Is K-pop's underdog dream over now?

BTS’s ascent to global superstardom remains the defining example of what K-pop calls the "small-agency miracle" — a cathartic underdog story of an inconspicuous startup label beating the odds in a notoriously cutthroat industry.

More than a dozen years after the megaband’s debut, however, such a rise seems less like a blueprint than a myth now.

Amid growing doubts about whether a K-pop group can still build itself from the ground up, Wayf Boys, the first act launched by startup label Wayf, made its debut on Aug. 7.

The five-member act, which describes itself as the first generation of "Nu K-pop," is about as grassroots as K-pop gets in an industry where even the rough edges are carefully curated — with all members taking part in creating the music, choreography, artwork, styling, content and promotions.

"'Nu K-pop' refers less to creating an entirely new genre of music than to the way artists and the company make and promote music," Wayf founder and producer Son Sung-ho, also known as Czaer, told the Korea JoongAng Daily. “Rather than presenting the image of a fully formed idol as if it were the one right answer, we want to show the process of the five members freely working things out and growing together as a crew.”

Wayf Boys joined K-pop’s rookie roster amid mounting warnings from industry insiders that the odds are increasingly stacked against small agencies.

Yet survival for K-pop’s underdogs may no longer depend on producing another once-in-a-generation breakthrough — or a music miracle. In a global market larger but more fragmented than ever, smaller acts are testing whether a distinct identity — and the audience it can attract — can offer another way forward.

Bigger market, wider divide

K-pop has never been bigger. Then why are smaller agencies louder than ever in voicing their struggles?

The answer, according to the industry insiders, lies in the widening divide reshaping the ecosystem.

K-pop’s rapid global expansion has pushed production standards, as well as costs, higher. Producing a release polished enough to compete with those from industry giants such as HYBE now requires far greater investment, while the battle for attention and visibility in an increasingly crowded global market has driven up marketing expenses as well.

The figure commonly cited for the capital required to launch a group today ranges between 7 billion won and 10 billion won ($5 million and $7.2 billion). Average costs have risen seven or eight times from prepandemic levels, according to Kim Jin-woo, the CEO of the entertainment company RBW.

“Developing a rookie act isn’t like what it used to be,” Kim said during a panel discussion at the MWM Conference in western Seoul on Sept. 4. “The industry has become so polarized that the scale of spending by major companies on marketing and production is simply beyond what small and midsize companies can match.”

Evolution of miracle

Yet new agencies and acts continue to enter the business, and some underdogs are finding ways not merely to survive but to thrive.

That tension lies at the heart of K-pop’s changing economics, as global expansion has made it more expensive for small companies to compete on the industry’s traditional terms, but it has also created a vast and increasingly diverse audience that distinctive acts can reach without first becoming mainstream hits in Korea.

The question, then, may be less whether the small-agency miracle is fading than whether it is taking a different form in finding a more specific audience overseas.

Chung Chang-yun, a producer known as Andnew and the founder and CEO of the music publishing company Salpot Music Group, suggests that small agencies still have a chance in the current climate precisely because the landscape has changed.

“Musical genres have now become so diverse, with everyone trying to find something special within that diversity, and small companies can showcase distinctive qualities — not only musically but also visually — that large companies are not able to attempt,” he told the Korea JoongAng Daily.

Chung sees originality as the strongest weapon available to small agencies.

“What matters is having a unique identity — something sharper,” he said, adding that even somewhat controversial concepts and authenticity can help set a group apart. For long-term survival, he added, “You must not try to follow the major agencies.”

Groups with ‘something sharper’

Chung cites XLOV as one of the prime examples of such innovation.

XLOV, K-pop’s first self-described “genderless” act, debuted in January of last year under 257 Entertainment, which was acquired by RBW earlier this year and rebranded to Strange Lab. The act has been garnering significant traction particularly overseas, with its latest EP, “I, God,” selling over 220,000 copies in its first week and making Billboard's "25 Best K-pop Albums of 2026, So Far" list.

“Because the quality of the many platforms and channels has improved and global interest in K-pop has risen sharply, I think fans who relate to and like a particular concept and identity can more easily discover and connect with the act through searches when its concept, identity and direction are distinctive and clear,” Park Jae-yong, the CEO of Strange Lab, told the Korea JoongAng Daily.

“So I think there are far more opportunities to build a fandom than in the past.”

High costs definitely remain a serious challenge for small agencies with limited resources, Park noted, but he also added that those constraints pushed XLOV to think more creatively.

“We had to differentiate ourselves through ideas precisely because we lacked funding and resources, and also had to find resources that suited us and could set us apart within a limited budget,” he said, adding that such a process made the team grow more close-knit.

Wayf Boys, fresh off the starting line, has recently signed with Universal Music Group-backed Interscope Records for U.S. promotions, and has so far gained 1.29 million followers on Instagram, a notable growth from its recent launch.

"To be honest, we did not begin with a strategic focus on either 'small agencies need to target a particular market' or 'how should we differentiate ourselves from major agencies,'" said Wayf’s Son. "We did know, however, that we could not simply follow how major agencies operate, and we did not want to do so in the first place."

Son acknowledged that rising costs have hit smaller agencies especially hard, not only in production but also in marketing, yet also stressed that the opportunity has expanded thanks to overseas success of established acts.

“Ultimately, I believe this is an era in which the capital gap has widened, but at the same time, the possibility of reaching overseas fans directly has also grown, provided you have good music and a clearly defined identity,” he said. “I believe what matters is clearly showing who you are rather than taking a contrived niche-market strategy.”

BY SHIN HA-NEE [[email protected]]