2009 was definitely a year of ups and downs, unfortunately more downs than up. In Japan they were pretty stable, nothing was fantastically up or horribly down. Korea had the worst year in music so far, not just in 2009, but of all time, in which I feel had rivaled America for dramatic turmoil.

BEST

Girls’ Generation
They started off the year right with GEE. The Gee craze went crazy and everyone learned the dance to it. The girls ended up with 6 Melon awards to boot. Along with Legally Blonde and being awarded for top Korean advertisers of the year, there was no stopping them. The girls even escaped unscathed from Swine flu and litigations occurring within S.M.

Asians in America

Far East Movement
Girls on the Dancefloor? Just having a song like that, I’d totally have not just my best year, but best life cause I could get any girl on the dancefloor. The group of mixed Asians raided all the big time American radio stations, toured with big artists and were even featured on So You Think You Can Dance? They broke through the US, I can say. (Editor’s Note: They even let us hang out with them earlier this year! They were also gracious enough to bump into Jinra at a comedy show.)

Wonder Girls
Who was the first Asian group to tour with a big time boy band, the Jonas Bros? It was the Wonder Girls. The princesses of JYP were able to break through a big step for the Korean hallyu. They were featured on national TV shows, and eventually performed on So You Think You Can Dance!

JAPAN

Namie Amuro hit no.1 with her single, Dr. She also topped sales with her Best fiction tour and was a reigning artist in Japan.

Tohoshinki/TVXQ
Managing to hit no.3 on Oricon was a tough feat. In Japan, especially since they aren’t even Japanese.
Due to what is explained in the “worst’ scenario, their popularity rose even higher than before.

W-inds hit no.2 which is rare for them since they have been working so hard over the years and barely make top 5.

WORST

2PM
Jaebum left. But I’m sure you forgot, right? NOT. A lot of drama occurred due to his leave. It’s been over 110 days since he left and during that time fans and anti’s alike actually returned 2PM’s CDs, while boycotting the new release without him. Talk about a bad year.

TVXQ
Leading the way to the highest spot internationally in Asian music, TVXQ trio JaeChunSu sued S.M. For unfair contract terms and misuse of human life, ouch.

Super Jr.
Kang In got roughed up into a fight, then also a DUI. His activities were canceled til the end of year. Following in TVXQ’s steps is Hankyung of Super Jr. is filing for the same things as TVXQ. He actually wants out if the contract cannot reach a compromise.

Swine Flu sufferers
In Korea, the swine flu hit about as bad as a plague and every celebrity under the sun seemed to be affected. It had a preference for men, oddly. This in turn affected all of entertainment’s pacing and hundreds of appearances were canceled.

YG Entertainment
Some employees embezzled 2.5Millon in KRW. That’s a lot of money stolen out of 2NE1’s and Big Bang’s salary!

The Fans
Due to all the worst scenarios taking place, the fans also suffered. The fans were not being able to see their favorite star. I can most certainly imagine paying a high ticket to see someone, only to see them fall to swine flu, or not make a fan signing due to litigation’s with their employer. It’s a big cost to pay and to ask for a certain day off, and most of the time the boss won’t allow you to reschedule your day off. In addition there was also emotional ups and downs. Us fans support our artist, and standing by them was the hard part. Many of us became divided and lost friends over arguments.

OVERALL TROPHY
Oddly, S.M. Entertainment has both the very best and the worst of 2009. CONGRATULATIONS! (You’re the master of drama)

What a feat. They managed to get their girl group who has already been the best there is to become even better this year. On the Oricon charts, Tohoshinki(Tvxq) managed to rate 3 overall for the year in JAPAN, as a foreigner. On the same token, the blindfolds were removed and secrets revealed causing S.M. Artists to rebel against them. It’s too bad my top favorites Son Dam Bi and BoA did well in a lot of cases, but neither hit the top nor bottom. I hope next year they’ll overtake a TOP no.1 spot!

For the rest of you, your consolation prize is a tissue.