Music

NCT is a South Korean boy band formed and managed by SM Entertainment. Introduced in January 2016, the group currently consists of 23 members and divided into five different sub-units: NCT U, NCT 127, NCT Dream, WayV, and NCT DoJaeJung. They are notable for their versatility in music, vocal and rap abilities, and powerful performances, and have been cited as K-pop's "most experimental boy band" due to their concept of having limitless members. As of January 2023, NCT has recorded more than 27 million album sales across all sub-units, making them the best-selling act under SM Entertainment and one of the best-selling K-pop artists of all-time.

Kim Jong-hyun (April 8, 1990 – December 18, 2017), known mononymously as Jonghyun, was a South Korean singer-songwriter, record producer, radio host, and author under the SM Entertainment label. He was the main vocalist of the South Korean boy band Shinee for nine years, releasing twelve albums with the group in both Korean and Japanese. He also participated in SM Entertainment's project group, SM the Ballad, for the release of two EP albums.

Jonghyun was also a solo artist, beginning in January 2015 with the release of his first EP album, Base. It peaked at number one on both the Billboard World Albums Chart and the Gaon Album Chart. On September 17 the same year, Jonghyun released a compilation album, Story Op.1. His debut studio album, She Is, was released on May 24, 2016, followed by his second compilation album, Story Op.2, on April 24, 2017. Jonghyun began his first solo concert tour, The Story by Jonghyun, on October 2, 2015. This was followed by three further concert tours in later years. He was regarded as one of the best vocalists in South Korea. He also received praise for his artistic control and involvement in the creation of his music, which are rare in K-pop.

Exo (Korean: 엑소; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean-Chinese boy band based in Seoul, consisting of nine members: Xiumin, Suho, Lay, Baekhyun, Chen, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai and Sehun. The band was formed by SM Entertainment in 2011 and debuted in 2012. Their music—released and performed in Korean, Mandarin, and Japanese—primarily incorporates pop, hip-hop, and R&B, including elements of electronic dance music genres such as house and trap. The band ranked as one of the top five most influential celebrities on the Forbes Korea Power Celebrity list from 2014 to 2018 and have been labeled "Kings of K-pop" and the "Biggest boyband in the world" by various media outlets.

The band debuted with twelve members separated into two sub-groups: Exo-K (Suho, Baekhyun, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai, and Sehun) and Exo-M (Xiumin, Lay, Chen, and former members Kris, Luhan, and Tao). Kris, Luhan, and Tao departed the group individually amid legal battles in 2014 and 2015. Exo-K and Exo-M performed music in Korean and Mandarin, respectively, until the release of their third EP Overdose in 2014. Since 2014, Exo have exclusively performed as one group while continuing to release and perform music in multiple languages. Members Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin debuted as the sub-unit Exo-CBX in 2016, and members Sehun and Chanyeol began promoting as the sub-unit Exo-SC in 2019. Each member also maintains solo careers in music, film and television.

AOA is a South Korean girl group formed by FNC Entertainment. The original 2012 eight-member line-up included: Choa, Jimin, Yuna, Youkyung, Hyejeong, Mina, Seolhyun and Chanmi. Youkyung left the group in 2016, while Choa left in 2017 due to mental health reasons, followed by Mina in 2019 to pursue her acting career, and Jimin in 2020 due to bullying allegations. Yuna and Seolhyun left in 2021 and 2022 respectively after their contracts expired. The group currently consists of the duo Hyejeong and Chanmi.

BtoB ( BEE-too-bee; Korean: 비투비; acronym for Born to Beat; often stylized as BTOB) is a South Korean boy band formed in 2012 by Cube Entertainment. The group consists of Seo Eun-kwang, Lee Min-hyuk, Lee Chang-sub, Im Hyun-sik, Peniel Shin and Yook Sung-jae. Originally a septet, Jung Il-hoon departed from the group on December 31, 2020.

