The Girls’ Generation

The Girls’ Generation - K-pop Sensation

The Girls’ Generation (also known as SNSD) are a South Korean girl group with remarkable popularity in both their native country and Japan. Initially formed in 2007 by SM Entertainment, the group is made up of members Taeyon, Jessica, Sunny, Tiffany, Hyoyeon, Yuri, Sooyoung, Yoona, and Seohyun. Initially, the girls moved into a shared apartment and began rehearsing their music and choreography, as detailed in the documentary “Girls’ Generation Goes To School.” This documentary also gives interviews with the members and details the tribulations and experiences they went through to reach their performance standard.

Their debut single “Into the New World” served as an introduction to the group, reaching #1 on MNet’s M! Countdown and selling over 100,000 copies. 2008 saw the release of their first self-titled album and the hit “Kissing You” which reached #1 on SBS’s Music Trend, Mnet’s M! Countdown and KBS’s Music Bank. They also held a contest in which artists and fans could remix the song for inclusion on future releases.

The following year, Girls’ Generation had a major hit with the up-tempo song “Gee” rapidly reaching #1 on multiple charts and setting a record for longest-running #1 hit on KBS’s Music Bank after 9 weeks at the top. The group made multiple music videos for the song and it also became a big hit in neighboring Japan and has millions of views on Youtube.

After a short hiatus, the group returned with particularly high success in Japan with the hit song “Tell Me Your Wish (Genie)” and a new military-flavored look. The following January, their second full-length album, “Oh!” and it’s self-titled track were very successful commercially. The popular music videos for “Oh!” and the follow-up hit “Run Devil Run” tell a story of the girls meeting a darker, malevolent version of themselves known as “Black SoShi.”

October 2010 saw the release of the hit “Hoot” and their reception of several awards and achievements, including Artist of the Year accolades from various groups and publications. In 2011, the girls were listed #1 Power Celebrity by Forbes Korea and are currently preparing to release the double A-side single “Mr. Taxi/Run Devil Run” in Japan.