reasons why i think XLOV makes it big as a genderless k-pop group:
they have both underground and celebrity support
the in-between public will soon follow once the trends XLOV anticipated become mainstream
as the group said many times. there are hidden fans aka unexpected demand for XLOV everywhere. to the point where they say they’re “surprised people care about us” (!) and weren’t even prepared for so many fans showing up outside korea. the internet is doing the job for them. that can carry them financially
and even with minimal capital they made something cool; having less cash made them re-use styling items which is THE key to becoming recognizable (like e.g. gaga and bright wigs)
with a tight-knit community around, support is organically passionate/loyal. XLOV will be recommended from people where it stuck to people where it sticks rather than be a 5 second clip a billion people saw (= whatever drake is doing, XLOV is not. industry rule, never do what drake does)
even a closeted person can associate with them as they are so visible, outsiders could hardly clock anyone next to them
they are artists and being themselves rather than provocateurs, so people want to protect XLOV from hate rather than stay stuck interpreting their actions since a provocative performer will naturally confuse, scatter, and paralyze fandom response
the members being from several countries and from the boys planet survival show brings in more influx from several directions and gives the group a huge marketing + language advantage
being anchored in the drag community is such a huge plus and security net. drag artists are educated, strong, resourceful. you want them on your side. no drag queen in the files but a lot of homophobes are.
we know a group can never achieve full kpop acclaim without excellent dancing, which has priority over extremely good vocals in this genre. XLOV’s choreographies are too sensually intricate to be ignored, they know this and put physical performance first w/ many signature elements that easily go viral.
one member always catches people’s eye and the word spreads. rui is especially notorious for that: every group needs a scene stealer with immediate impact (e.g. by making teaser pictures circulate online fast), going extra miles at a high risk; a ballet background helps to mitigate it. rui is what jimin is to bts.
‘rizz’ was the turning point, we knew from there the only way is up
much like other kpop legends like taemin or seonghwa they stand out being genderless: the market is oversaturated with everything else and fans are vocally tired of uniformity. just like XG, they fixed that
all their stages start out /very/ strong. you’re hooked from there. it’s the success formula.
