Ranking: Best Male Rookie Group

 New little segment which I will just refer as to "K-Pop Ranking". It is where I rank video on different categories. The first will be Best Male Rookie Group for the First Half of 2012. Let's see how this first one goes.

So many groups have debuted in the first half of this year alone. The ones that have caught my eye have been the males where many of them seem to have done really well and got a lot of attention this years. It seems like 2012 is the year of the rookies. They seem like they shouldn't even be on this list because they just seem like they have experience and confidence in their music videos and performance, not so much on variety because some of them still seem a little awkward. These are the groups that have debuted in the first half of this year:

A-JAX - One 4 U --- June 2
B.A.P. - Warrior --- January 27
BTOB - Insane --- March 22
ChAOS - She Is Coming --- January 5
CROSS GENE - La-Di Da-Di --- June 14
EXO-K - MAMA --- April 8
JJ Project - Bounce --- May 24
NU'EST - Face --- March 15
VIXX - Super Hero --- May 24

All the group are great but I am only making a list of who I think the top 5 groups are from the first half of this year. This just my opinion where I am trying to be unbiased where I am also taking to account the success of each group and amount of recognition. Also one thing to add is that I'm only basing this during their promotion of their first single, and I'll try not to include other singles (but for EXO that might be hard but really they aren't singles so I can include it, right?).

Number 5
VIXX - Super Hero

I think picking who number 5 was the hardest to chose because it was the last groups that will land a spot on the list. In the end I think VIXX was appropriate group to take the spot. I think they lacked recognition maybe because most of the other groups come from established companies but I do think VIXX made a great debut. There single "Super Hero" is a very catchy song but I think it was overshadowed by other groups promoting at the same time. They have some really strong vocals with Leo and Ken you can recognize some of those strong vocals in "Super Hero" but I think the song didn't show it off. I think the most notable member of VIXX is Ravi the rapper of the group. He has been recognized for his talent by others celebrities too. Is it only me or does Ravi seem like an interbreed of B1A4's Baro and B.A.P.'s Bang Yang Guk. That was the first thing I thought and it is not a bad thing because all 3 have really good rapping skills and abs. Of course they must have gain popularity because they were chosen by the public through the TV program Mydol. So I would think that they would have the talent and looks.  One last thing, I like robot but it is hard to draw.

Number 4
NU'EST - Face

 

One of my favorite songs so far this year and I have good reason is NU'EST with "Face" (not being bias). The song is meaningful and not just a love song or nonsense. Catchy and with a message this is how songs should be done and not just trying to make a song to gain with no point to them except a good beat. I also like how they incorporate the message in the dance as well where they throw punches but also left a person after getting hot, Aww. They got attention by how feminine member Ren looks. I was one of them. They have a really good performances and the visuals to go along with it. We have fierce, cute, charismatic, strong, and American... just kidding a cool laid back look. They have many qualities to admire and have a lot of anticipation of what will come out next from these guys. I think they are ones to watch to see how they progress.

Number 3

JJ Project - Bounce

The group that got a lot of recognition with their debut on YouTube is the duo group coming out of JYPE, it is JJ Project. Much of that fame comes from the fact that they acted in the drama Dream High 2 but also the extremely catchy and fun song. I really like rock musicand to include a little rock and roll snippet into the song made me like the song more. I think what got them to number 3 spot is the attention they got on YouTube where they were #4 Most Liked, #10 Most Viewed, #7 Most Discussed, and #4 Most Favorited video WORLDWIDE. I think that is impressive. What I like is that the song is just a fun song to listen to. I think also what is impressive is that it is just two guys that were able to do this they don't need 12 members that is just ridiculous.

Number 2

EXO-K - MAMA

Maybe it isn't ridiculous to have 12 members because they made it to number 2. Why? Well, it is because after 23 teasers and 2 prologue singles, which feel like real singles, they officially debut with MAMA. All thanks to SM they were widely promoted and got attention by being divided into two groups that promotes in both Korea and China. Also they did a lot of promotion. By a lot of promotion I mean a lot of performances. If you didn't notice or know they did 3 months of promotion for their one single MAMA. There goodbye stage was on June 16! Come on why so long. Maybe because they're still awkward being themselves in front of a camera that SM decided they are better off just dancing and singing. With so many bands promoting now they just took away their time slot. But up until now they have had the most album sells of any rookie band.

Before I announce number 1, even though I know everyone probably knows who it will be, I'll say a few things about the groups that didn't make it first off ChAOS I almost didn't remember them and heard their name tossed around really little. I liked their song with a funk sound to it but it got lost in the pack. Sorry to say ChAOS didn't make that much of an impact. A-JAX had a nice song nothing to catch someones attention. They were lucky to have had a cool music video which helped them. One memorable thing about them is the move where they directly fall on their backs but it also seems painful. All I think is hospitalization and back braces. Luckliy, they only did it a few times then changed it. CROSS GENE is remembered as the group that has Korean, Japanese, and Chinese members in one group with a catchy song and known for their awkward dance. What helped push them was the fact that they had Shin and Takuya who were already well known to the public. They didn't make an impact like some of the other groups but have potential. BTOB would have been the other group that I would have mentioned to the list but at the same time I don't think they did much out of the ordinary. Also I felt like Eunkwang was the only real member that stuck out for his vocals, or maybe because of the hair, and the rest of the members seemed okay. I think their other single afterwards were better and showed more talent I like all these groups so don't get me wrong. I was inputting opinions of the public too which means there would have been more about sells and popularity of these groups which there wasn't much even after doing a little research.

NUMBER 1

B.A.P. - WARRIOR

I think this group made the biggest impact of any of the other group since their debut. A group that comes from TS Entertainment, the same company as Secret, which is surprising that they did not come from the Big 3 and made a big impact.  The strong and badass look completely made them stick out from the others... also how they all had matching hair. For being a rookie they are already known for their great stage performances by sunbae groups. Impressive. What sets them apart is great vocals, rapping, visuals, dancing, and personality. No one can negate the incredible rapping skills. Yongguk and Zelo both have their own rapping style which adds to the song perfectly. The vocals, Daehyun, Himchan, and Youngjae add great support to this aggressive song which oddly sounds good. Jongup and Zelo dancing isn't too notice but many can see that they have the ability. This is one of the groups that I can say have good personalities where they seem fun to hang around which contradicts how they are on stage. Warrior was an instant hit. This is the rookie group all other kpop groups need to careful of not only the rookies. No doubt these guys will achieve a rookie group award.

Well that is my list. You can disagree but I think this really is an appropriate list...except number 5 that is still debatable. The next one will be against the Top 3 companies; SM, JYPE, and YG. Each have their main group(s) making a comeback at the same time. The next one will be a full on battle with Super Junior, TTS, Big Bang, 2NE1, and Wonder Girls. Any suggestion who should be number 1?