It’s that time of year again! While December is filled with year-end countdowns, I like to take a look back at some of K-pop’s biggest agencies during November. Before reading (especially if you’re new to the blog), it’s helpful to know that my grading focuses most heavily on music releases and how comebacks are managed and delivered to fans. Scandals and non-musical factors can certainly impact an agency’s grade, but the biggest criteria will always be the music itself. Following SM Entertainment, HYBE Corporation, and YG Entertainment‘s analysis, it’s time to dive into JYP Entertainment.
As usual, the thoughts below are my own and aren’t privy to any insider information. There will be plenty of subjective critique.
The Good
JYP Entertainment remains one of the most sprawling agencies in K-pop and – unlike HYBE – they’ve done all this under their own umbrella rather than house distinct subsidiaries. They do partner with a few smaller agencies (hello, (ALL)HOURS!), but this makes up a very small part of their overall roster. Honestly, it’s just impressive how many acts are constantly releasing music under JYP.
Many of JYP’s artists are on the newer side, though they only had one debut in 2025. KickFlip kicked off the year with their first mini album and have gone on to release a total of three albums. I thought their start was a bit rough, but they’ve consistently bettered their style (and sales) with each release. They haven’t had the kind of explosive debut year we’ve seen from other recent rookies, but I like how their sound is different than other acts on JYP’s roster.
Last year, I was far less excited about NEXZ’s debut, but they’ve really won me over this year. It feels like JYP has finally found a niche for them and their music is getting better and better.
Shifting to the agency’s powerhouses, it’s hard to overstate the global success of Stray Kids and the Korean success of DAY6. The agency has played the long game with both of these acts and it’s really paid off. In their own way, both feel like leaders in the industry and are clearly huge money-makers for JYP.
Onto the agency’s girl groups, we had three generations active this year. The youngest (Korean) act is NMIXX and they’ve seen major growth this year. Prior to 2025, it seemed that their sales might have hit a peak. However, their standing with the public only improved. This resulted in their first chart-topping mega-hit last month with Blue Valentine. The agency hasn’t had a chart hit this dominant in years and the fact that it’s actually a great song is just icing on the cake.
ITZY continue to dominate as a global powerhouse. Though sales have slowed since their 2022-23 peak, they’re a well-known entity now with a strong image and style. They also released a handful of great songs this year. Meanwhile, Twice celebrated their tenth anniversary with new material in both Korea and Japan alongside many notable activities (including the achievement of being the first K-pop girl group to headline Lollapalooza). They’re still a leading force ten years into their career.
After some sonic growing pains, rock band Xdinary Heroes continued to find their niche this year. They’re seeing slow but steady growth in sales and feel like an increasingly important piece in JYP’s overall tapestry.
The agency seemed to put less focus on global territories this year, but Japanese girl group NiziU released material in both Japan and Korea, including a full album just this week. They continue to perform well, especially in their home country. Meanwhile, American girl group VCHA’s rebrand into Girlset holds potential but it’s too early to tell where that might lead.
Overall, JYP Entertainment saw a solid year of growth with one huge hit and nearly all of its artists performing well with their respective fanbases. On another note, the agency’s recent stint on The Game Caterers showcased the family feeling between these artists. Of all the K-pop companies, it really does seem like the nicest one to work for.
The Bad
In a way, you could almost cut 2025 in half when it comes to JYP releases. The first few months were pretty rough, with few fantastic songs and a general lack of buzz around the agency. Thankfully, JYP pulled it all together about halfway through the year and ended 2025 very strong.
While the agency is beginning to distinguish its acts from each other, there’s still a lot of crossover. With so many active artists promoting, it can be difficult to tell one from another. The agency heavily relies on outsourced songs. I’d love to see them invest in some visionary in-house composers that can give each of their artists a distinct voice. JYP himself doesn’t write many songs anymore, but back when he did his artistic touch was obvious. I miss this sense of personality. Sometimes, JYP’s output can feel quite corporate.
JYP went through a micro-boom these past few years, debuting artist after artist. They have a solid line-up now and I’d hope to see them deepen these discographies rather than debuting new acts. As NMIXX’s 2025 success proves, it can often take years for an act to find their signature hit. I hope JYP is committed to doing this for newer acts like KickFlip and NEXZ, but I can’t help but feel that sometimes certain artists are given more attention than others.
JYP often has an “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” approach to its artists that can hinder needed change. It’s hard to argue with success, but for me the agency’s biggest artists are actually its least exciting. In different ways, both Stray Kids and DAY6 seem to be stuck in a loop of releasing similar material over and over when – at this point in their careers – they could be branching out and would probably have the fan support to do so. Given that both of these groups compose their own music, this sameness makes sense. However, I’d love to hear how each would sound if paired with a new, dynamic executive producer for an entire project. Sometimes these switch-ups can bring out revelatory sides of the artists and I think both acts have room for this experimentation.
What I’d like to see in 2026:
- Firm up the popularity and musical voice of the agency’s newer acts
- Take advantage of NMIXX’s success and continue giving them strong material
- Invest in in-house producers with distinct sounds
- No more new debuts for a little while (but maybe another JYP-hosted survival series?)
Previous years: 2024 // 2023 // 2022 // 2021 // 2020 // 2019 // 2018 // 2017 // 2016
