Within the K-pop community, fans list and discuss the groups they believe are the most underrated — the ones who are typically overlooked and don’t receive recognition, despite being just as talented or having equally strong music as their more popular peers. Since 2017, seven-member boy group VAV slowly entered the conversation more frequently, with many sporadically jumping on board to experience and truly appreciate what they had to offer that others hadn’t been privy to. Through early lows in their career to unexpected highs, this is how VAV became one of the most fascinating underdogs of K-pop’s third-gen groups.

Debuting in 2015, the six-member boy group became the first act to debut under what was then known as AQ Entertainment, which had been founded that same year. Considering the company was so new at the time and much smaller than most other labels, there wasn’t really much buzz surrounding VAV’s debut with “Under the Moonlight.” The lineup consisted of BaRon, Ace, St. Van, Xiao, Gyeol, and Jacob.

After adding a seventh member to the lineup (Zehan) for their first comeback, “Brotherhood,” the group remained relatively unknown, releasing two mini-albums and one single from 2015 to 2016, all of which achieved moderate success within a niche community. VAV’s early releases struggled to match the musical polish of many of their third-generation peers, with rough arrangements that did little to highlight the members’ vocal strengths. Although “Under the Moonlight” attracted attention for its dark, vampire-inspired visual aesthetic, the concept ultimately did not play to the group’s full potential.

This led to three of the group’s Chinese members — Xiao, Zehan, and Gyeol — leaving the company between June 2016 and January 2017. This would coincide with a complete overhaul at the company, rebranding as A Team Entertainment in 2017 and recruiting veteran K-pop producer and songwriter Ryan S. Jhun as its CEO and main executive producer. However, this wasn’t just any executive shift; it was the most important one A Team would ever make, with one of K-pop’s most well-known creatives at the helm. Ryan S. Jhun produced countless K-pop hits, but was especially associated with SM groups at the time, adding to his credibility within the industry.

In conjunction with these corporate changes, VAV also underwent a significant shift, with three new members added to the lineup: Ayno, Lou, and Ziu. With a newly reconfigured lineup, revamped concept, and under Jhun’s sonic guidance, the group released the bright, ‘80s-inspired track, “Venus (Dance With Me),” in February 2017 — a stark contrast to the dark, brooding anthems of the group’s past. This was the soft reboot VAV needed to find and capture a new audience, and it worked. With an addictive electro-funk dance beat, crisp, vibrant visuals, and excellent vocal layering and rap verses, “Venus (Dance With Me)” finally brought VAV up to speed with the modern era of K-pop boy groups and became a massive turning point for the group. Although it didn’t top mainstream Korean charts or music shows, it did open VAV up to a new international audience, attracting more attention and positive feedback than their previous releases did.

After releasing other fun, charming, and youthful singles like “Flower (You)” and “ABC (Middle of the Night)” in spring and summer of 2017, VAV underwent another major visual and sonic shift that fall with “She’s Mine.” While the last three singles made fans feel more endeared to the members and found them approachable, “She’s Mine” marked a new chapter of maturity for the group, shifting the paradigm from lighthearted innocence to sleek masculinity.

Produced by Coach & Sendo — who had notably worked on several tracks for SHINee and NCT 127 — the track was an electronic-based pop song with R&B-dance elements, highlighting the new grown-up image VAV strived for. This was also showcased in the song’s choreography, co-created by the popular Korean dance crew 1MILLION Dance Studio, which brought out a sharper, sexier element to the group’s performance than they’d done before.

As VAV’s sound and image evolved, the group also began working with a wider network of established creatives in the Korean music industry, including several prominent producers and choreographers. This growing circle of collaborators helped raise the group’s profile and bring greater attention to its releases. With the help of their new image and members Baron and Ayno appearing on the 1MILLION Dance Studio YouTube channel for a special dance session, “She’s Mine” received even more attention and was another milestone in the group’s career, continuing to expand their reach with international audiences. With an irresistibly catchy earworm of a song and solid promotions, the only thing that truly seemed to hold them back domestically was fierce competition from some of K-pop’s heavy hitters who were also active at that time.

