The 'Big Four' agencies – HYBE, SM Entertainment, JYP Entertainment, and YG Entertainment – will be experiencing some stiff competition this year as they debut and promote new rookie groups.

HYBE

HYBE's subsidiary label, Pledis Entertainment, will debut the boy group TWS (meaning 'TWENTY FOUR SEVEN WITH US') on January 22 KST with their first album 'Sparkling Blue.' The six-member group marks Pledis's first boy group in nine years since Seventeen's debut in 2015, which has earned them the moniker 'Seventeen's younger brother group.' They have already pre-released their prologue track "Oh Mymy: 7s" on January 2.

BE:LIFT Lab, another HYBE subsidiary, plans to debut the rookie girl group, I'LL-IT, formed through last year's JTBC audition show 'R U Next?,' in the first half of the year. HYBE is also preparing for the debut of KATSEYE, a multinational girl group comprising six members formed through last year's 'The Debut: Dream Academy,' a competition collaboration with Geffen Records. While the debut date has yet to be confirmed, they are slated to debut within the year through joint venture HYBE x Geffen Records.

SM Entertainment

SM Entertainment will conclude developing NCT units with the launch of the final NCT unit, NCT NEW TEAM (tentative name), focused on the Japanese market and comprising of members selected through 'NCT Universe: Restart.' The members recently completed a pre-debut tour across nine cities in Japan and released the pre-debut single "Hands Up" last October.

SM's new girl group, set to follow Girls' Generation, Red Velvet, and aespa, is also expected to debut in 2024. Following the success of aespa, SM is pushing forward with the 'SM 3.0' era through a new girl group. Initially, former chairman Lee Soo Man revealed the agency was preparing a girl group aiming for debut in the fourth quarter of 2023, but the debut timing was delayed.

As SM's next girl group is highly anticipated, there have been online rumors about which girls will be debuting through the group. However, the agency's rookie development team responded that they are unfamiliar with the girls being named, creating further mystery as to who will be in the final lineup.

JYP Entertainment

JYP Entertainment is unleashing diverse groups both domestically and internationally. The girl group VCHA, in collaboration with Universal Music Group's Republic Records, is poised to debut on January 26. Formed through the audition program 'A2K,' they will be making their debut through the single "Girls of the Year," and are said to have a concept combining America's music market standards and the top-notch know-how of the K-pop music scene.

In Japan, JYP will introduce the boy group NEXZ, born through a joint audition program 'Nizi Project Season 2' with Sony Music Japan. In China, the agency plans to unveil a China market-focused boy group project named PROJECT C, composed of trainees from JYP China. Particularly, NiziU, born through 'Nizi Project Season 1,' has gained popularity not only in Japan but also in Korea, raising expectations for the activities of NEXZ and PROJECT C.

In South Korea, the boy group JYP Loud (tentative name), selected through the SBS audition show 'Loud,' is awaiting their debut in the second quarter. While P NATION's group THE NEW SIX (TNX), who were formed through the same program, debuted in May last year, JYP underwent an extensive preparation period, spending about three years preparing with an aim to succeed Stray Kids' top boy group reputation. As JYP Entertainment is currently in a 'golden era' of record-breaking profits, anticipation is high for what this new group will be like.

YG Entertainment 

YG has already launched the girl group BABYMONSTER, who debuted with "BATTER UP" on November 27. Initially known as a seven-member group, they debuted as a six-member group without Ahyeon, reportedly due to health reasons. The "BATTER UP" music video skyrocketed to the top of YouTube's trending charts and set new records, including the most views within 24 hours for a debut music video.

BABYMONSTER has yet to have definitive activities, but they plan to start them through the release of their second single "Stuck In The Middle" on February 1. They will also release their first mini-album in April, releasing music in a bi-monthly cycle which was previously unprecedented for YG artists.

BABYMONSTER is YG's first girl group after seven years, following top global girl group BLACKPINK. Attention is on whether BABYMONSTER will become the 'monster rookie' that their name implies.