Before BLACKPINK became the de facto South Korean girl group for an entire generation, groundbreaking quartet 2NE1 paved the way ahead by setting the bar and breaking all known notions of what typical K-pop acts could achieve. And while fans will have recalled that the group disbanded in 2017, hold on to your seats: 2NE1 has confirmed that they will be reuniting this year!
The exciting development was first revealed at midnight yesterday evening by YG Entertainment founder and prominent music executive, Yang Hyun-suk, in a video detailing several exciting upcoming prospects that the legendary girl group will be engaged with in the months ahead.
2NE1 reunion confirmed with comeback world tour later this year
Describing 2NE1 as the company’s “first-ever successful girl group”, Hyun-suk most notably mentioned that they will launch an official world tour in conjunction with the group’s 15th-anniversary celebrations.
Kicking off in the South Korean capital of Seoul in October 2024, 2NE1 will proceed to then travel to the city of Osaka in late November, followed by Tokyo in December. The tour is also expected to encompass other major cities in Asia well into 2025, but details remain otherwise scarce at this point.
Members of 2NE1, including CL, Sandara Park, and Minzy, all took to their own social media accounts to confirm their reunion, much to the delight of fans across the globe.
Pronounced ‘twenty-one’, 2NE1 was first conceived around 2008 as YG Entertainment’s all-female version of the wildly successful male group, Big Bang. The final line-up that debuted in 2009 under this new moniker comprised Park Bom, CL, Minzy, and Sandara Park, with their eponymous EP skyrocketing up the South Korean music charts through the success of their first two singles, Lollipop and Fire.
This would follow with their inaugural full-length album, To Anyone, which landed at number seven on the Billboard World Album Chart. Once again, commercial triumphs abound as 2NE1 became the first group in K-pop history to have three singles from one album top different music program charts, thanks to the leading singles Clap Your Hands, Can’t Nobody, and Go Away.
With that said, the group’s popularity would only be largely confined to Asian markets until 2013, when American rapper will.i.am collaborated with 2NE1 on several English songs, including Take the World On and Gettin’ Dumb. Subsequent appearances on American shows such as the 21st cycle of America’s Next Top Model further cemented their appeal among Western audiences. By the end of 2014, their global takeover was complete, holding the distinction of being the only Asian act to be featured on Rolling Stone‘s list of Best Pop Albums of 2014.
While they may have only ever released two full-length albums, the group’s ability to incorporate genres that were previously uncharted for K-pop acts such as hip-hop, R&B, electropop, reggae, and dancehall, proved their ability to innovate and deftly surpass all expectations of what conventional girl groups are capable of achieving. To date, 2NE1 has bagged a total of 66 million digital and physical records worldwide, which continues to make them one of the best-selling girl groups of all time.
Feature and hero image credit: CL/Instagram, Sandara Park/Instagram
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Written by
Benjamin Wong
Senior Editor, Fashion and Dining
Armed with an Advertising major from Lancaster University, Benjamin is a senior editor who has spent his time oscillating between the social media and digital media landscape since 2018. With a keen interest in haute fashion and gastronomy, he has written for publications such as ERROR Digital, WORLD OF BUZZ, and KL Foodie. Beyond the keyboard, you can find him arms-deep in a thrift pile.
