7 K-Pop Groups with 'Rookie Grand Slam' Achievements, Here's Their Struggle Story

Kapanlagi.com - The K-Pop industry is known as one of the most competitive, with new groups emerging every year. Each group comes with its own concept, music genre, and charm, striving to capture public attention and prestigious awards at various events.

Among the various awards, the title of ‘Rookie of the Year’ is one of the most sought after. However, only a handful of groups have managed to win this award at all major events and achieve the prestigious title of ‘Rookie Grand Slam’. Here are the groups that have succeeded in achieving it:

1. SHINee, Paving the Way for ‘Rookie Grand Slam’ in K-Pop

credit: https://www.instagram.com/shinee/

SHINee debuted in 2008 and immediately captured attention with their hit single "Replay". With a unique concept and stunning choreography, the group managed to rank at the top of the Korean charts, even selling over 17 thousand copies at the start of their debut.

SHINee's journey to the title 'Rookie Grand Slam' began by winning the Rookie of the Year award at five major music award shows: Melon Music Awards, Mnet Asian Music Awards, Golden Disk Awards, Circle Chart Music Awards, and Seoul Music Awards. To this day, they are still remembered as pioneers of rookie group success in the K-Pop industry.

2. iKON, Shaking Up K-Pop in 2015 with Debut Album ‘Welcome Back’

credit: https://www.instagram.com/withikonic/

In 2015, iKON became the second rookie group to sweep the Best New Artist award at five major events. Under YG Entertainment, iKON presented music with a different style, which quickly dominated the Gaon Album Chart and reached the second position on the Billboard’s World Albums Chart.

iKON's debut album titled Welcome Back marked the beginning of this significant achievement, followed by songs that became popular on Korean charts. This accomplishment proved that they deserved the title of Rookie Grand Slam after SHINee.

3. Wanna One, Instant Popularity Thanks to the Success of ‘Produce 101’

credit: https://www.instagram.com/wannaone.official/

Wanna One, the group formed from the popular survival show Produce 101 Season 2, skyrocketed after their debut in 2017. They shook the industry with their mini album 1X1=1 (TO BE ONE), which sold over 733 thousand copies, with the song Energetic dominating the Korean charts.

In a short time, Wanna One achieved the Rookie Grand Slam title and swept the Best New Artist award at all major events. Unfortunately, their contract ended in December 2018, making their journey short but full of achievements.

4. ITZY, First Girl Group to Achieve the Title of ‘Rookie Grand Slam’

credit: https://www.instagram.com/itzy.all.in.us/

ITZY debuted in 2019 with the single “Dalla Dalla” which immediately topped the Korean music charts. Known as "rookie monsters," they quickly set records and received platinum certification from the Korea Music Content Association (KMCA).

As the first girl group to achieve Rookie Grand Slam, ITZY brings a new color to the K-Pop industry. This title signifies recognition of their significant influence in the K-Pop industry despite being newly debuted.

5. TXT, Successful in Becoming the Second Boy Group in History to Achieve Rookie Grand Slam

credit: https://www.instagram.com/txt_bighit/

TXT, a boy group that debuted under Big Hit Entertainment in 2019, started their career with the title track ‘Crown’. The song immediately broke records by topping the Billboard Emerging Artists chart and ranking on the Billboard 200.

This success led them to win rookie awards at five major events, making TXT the fastest K-Pop group to achieve this feat after ITZY. Their brilliant debut positioned TXT as rookie icons in the K-Pop industry.

6. aespa, a Girl Group with a Unique Futuristic Concept

credit: https://www.instagram.com/aespa_official/

The group under SM Entertainment, aespa, successfully achieved the title of Rookie Grand Slam in early 2022 after winning Best New Artist at various events. Their debut featured a futuristic concept with popular songs like “Black Mamba” and “Next Level” that stood out on the Korean digital charts.

With a unique concept that had never been seen before, aespa successfully dominated the K-Pop stage and solidified their position as one of the most successful rookies.

7. ZEROBASEONE, Rapid Debut and Fastest Rookie Grand Slam Achievement

credit: https://www.instagram.com/zb1official/

ZEROBASEONE is the newest K-Pop group that managed to achieve the title of Rookie Grand Slam within months of their debut in July 2023. Originating from the survival program Boy Planet, they set a record for debut album sales with over 1.2 million copies.

They completed this title after winning Rookie of the Year at the Circle Chart Music Awards, marking a significant achievement for a rookie group that has just debuted.

8. What is the Rookie Grand Slam title in K-Pop?

Rookie Grand Slam is a prestigious title awarded to K-Pop groups that successfully win the ‘Best New Artist’ or ‘Rookie of the Year’ award at five major Korean music award shows.

9. Why do only a few groups achieve Rookie Grand Slam?

Achieving Rookie Grand Slam is difficult because each group must win the rookie award at all five major shows, which have strict evaluation standards and high competition.

What do KLOvers think about this? Come on, write in the comments! If not now, when?

(kpl/vna)