10 K-Pop Groups Whose Songs Rose On The Charts As “Sleeper Hits”
With so many K-Pop bops being released, a lot of songs tend to fall under the radar and don’t perform as well. But some of them do eventually find their way up the charts, and become hit songs- hence the term “sleeper hit”! Here are 10 songs that were sleeper hits, and ended up becoming super famous and loved by all!
1. “Up And Down” (EXID)
“Up And Down” by EXID was released on August 27, 2014. Initially performing poorly, the song eventually rose up on the charts, becoming a public favorite for its catchy tune and sexy choreography! The song instantly gained fame when a fancam of Hani performing the choreography went viral, eventually leading the group to re-promote the song on music shows and getting them their first win on January 8, 2015!
2. “Bboom Bboom” (MOMOLAND)
“Bboom Bboom” by MOMOLAND was released in January 2018 as the title track of their third mini-album titled Great!. The song was a sleeper hit, peaking at number 2 on the Gaon Digital Chart in late February, almost 2 months after its initial release, and was nominated for first place for nearly 12 weeks straight on SBS’s Inkigayo!
3. “Rollin” (Brave Girls)
“Rollin’ is a song by Brave Girls released on March 7, 2017, as the title track of their mini-album of the same name. Upon its release, it achieved moderate success, with the album peaking at number 30 on the Gaon Album Chart. It was not until February 2021 when the song received a resurgence in popularity, climbing to its current number one position on the charts! On March 5, Brave Brothers announced that the girl group would be re-promoting the song on music shows, and will hopefully win them their first music show win, 10 years after their debut!
4. “Shine” (PENTAGON)
“Shine” by PENTAGON was released as the title track of their sixth mini-album Positive, on April 2, 2018. Initially charting mediocrely, the song eventually climbed the charts in the month of May, and peaked at number 27 on the Gaon chart as a certified sleeper hit! The song was eventually shared and covered by multiple idols, proving its incredible popularity!
5. “Rooftop” (N.Flying)
“Rooftop” by N.Flying was released as a digital single in January 2019. It charted poorly at first and remained that way throughout the entire length of the group’s music show promotions. In early March, however, the song exploded in popularity after an anonymous user shared it on an online community, and topped the charts for weeks! This led them to re-promote the song on music shows, and on March 5, won their first-ever music show win since debut!
6. “Hello” (NU’EST)
NU’EST released “Hello” as a five-member group on February 13, 2013, as the title track of their second mini-album of the same name. It charted poorly upon its release, but after NU’EST’s appearance on Produce 101 Season 2 and subsequent burst in popularity, reappeared on charts in June 2017, taking the number 1 spot on Genie’s real-time charts! As Minhyun was promoting as a member of Wanna One at the time, the remaining 4 members re-promoted “Hello” on music shows as 4-member subunit NU’EST W, and the song was even nominated for a first-place win!
7. “Like OOH-AHH” (TWICE)
“Like OOH-AHH” by TWICE served as their debut song released in October 2015 as the title track of their first mini-album The Story Begins. Initially charting at number 22 on Gaon’s Digital Chart, it later peaked at number 10, 3 months later!
8. “Bar Bar Bar” (Crayon Pop)
“Bar Bar Bar” by Crayon Pop was released on June 20, 2013, as a digital single. It first entered charts at number 143, but experienced a huge surge in popularity, making it a viral sensation, and “Bar Bar Bar” finally peaked at number 3 on the Gaon charts, 7 weeks after its initial release!
9. “Oppaya” (SEENROOT)
“Oppaya” is a single released by duo SEENROOT in February 2015. Initially flying under the radar, the song became an instant hit when 2 years later, an AfreecaTV BJ sang it on a live stream, and the song gained 1 million downloads in 2017! The song also found its way to Weekly Idol, where numerous idols covered the song in their own aegyo-filled ways!
10. “Expectation” (Girl’s Day)
“Expect” is the title track of Girl’s Day’s first full-length album titled Expectation, and the song proved to be a sleeper hit, and also one of their most popular tracks!
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