Girls' Generation

Girls' Generation (Korean: 소녀시대; So Nyeo Shi Dae) is a South Korean girl group formed by S.M. Entertainment in 2007.[1] The nine member group consists of Taeyeon, Jessica, Sunny, Tiffany, Hyoyeon, Yuri, Sooyoung, Yoona and Seohyun. In Japan, they are known as Shoujo Jidai (少女時代 Shōjo Jidai?).[2]

The group gained attention at the beginning of their career with songs such as "Into the New World" and "Kissing You" but it was not until 2009 when they gained significant popularity with their hit single "Gee", which would be named as South Korea's "Song of the Decade".[3] The group solidified their place in the Korean music industry with follow-up singles "Tell Me Your Wish", "Run Devil Run", and "Oh!" from late 2009 to early 2010. In 2011, after a series of activities in Japan, the group returned to the Korean music scene with "The Boys", which was released in three languages: Korean, Japanese, and for the first time, English. In 2010 alone, the group sold more than 11,730,000 digital albums and singles collectively.[4] The group's immense popularity in their native South Korea has earned them titles "The Nation's Singers" and "The Nation's Girl Group".[5] The Sisa Journal named the group as the most influential entertainers for the years 2011 and 2012, making them the first female idol group in history to make the list.[6] They have also been listed as #1 on the Top Female Singer's list for 4 consecutive years in a row (sans 2nd half of 2011 at #2) on the Leespiar Popularity Survey in Korea.[7][8] Asia Today placed the group at forty-four on the 50 Korean Power Leaders list in 2011.[9] Forbes also revealed the group were most powerful entertainers in South Korea for the year of 2011.[4]

The group began a foray into the Japanese music scene in late 2010 under Nayutawave Records, with Japanese remakes of their 2009 Korean hits "Genie" and "Gee". The group's debut Japanese album, Girls' Generation, released in June 2011, is currently the highest selling album in Japan by a Korean group in Oricon history. It was certified "Million" by the Recording Industry Association of Japan, which made them the second Korean artist to earn such an achievement in Japan since label mate BoA's "Best of Soul" in 2005.[10] The group followed up their success in Japan