Songs from the "Big 4" agencies in the K-pop industry (SM, YG, JYP and HYBE) often take the world by storm. Most of them even become so popular that they remain on music charts even after years since their release. But aside from them, there are also some tracks from other entertainment companies that will never get old no matter how much time passes by.
Below is a list of some of the iconic K-pop songs by idol groups and soloists under lesser known labels.
10 Iconic K-pop Songs by Artists Outside 'Big 4' Companies That Are Worth Looking Back On
EXID - "UP & DOWN"
Regarded as the song that "saved" the girl group EXID, "UP & DOWN" is a funky song with a powerful bassline and a catchy melody. It is known for its fun yet sexy dance moves that many fans can easily pull off.
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EXID's "UP & DOWN" was initially outside of the top 100 of most Korean music charts after its release in August 2014, but because of a viral fancam of member Hani, together with other similar videos, the song suddenly rose to fame.
In addition to climbing to the top of music charts, "UP & DOWN" even became the group's first song to reach 100 million views on YouTube.
SISTAR - "Touch My Body"
Who wouldn't know this iconic K-pop song by SISTAR that is usually played during the summer season? Although most of us can only sing along to the English lyrics "touch my body," it doesn't stop us from listening to the whole song thanks to its catchy beat.
"Touch My Body" is arguably one of the songs that earned SISTAR the "Summer Queen" title in the K-pop industry. At the time of its release, it swept the top spots of 10 total Korean music charts just two hours after it was dropped.
HyunA - "Bubble Pop!"
HyunA's "Bubble Pop!" is one of the first songs that brought lots of music fans into the K-pop world. It has an addicting hook that will get stuck in your head once you heard it.
With "Bubble Pop!," HyunA became the first female K-pop solo artist in history to surpass 100 million views on YouTube. It is also probably the track that led her to becoming one of the solo queens today.
ATEEZ - "Answer"
One of the iconic K-pop songs by ATEEZ, "Answer" is slow enough for fans to quickly learn it but energetic enough to maintain people's interest in it. This track led many new people into liking K-pop and even learning the country's language.
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The dance move for the "bulleo bulleo uril jigeum bulleo" part became so famous that even people who never knew of K-pop began dancing to it.
INFINITE - "Bad"
The phrase "Bad bad bad bet a bad bad girl" will probably have many fans dancing once played. Boasting dynamic vocals and addicting melody, it's no wonder many K-pop fans love this song.
At the time of its release back in 2015, INFINITE's "BAD" quickly rose to No. 1 on different music charts like MelOn, Genie, Mnet, Naver Music and more.
Other than that, "BAD" earned the boy group six music show trophies and reached the second-highest score ever on "The Show" (8,657 points).
GFRIEND - "Me Gustas Tu"
Boasting a fresh summer sound, "Me Gustas Tu" is considered one of the GFRIEND's signature songs. The track is even often dubbed as South Korea's 2015 National Anthem due to its positive influence on the Hallyu Wave.
In September 2015, a fancam of GFRIEND performing the song on a slippery stage went viral, further pushing the sextet's popularity. The track gained 100 million streams in July 2016 and impressively recorded 2.5 million downloads as of November 2017.
4Minute - "Crazy"
Another iconic K-pop song by a girl group outside of "Big 4" companies is 4Minute's "Crazy." Who wouldn't remember the iconic line "C-R-A-Z-Y" from the track and addictive beat that will surely have anyone dancing in no time?
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As it became popular, "Crazy" became the girl group's first video to hit 100 million views on YouTube. The song also won seven music show trophies for the quintet within only two weeks.
Notably, "Crazy" snagged 4minute's first-ever win in seven years on "Show! Music Core" since their debut.
SEVENTEEN - "Don't Wanna Cry"
Even though SEVENTEEN is currently associated with HYBE, one of the "Big 4" companies in South Korea, their hit song "Don't Wanna Cry" was released before their agency Pledis Entertainment was acquired by Big Hit Music.
Despite the track being sung entirely in Korean, we cannot deny the fact that we all can sing every lyric of it. Another enchanting aspect of the song is its choreography that showcases the creativity of SEVENTEEN member Hoshi and his co-choreographer.
MOMOLAND - "BBoom BBoom"
"BBoom BBoom" is well-known to be MOMOLAND's breakthrough song. It shot the girl group to domestic and international fame, dominating music charts in South Korea, Japan, the Philippines and more. It not only became a favorite among fans but also non-fans of the band.
This dance-pop and electro-swing track received so much love that it became the first song by a female artist in history to be certified platinum by the Gaon Chart in the streaming category after surpassing 100 million streams.
Additionally, "BBoom BBoom" made MOMOLAND the third K-pop girl group to hit 500 million views on YouTube, after BLACKPINK and TWICE.
NU'EST - "FACE"
Among the iconic K-pop songs on our list, NU'EST's "FACE" is the only debut track. It was regarded as one of the best debut songs in K-pop at the time of its release thanks to its strong message about bullying, which set them apart from other rookie groups.
"FACE" had a big impact on fans and so, its music video quickly amassed 50 million views. For several years, NU'EST held the record for the most-viewed debut music video before they were surpassed by TWICE and BLACKPINK in later years.
At present, "FACE" remains the boy group's most-viewed MV on YouTube.
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Written by Mhaliya Scott
