Four years after their debut, Brave Girls has finally reached the top of the music chart. This notable feat was achieved with their 2017 release “Rollin’,” which has garnered massive attention and created new interest in the group. Their success in this regard can be attributed to YouTube, where their hit song was exposed to the masses. However, despite what seems to be a sudden success, Brave Girls have always been popular ― albeit with a different audience: the Korean military. This popularity now reaching the general public, Brave Girls is experiencing a turnaround in their careers.
After their song “Rollin’” topped Korea’s music charts, the members of Brave Girls were unanimous in stating that they were very grateful for all the attention. One of the group members, Minyeong, personally mentioned that this bout of big love from the fans helped her and her fellow teammates to perform once more, something that she was sure would have been hard to do with the group’s once looming disbandment. Yujeong, another member of Brave Girls, thanked the group’s supporters in the military and in the workforce. She also thanked the Brave Brothers, the producers who supported the group despite many doubts that they would succeed in the public sphere.
Brave Girls was initially a seven-member Korean pop (K-pop) girl group formed in 2011. Although they did show up in a couple of domestic TV shows, they failed to gain lasting attraction. After undergoing several member changes to become the current Brave Girls, they began to perform continuously for military personnel, giving hit performances for soldiers. Their success story began four years after the group’s reorganization, becoming well-known in military circles from 2015 to 2020. Their popularity had even claimed themselves a position of the best *Gun-Tong-Lyeong*, a specific word that denotes celebrities specifically popular in the military.
Despite continued attention from this subsection of audiences, public awareness of this group remained at a continued low, leading to serious contemplation about whether to disband the group completely. Their worries, however, were assuaged when they were suddenly spotlighted due a viral comment collection video posted by Viditor. Thanks to this exposure, Brave Girls’ popularity grew so exponentially that just a few weeks afterwards, they re-released their all-time favourite song Rollin’ and took the top place in tracks nationwide.
“Rollin’,” a critical aspect of Brave Girls’ rise to fame, was originally released in 2017 but lacked the momentum to gain instant popularity. However, this song was consistently lauded as a high-quality work by many K-pop fans, most of whom believed that this song would receive critical acclaim once exposed to public attention. This assessment is not unearned, as it is a brilliant song that brightens up the room with its upbeat tune. Furthermore, the lyrics are relatable and at the same time, unique enough to warrant the attention of the majority.
Brave Girls, despite the talent they possess, were initially overlooked. With the help of YouTube’s algorithm and social media’s speed, Brave Girls were able to make the much appreciated comeback they deserved. While they have not yet revealed any concrete plans for the future, it seems clear they will remain in the public sphere as advertisement models and celebrities. No longer worried about disbanding the group, let us hope that they will continue releasing fantastic tracks for more public attention.
