Although talented and beautiful, EXID still could not become one of the top female groups of the 3rd gen.
On May 3, Banana Culture announced that Hani and JungHwa decided to leave the company to pursue their personal goals starting in June this year, the remaining 3 members continued to sign their contracts with the company. Although they didn’t declare disbandment, LEGGO would hardly see an EXID full of 5 members standing on the same stage. During the past 7 years, they tried so hard to prove themselves. They have everything, from talents, looks, to charming characters, but why does EXID not have a strong position in the Korean music industry?
Coming from a small company that doesn’t have a vision
EXID debuted in a small company so, in the beginning, they had a lot of difficulties. Although Banana Culture is not weak in management, promotion is a big problem for them. At the time of their debut, EXID actively promoted on music shows but did not receive much attention, they even had to advertise on the street so that EXID can become more popular.
Perhaps the managing company is too small so although they have created the best conditions to promote the music and image of the group but still cannot help much for these 5 talented girls.
Not lucky enough
Compared to other groups with starting points from small companies, EXID is much more fortunate, because at least they have “Up and Down” to save their careers. The fancam of the year saved EXID from disbandment and helped them get the first trophy on the music show. Everyone agreed that “Up and Down” is the biggest stepping stone for EXID’s music career.
Unfortunately, “Up and Down” is just a phenomenon, it’s not a massive hit that can turn EXID into a top girl group. And also, the song creates a shadow that is too big for any of the latter products to overcome. Although “Ah Yeah”, “DDDD”, “Hot Pink” … are all catchy, dynamic and did quite well but they still couldn’t achieve many achievements and make a strong impression like “Up and Down”.
Therefore, it seems that EXID’s later products no longer hold much attraction to the public. They are lucky but only enough to keep them able to survive in this harsh industry but not enough to be famous and have a firm position on the Kpop map.
Solji’s absence
EXID promoted without the leader Solji for more than a year because she suffered from hyperthyroidism. Even if it is only a temporary absence, it still affected the group’s musical activities to some extent.
The promotion became much less effective than when all five members stood on stage. Solji is also the main vocalist of the group, she’s in charge of most of the vocals, especially the high notes, so when she is absent, it will leave a gap for the remaining members to fill. Hyerin, JungHwa sang well but it was hard to replace the vocalist. The group had to encounter such an unlucky situation when they had just gained more reputation so perhaps the “lucky god” did not stay on their side.
Conclusion
Although EXID couldn’t become a big fish in the harsh entertainment industry of Korea, they really created a miracle when they started from zero. In order to survive and become famous like today, all 5 members worked hard together and they did try their best. After the announcement that the two members left the company, the group had to stop without knowing the date of the reunion. Many people felt sorry for EXID because they deserved more than what they had. They are beautiful, talented and charismatic, what EXID lacks is just luck and a stepping stone to be able to become one of the top girl groups in Kpop.