BtoB debuted on March 21, 2012, performing "Insane" (비밀) and "Imagine" on M Countdown. The group's debut EP, Born to Beat was released on April 3, 2012. They released their first full-length album, Complete, in June 2015. In November 2014, they made their Japanese debut with "Wow" under the Japanese agency Kiss Entertainment.

Since the group's 2012 debut, they have received multiple awards, including the 30th Golden Disc Awards Best Vocal Group in 2016, 2017 Melon Music Awards Top 10 Bonsang and 25th Seoul Music Awards Ballad Award in 2018. Five of their albums topped the Gaon Album Chart, and nine of their singles peaked in top ten on the national Gaon Digital Chart.

NU'EST was a South Korean boy band formed and managed by Pledis Entertainment. The group consisted of five members: JR, Aron, Baekho, Minhyun and Ren. They debuted on March 15, 2012, with the single titled "Face". The group disbanded on March 15, 2022, after Aron, JR, and Ren left Pledis Entertainment upon the completion of their 10-year contract.

Lee Tae-min, better known mononymously as Taemin, is a South Korean singer, actor, and dancer. He debuted as a member of the boy band Shinee in May 2008 and the supergroup SuperM in 2019, both under SM Entertainment, and has subsequently been labeled by media outlets as the "Idol's Idol" due to the large number of idols citing him as an inspiration. As an actor, Taemin's first role was as Junsu in the 2009 MBC comedy Tae-Hee, Hye-Kyo, Ji-Hyun.

Exo is a South Korean-Chinese boy band based in Seoul formed by SM Entertainment in 2011 and debuted in 2012. The group consists of nine members: Xiumin, Suho, Lay, Baekhyun, Chen, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai and Sehun. They are noted for releasing music and performing extensively in Korean, Mandarin and Japanese.

Lee Ha-yi (Korean: 이하이; born September 23, 1996), known by her stage name Lee Hi, is a South Korean singer and songwriter, who is best known as the runner-up of SBS' K-pop Star Season 1. She debuted with single "1, 2, 3, 4" on October 28, 2012 and reached number one with first week sales of 667,549 downloads. Her first full-length album First Love was released in two parts, part 1 on March 7, 2013 and part 2 on March 28, 2013.

Lee Ha-yi was born on September 23, 1996 in Bucheon, South Korea. In December 2011, Lee auditioned for SBS reality survival program K-pop Star, where she finished as runner-up behind Park Ji-min. Soon after she was signed to YG Entertainment by Yang Hyun-suk. Ahead of her debut, she was featured on label mate Epik High's single "It's Cold", which was released on October 8, 2012.

Day6 (Korean: 데이식스; RR: De-i-sik-seu; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean pop rock band under the label JYP Entertainment. The group debuted on September 7, 2015, with the EP The Day, which peaked at No.2 on Billboard's World Album Chart a week following its release. The band consists of four members: Sungjin, Young K, Wonpil and Dowoon. Originally a six-piece band, Junhyeok departed in February 2016 and Jae departed on December 31, 2021. All of the Day6 members are heavily involved in writing, composing and producing the band's music.

In 2017, the band released two songs every month of the year for their Every Day6 project. By the end of the project, 25 songs were added to their discography, with genres ranging from hard rock and upbeat sing-a-longs to mellow ballads. Their first full-length album, Sunrise, consisted of songs released in the first half of the Every Day6 project. It was number 14 on Billboard's The 25 Greatest K-Pop Albums of the 2010s: Staff List, and the project kick-off song "I Wait" was placed No.81 on Billboard's The 100 Greatest K-Pop Songs of the 2010s: Staff List.

B.A.P was a South Korean boy band formed in 2012 under TS Entertainment.

