These are three groups the kpop-fandom editors have followed since the blog began. Each took a different road: one built by a survival show, one that came up through a small agency and long tours, and one that walked away from its label and kept the name. Below are the key facts, a short history and five songs for each, updated to October 2026.
ATEEZ debut date and key facts
ATEEZ debuted on 24 October 2018 with the EP Treasure EP.1: All to Zero, released by KQ Entertainment with two lead singles, "Pirate King" and "Treasure". Before debut, the eight members trained and performed together as KQ Fellaz.
- Debut date24 October 2018
- Debut releaseTreasure EP.1: All to Zero, lead singles "Pirate King" and "Treasure"
- LabelKQ Entertainment then and now. All eight members renewed their contracts for another seven years in July 2025.
- MembersHongjoong (leader), Seonghwa, Yunho, Yeosang, San, Mingi, Wooyoung, Jongho
- Fandom nameATINY
ATEEZ: from rookies to Billboard 200 regulars
The Treasure series set up a pirate storyline that ran through their early years, and touring abroad from their first year gave them an overseas audience unusually early for a group from a mid-sized agency. The Zero: Fever and The World series followed. In December 2023, The World EP.Fin: Will became their first No. 1 on the US Billboard 200.
In April 2024 they played Coachella on both weekends, the first K-pop boy group to perform at the festival. The Golden Hour series started in May 2024 and has defined the past two years. Golden Hour: Part.2 gave them a second Billboard 200 No. 1 that November, and Golden Hour: Part.5, led by "Bad", gave them a third in July 2026 with 228,000 units, their best US week so far. They headlined BST Hyde Park in London in June 2026, and Golden Hour: Part.6 is due on 13 November 2026.
In February 2026 Seonghwa, the oldest member, said each of them would enlist when the time came and that the renewed contracts mean the group plans to stay together through it.
- "Pirate King" (2018)The debut single that started the Treasure story.
- "Wonderland" (2019)Lead single of Treasure EP.3: One to All, and still a concert staple.
- "Guerrilla" (2022)Lead single of The World EP.1: Movement.
- "Work" (2024)The opener of the Golden Hour era.
- "Bad" (2026)Lead single of their third Billboard 200 No. 1.
Monsta X: key facts
- Debut date14 May 2015
- Debut releaseEP Trespass, title track "Trespass"
- LabelStarship Entertainment then and now. I.M left the agency in August 2022 but remains a member of the group.
- MembersShownu (leader), Minhyuk, Kihyun, Hyungwon, Joohoney, I.M. Wonho left in October 2019.
- Fandom nameMonbebe
Monsta X: a survival show group that went to America
Monsta X came out of No.Mercy, a survival program that Starship and Mnet launched in December 2014. The group debuted with seven members and a hard-hitting style that it kept refining through the The Clan trilogy. Their first music show win came with "Dramarama" on The Show in November 2017.
The international push came next. "Who Do U Love?" (2019), with French Montana, opened the US market, and the English-language album All About Luv debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 in February 2020. Wonho had left the group in October 2019, and Monsta X has continued as six since then.
Military service paused the group from 2022, starting with Shownu. With the five older members back, the full six-member group released The X in September 2025, a tenth-anniversary EP and its first full-group album since 2021. A third English album, Unfold, followed in April 2026. I.M enlisted for active duty on 9 February 2026, so the September 2026 EP The Phase (title track "Magic") and the October North American leg of The X: Nexus world tour are five-member activities.
- "Trespass" (2015)The debut, loud and unapologetic.
- "Dramarama" (2017)Their first music show win.
- "Shoot Out" (2018)Lead single of Take.1 Are You There?
- "Love Killa" (2020)A slower, darker turn from Fatal Love.
- "Magic" (2026)Lead single of The Phase.
GOT7: key facts
- Debut date16 January 2014 (debut stage on M Countdown; the EP followed on 20 January)
- Debut releaseEP Got It?, lead single "Girls Girls Girls"
- LabelJYP Entertainment until January 2021. Since then the members are signed individually and release group music through partners: Warner Music Korea in 2022, Kakao Entertainment in 2025.
- MembersJay B (leader), Mark, Jackson, Jinyoung, Youngjae, BamBam, Yugyeom
- Fandom nameIGOT7, often called Ahgase
GOT7: the group that kept its name
GOT7 debuted with a performance style built on martial arts tricking and a line-up drawn from South Korea, the US, Hong Kong and Thailand, which gave the group a wide international reach from the start. "Just Right" and "If You Do" (both 2015) built momentum, and "Hard Carry" (2016) became their biggest hit in South Korea. The 2019 EP Call My Name, led by "You Calling My Name", topped the Gaon and Hanteo weekly album charts.
When their JYP contracts ended in January 2021, none of the seven renewed, and many fans expected the group to fade out.
Instead, Jay B oversaw the transfer of the group's name and music rights from JYP to the members. GOT7 returned in May 2022 with a self-titled EP led by "Nanana"; the EP reached No. 2 on the Gaon album chart. In January 2025 they marked their eleventh anniversary with Winter Heptagon and its title track "Python", a release the members wrote and composed themselves, followed by the Nestfest concerts in Seoul and two stadium shows in Bangkok that May.
Group activity is now on hold for military service. Jay B and Jinyoung have completed theirs. Yugyeom enlisted in September 2025 and Youngjae in November 2025, the last of the four Korean members. At the Nestfest concerts Jinyoung said the next album would likely come after everyone is back.
- "Girls Girls Girls" (2014)The debut single.
- "Just Right" (2015)The bright, playful song many fans start with.
- "Hard Carry" (2016)Their biggest hit in South Korea.
- "You Calling My Name" (2019)A sleek, mature lead single from Call My Name.
- "Python" (2025)The title track of their self-written anniversary EP.
Editor's note: This story first appeared on kpop-fandom on 11 July 2024 as a personal favorites list. It was rewritten and updated in October 2026: it is now an editors' profile of each group with verified fact boxes, a corrected Monsta X line-up, GOT7's exact debut details, and updates on ATEEZ's Billboard 200 No. 1s and contract renewal, Monsta X's comeback and tour, GOT7's 2025 EP and the members' military service.
Sources The Korea Times: Ateez scores 3rd No. 1 on Billboard 200 with Golden Hour: Part. 5, Korea JoongAng Daily: Five members of Monsta X renew contracts with Starship Entertainment, Sports Kyunghyang: I.M of MONSTA X enlists for active duty, The Korea Herald: GOT7 members end seven-year contract with JYP Entertainment, GMA News: GOT7's Youngjae to begin military service.