3rd Gen K-POP Anthems
The songs that defined K-POP's 3rd generation golden age.
64 entries
Choose a round
Round of 16 takes about a minute. Bigger brackets take longer.
About this world cup
K-pop's third generation, roughly 2012 to 2018, is when the genre went from a regional phenomenon to a global one. EXO, BTS, TWICE, Red Velvet, SEVENTEEN, BLACKPINK, GFRIEND, MAMAMOO, iKON, WINNER, GOT7 and MONSTA X all debuted in this window, and this 64-song bracket is built from the anthems they left behind.
It is a cup of era-defining hits: Growl and Love Shot, DNA and Blood Sweat & Tears, TT and FANCY, Bad Boy and Psycho, Don't Wanna Cry and VERY NICE, DDU-DU DDU-DU and AS IF IT'S YOUR LAST. It also honors the songs that ruled specific summers and winters, like MOMOLAND's BBoom BBoom, iKON's LOVE SCENARIO, GFRIEND's Rough, MAMAMOO's HIP and SUNMI's Gashina.
If you grew up on this era, expect heartbreak by the Round of 16. If you came to K-pop later, treat it as a guided tour of the songs your favorite fourth-generation groups grew up covering.
Matchups to watch
Growl vs Blood Sweat & Tears
EXO's one-take masterpiece against BTS's baroque turning point. The two boy-group songs that defined the mid-2010s.
TT vs Psycho
TWICE's cutest heartbreak against Red Velvet's most elegant one. Two very different ways to sing about the same feeling.
LOVE SCENARIO vs Russian Roulette
The iKON song every Korean kid could sing in 2018 against Red Velvet's playful, pastel earworm.
All 64 contenders
- EXO - Growl
- EXO - Love Shot
- TWICE - FANCY
- TWICE - TT
- TWICE - What is Love?
- Red Velvet - Bad Boy
- Red Velvet - Psycho
- MAMAMOO - HIP
- SEVENTEEN - Don't Wanna Cry
- iKON - LOVE SCENARIO
- MOMOLAND - BBoom BBoom
- BTS - DNA
- BTS - Blood Sweat & Tears
- BLACKPINK - DDU-DU DDU-DU
- BLACKPINK - AS IF IT'S YOUR LAST
- BTS - Boy With Luv
- Red Velvet - Russian Roulette
- MAMAMOO - Egotistic
- GFRIEND - Time for the Moon Night
- SEVENTEEN - VERY NICE
- TWICE - CHEER UP
- Red Velvet - Red Flavor
- SUNMI - Gashina
- EXO - Ko Ko Bop
- GFRIEND - Me Gustas Tu
- WINNER - REALLY REALLY
- GOT7 - Just Right
- OH MY GIRL - Nonstop
- Lovelyz - Ah-Choo
- iKON - RHYTHM TA
- SEVENTEEN - Pretty U
- MAMAMOO - Starry Night
- BTS - FIRE
- BTS - Dope
- BTS - Not Today
- BTS - Spring Day
- BTS - IDOL
- BTS - FAKE LOVE
- BLACKPINK - PLAYING WITH FIRE
- BLACKPINK - WHISTLE
- BLACKPINK - Kill This Love
- BLACKPINK - BOOMBAYAH
- TWICE - Likey
- TWICE - Heart Shaker
- TWICE - Dance The Night Away
- TWICE - Signal
- TWICE - YES or YES
- TWICE - Feel Special
- Red Velvet - Peek-A-Boo
- SHINee - View
- EXO - Monster
- EXO - CALL ME BABY
- SEVENTEEN - CLAP
- Red Velvet - Ice Cream Cake
- Red Velvet - Dumb Dumb
- GFRIEND - Rough
- GFRIEND - NAVILLERA
- GOT7 - Hard Carry
- GOT7 - Never Ever
- MONSTA X - DRAMARAMA
- NCT 127 - Cherry Bomb
- iKON - KILLING ME
- EXID - UP&DOWN
- MAMAMOO - Decalcomanie