NCT #127 is the first extended play by NCT 127, the multi-national and Seoul-based sub unit of the unlimited boy band NCT. Following its announcement on July 1, SM Entertainment released it on July 10, 2016, with physical release on July 11, 2016. A heavily hip-hop and EDM influenced release, NCT #127 had the participation of the production team LDN Noise, Tay Jasper, Ylva Dimberg, Chris Wahle, Andreas Öberg, Timothy 'Bos' Bullock, Adrian McKinnon, MZMC, The Colleagues, Double Dragon, and others for both lyrics and production, while SM's founder, Lee Soo-man, ws the EP's executive producer. With this release, NCT 127 became the first sub-unit to receive a major release. It was also the first and, currently, the only release of the group as a septet.

Highlight (Korean: 하이라이트) is a South Korean boy band formerly known as Beast (Korean: 비스트). The band consists of four members: Yoon Doo-joon, Yang Yo-seob, Lee Gi-kwang, and Son Dong-woon. Original member Jang Hyun-seung officially left the group in April 2016, and Yong Jun-hyung left in March 2019. In late 2016, the group moved labels from Cube Entertainment to Around Us Entertainment and subsequently changed their name to Highlight in 2017.

As Beast, the group released three Korean full-length albums, nine Korean mini-albums, two Japanese full-length albums, and numerous singles. The group debuted in 2009 with the mini-album, Beast Is the B2ST. In 2011, they released their first full-length album, Fiction and Fact, and made their Japanese debut with the single, "Shock" (Japanese Version). As Highlight, the group debuted in 2017 with the mini-album, Can You Feel It?.

Monsta X is a South Korean boy group formed through the reality survival program No.Mercy under Starship Entertainment. The group is currently composed of six members: Shownu, Minhyuk, Kihyun, Hyungwon, Joohoney and I.M, with former member Wonho having left the group in October 2019.

Henry Lau (Chinese: 劉憲華; born October 11, 1989), commonly referred to mononymously as Henry, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, actor, entertainer and classical violinist based in South Korea and China. He debuted in 2008 as a member of Super Junior-M and launched his solo career in 2013 with Trap. His original soundtrack "It's You" released in 2017 became the #1 top-streamed Korean OST on Spotify for two consecutive years in 2018 and 2019.

Henry made his Hollywood debut in 2019 with the film A Dog's Journey produced by Amblin Entertainment, the sequel to the 2017 film A Dog's Purpose. In 2020, the action/fantasy movie “Double World” nominated for "Best Visual Effects" and "Best Action Choreography" at the 39th Hong Kong Film Award starring Henry premiered on Netflix and China’s streaming service iQiyi, becoming the first movie in mainland China's film history to achieve simultaneous global release.

Winner is a South Korean boy band consisting of four members: Jinu, Hoony, Mino and Seungyoon. The band was formed in 2013 by YG Entertainment through Mnet's survival program WIN: Who Is Next leading to their official debut on August 17, 2014, with studio album 2014 S/S. Originally a five-piece band, Taehyun, departed from the group in November 2016 for his mental health and well-being. Upon their debut, The Korea Herald cited their immediate success as "unprecedented" for a new group, thus dubbed as "Monster rookies". Winner is often cited as a "self-producing" band with all members actively taking on roles from producing and choreographing to designing and marketing. The band also earned the titles "Trust and Listen" alongside "Kings of Summer" by media outlets and the general public through releases.

NCT Dream (Korean: 엔시티 드림) is the third sub-unit of the South Korean boy band NCT, formed by SM Entertainment in 2016. They were initially intended to be the teenaged unit of NCT with an admission-and-graduation system, in which members would leave after reaching age of majority (20 in Korean age reckoning, 19 internationally), prior to re-branding in 2020. The sub-unit debuted on August 25, 2016, with the single "Chewing Gum" and a lineup of seven members—Mark, Renjun, Jeno, Haechan, Jaemin, Chenle, and Jisung—whose average age was 15.6 years old. In late 2018, the group's leader Mark graduated from NCT Dream but returned in 2020 when began promoting as a fixed seven-member group.