Just to begin with: Yes, Psy made his comeback with "Gentleman" this past month. Yes, it followed in the footsteps of "Gangnam Style" and broke world records. Yes, he held an impressive concert in Seoul in front of 50,000 fans and more than 100,000 others around the world via YouTube.
But no, he is not on this list.
Here are five other noteworthy acts and their efforts to make comebacks in the shadow of the international phenomenon that is Psy.
5. BTOB
Just over a year after their debut under Cube Entertainment, seven-member boy band BtoB (Born to Beat) made a comeback this month with the song "2nd Confession." The digital single was released on April 10 and was intended as a thank-you present for their fans as well as a way for the group to celebrate their first anniversary.
The guys made their first comeback stage on Mnet's M!Countdown, then continued the music show rounds with Music Bank, Show! Music Core, and Inkigayo.
"2nd Confession" did not necessarily perform as well on the charts as the other comebacks on this list, but it did reach a peak position of 26 on the Gaon Download chart.
The new BtoB single makes the list of April comebacks because it is a sweet springtime tune about a boy confessing his love for a girl and put smiles on fan faces. That fact alone deserves some recognition.
The group also released a dance version of their "2nd Confession" music video... in pajamas! Maybe a peculiar promotional strategy, but it certainly piqued interest and has gotten over 320,000 YouTube views in just two weeks.
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4. G-Dragon
In an unprecedented move, Big Bang frontman G-Dragon released his latest single, and solo comeback through the online messaging app Line on April 1. The exclusive release of "MichiGO" created an increase in Line users and the bizarrely energetic song had many fans eagerly waiting for the music video release later in the month.
And, as per usual, G-Dragon did not disappoint. The chaotic, colorful, and rather confusing "MichiGO" video pushed boundaries with some suggestive imagery (spanking, thrusting, foot-fetishism, and the like). The video has amassed almost 5 million views since its April 18 release.
The song and video releases also served as the kick-off for G-Dragon's first solo world tour. The One of a Kind tour will take the unrestrained singer to four of Japan's domes (making him the first solo artist from South Korea to do so), China, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia before the end of June.
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3. SHINee
SHINee started this comeback in February with the release of Chapter 1: Misconceptions of You and the title track, "Dream Girl." April has brought the full album together with Chapter 2: Misconceptions of Me and its lead single "Why So Serious?"
The third full length album was released in separate parts that carry out different concepts, the second installment with a significantly harder edge than the first.
"Why So Serious?" is about a zombie boy who falls in love with a human girl and was written by K-Pop Star contestant Andrew Choi, Kenzie, and Kim Jung Bae. Andrew Choi also lent his talent to composing two other songs on Misconceptions of Me, "SHINe (Medusa I)" and "Dangerous (Medusa II)."
While the music video leaves something to be desired, and Jonghyun is still absent from promotions as he recovers from his recent car accident, the comeback stage was an impressive sight.
SHINee is well-known for their complicated, advanced choreography and "Why So Serious?" is no exception. This time they have enlisted the expertise of world-renowned choreographer Devin Jamieson, who has previously worked with the likes of Michael Jackson, Usher, and Britney Spears.
The dance moves perfectly correspond to the the song's lyrics and the performance proves that SHINee continue to grow as artists with every passing release.
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2. 4Minute
With the continuing controversy over the overt sexuality exuded by the ladies of 4Minute, every time they come back with a new single, it sends shock waves through the universe. "What's Your Name?" is no different.
In particular, the sexual attention is focused on member Hyuna, and the latest 4Minute track resembles her raunchy solo work more than the group's previous releases.
And while criticisms of the (supposed) R-rated content abound, it seems that the ladies of 4Minute have finally decided not to let the public affect how they choose to present themselves. And it appears they are doing something right.
Not only was "What's Your Name?" praised by the US Billboard, but the music video currently has nearly 4 million views, and it was only released on April 25.
Furthermore, the fun, up-beat song is performing well across the music charts. In the real-time charts, "What's Your Name?" was in the number one spot for over 4 days and dominated the digital charts almost immediately, beating out other new releases from SHINee, Roy Kim, and Juniel (although Roy Kim eventually took over the top spot).
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1. Cho Yong Pil
Maybe the biggest surprise comeback of April, 63-year-old K-Pop legend Cho Yong Pil returned with his 19th album, his first release in about a decade.
The title single "Bounce" knocked Psy's "Gangnam Style" follow-up out of first place on most of the music charts including the Billboard K-Pop Hot 100.
Cho Yong Pil may be up there in years, but he definitely gained the attention of the younger generation of idols.
Big Bang frontman G-Dragon posted lyrics to "Bounce" on his Line account and fellow group member Taeyang tweeted his approval even before the official release saying, "Wow... Cho Yong Pil sunbaenim... How can a preview song be this good... My heart is bounce bounce."
Jonghyun of SHINee wrote, "No words necessary... Just listen to it. I respect you, teacher!" and the CEO for Shinhwa's record label, Live Works Company, wrote on Facebook that the members had been continually talking about Cho Yong Pil's latest release while recording their upcoming album.
On April 23 the veteran singer held a live showcase to reveal and promote his latest album, Hello.
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M/s : kenvilthomas@kpopupdates.com
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