored significantly in streaming, showing strong local listener interest in their new release.

Despite such impressive global achievements, there are some concerns regarding Stray Kids' performance on domestic music charts. On Melon, the chart with the most users in South Korea, the highest position for their new song "Chk Chk Boom" was 120th place, failing to break into the top 100. Previous tracks "Rock" and "S-Class" peaked at 108th and 100th place, respectively, and other earlier title tracks also did not make it onto the charts.

While it is true that many boy groups struggle to make it onto domestic charts, considering the consistent success of groups like BTS, Seventeen, NCT, RIIZE, TWS, and PLAVE, it is difficult to ignore that Stray Kids' domestic performance does not match their global reputation.

It is hard to pinpoint the exact reason for the challenges Stray Kids faces on domestic charts, but one possible factor is that domestic listeners tend to prefer "easy-listening" music. In contrast, other boy groups whose music performs well on these charts generally offer songs that are more comfortable to listen to compared to Stray Kids' "mala" style.

Despite the shortcomings on domestic charts, critics generally believe that Stray Kids should continue to maintain their "4th dimension wall" style. Cultural critic Kim Sung-soo commented, "The chart performance of Stray Kids' music may be influenced by marketing strategies. Focusing on the domestic market can sometimes make it difficult to tailor marketing for global success. Stray Kids has been focused on global markets, and thus, their domestic chart results should not be used to undervalue their achievements."

Kim Sung-soo added, "Stray Kids has embedded their journey of survival amid internal and external uncertainties into their music, establishing their identity. They have already secured a strong fan base abroad, and as their core fanbase grows in Korea, they will likely produce results that satisfy listeners both domestically and internationally."

Cultural critic Kim Do-hun said, "Stray Kids is a team that can be considered on a global level, but the difficulty in achieving strong results on domestic weekly charts could be a concern. However, Melon, Genie, and Bugs are not considered highly authoritative charts, and especially Melon has a very entrenched chart with many past releases and significantly fewer new songs. Thus, there is a tendency in the industry to refer to Spotify or YouTube Music to assess global popularity and influence."

Kim Do-hun also noted, "Stray Kids started with their own unique music rather than focusing on mass appeal, which helped them build a solid fanbase. The fact that they are on global charts shows that there is a domestic consumer base as well. While there may be concerns about domestic chart performance, they should continue making their music."

Even though Stray Kids has been active for six years, their relatively fresh reception in the domestic K-pop fandom is considered a strength for longevity. Kim Sung-soo remarked, "Their music shows good teamwork in terms of part distribution. They have laid the foundation for their career to flourish with a full-group contract renewal. Given their strong abilities, they have the potential to continue making an impact in the K-pop scene."

However, Kim Do-hun expressed that "While their chart performance is one aspect, it is important to address the lack of standout representative songs for Stray Kids. Being famous does not necessarily mean becoming a renowned group. If they produce a representative track, it could become a significant milestone in their career."


original post: here

1. Their domestic fandom is actually quite strong, but the general public isn't listening to them... If they had one tall visual member, they might be able to appeal the general public, but the current version of Stray Kids would've never emerge

2. Honestly, it's because of their SV issue
> That's true... After that issue, I left the fandom... I can overlook a lot of things, but not SV 

3. This doesn't only apply to Stray Kids, there are a lot of cases where if their international popularity is too high, it becomes hard for them to seize the domestic market. Just from the way you fangirl, it's totally different, and since the audience is unbalanced on one side, all their contents and schedules will be different too 

4. From the point of saying that Stray Kids is famous just for being a famous group, it's clear that they don't know much about them

5. I don't get the overemphasis on their popularity. As long as they stay focus on music, they'll succeed

6. It's because they're not using the usual "know-how" (t/n: aka chart manipulation) 

7. They're kind of a luxurious version of "experimental sound"? When I heard their songs in a Shorts, I thought "Oh~ The vocals are good?" and kept listening to it, but then suddenly they went "Waaaeeek Woo-woo-woo Aaahhh!" and I just turned it off

8. It's because of the ... SV. That's the biggest fandom entry wall for our country 


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