Regardless, VAV showed no signs of slowing down with the release of their third mini-album (and first with this particular lineup), Spotlight, in January 2018.From this point on, the group had officially left the bubbly, youthful concepts behind for the foreseeable future, with “Spotlight” opting for a more modern, chic style with a similar urban dance-pop influence to “She’s Mine.” With its groovy synthesizer loops, infectious bassline, and smooth visual concept, “Spotlight” opened the floodgates for VAV, and its music video became the group’s first to draw 2.5 million views on release day. The album also became the group’s best-selling release to date, with 2,006 physical copies sold. This marked a significant improvement on their previous albums, none of which had sold more than 400 copies.

At this point, VAV had successfully found their footing as one of K-pop’s rising third-gen boy groups, expanding and solidifying their global fanbase, while also securing more Western media coverage. From their soft reboot with “Venus (Dance With Me)” to their bubbling success with “Spotlight,” this had been the most important year in VAV’s career thus far — not only did they completely rebrand themselves with upgraded concepts, song productions, and performances, but they also had to prove that the efforts were worth it. Safe to say, it was making a world of difference, because only weeks before “Spotlight” debuted, the group had already kicked off their first “Meet & Live” tour and fan meeting in Brazil.

Shortly after, the uptick in VAV’s presence and interest had already piqued the interest of several other Western production companies that specialize in bringing lesser-known K-pop groups to international audiences. By March, the group had continued their tour throughout Europe and, finally, the United States in August. The tour proved a success in all three markets, with all of Brazil’s tour dates reportedly sold out, while a majority of their U.S. shows reported near-capacity crowds. If 2018 was a test to see how well Western audiences would respond to VAV face-to-face, then the group passed every single checkpoint, reaffirming that they were ready to hit the ground running.

The only question left was: why wasn’t their domestic presence as high as their international presence? In general, Korean fans tend to have different tastes in idol groups than many Western fanbases. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule, but the chances of VAV landing on the general public’s radar (and staying there) were considerably slim. Nonetheless, the group still achieved moderate mainstream success in Korea, holding concerts, fansigns, and fanmeets for domestic fans, but the fervor and demand weren’t nearly as passionate as they were overseas.

The argument was made even clearer after the release of their fifth digital single, “Senorita,” a romantic Latin-pop track that perfectly aligned with K-pop’s fascination with Latin genres in 2018. Within two weeks of its release, the official music video hit over 12 million views on YouTube, making it their most-watched MV and the most successful song of their careers. Since VAV’s popularity in Latin audiences had already been steadily climbing, it’s no surprise that “Senorita” quickly caught on for newer Spanish-speaking fans and spread like wildfire.

By 2019, the group continued to tour and even expanded their global reach to India and Japan. However, it was the Latin American market that had undoubtedly become their largest and most devoted fanbase, leading to more stops across Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, and Mexico, as well as a Spanglish collaboration with Puerto Rican artists and producers, De La Ghetto and Play-N-Skillz, for “Give Me More (Un Poco Mas).”

Their subsequent albums that year — Thrilla Killa and Poison — became their highest-selling albums at the time, each selling over 6,000+ copies. Although these numbers were considerably less than those of bigger groups at the time, they were still an impressive feat for a lesser-known group.

But it wasn’t just the music that resonated with listeners — it was also their fan service. During their 2019 “Meet & Live Tour,” VAV started going viral in clips of the members purposefully interacting with fans in ways that most K-pop groups didn’t. While it’s not uncommon for boy groups to perform shirtless, give fans a peek of their abs, or flash a wink and a smile every now and then, VAV took the term “fan service” to a whole new level. When the group invited fans up on stage, these flirtatious moments included lifting and spinning fans, back hugs, staged marriage proposals, kabedon (Japanese term for pinning someone against a wall), and even letting fans touch their abs while the members performed a body roll.

Since most Korean boy groups are more restrained in their fan service, VAV’s methods overseas were considered both shocking and refreshing, instantly spreading online and leading K-pop fans from other fandoms to stan the group. It’s a testament to how free and uninhibited VAV felt while touring internationally, immediately picking up on Western social cues and recognizing what made fans tick. But beyond their more provocative actions, fans also noted how personable and attentive the members were, making it feel more like a mutual appreciation rather than a one-dimensional one.

After embarking on their third U.S. tour in February 2020, before the COVID-19 shutdown, the group released their sixth EP, Made For Two, later that fall. While its eponymous title track didn’t achieve the same hype as “Senorita” and “Give Me More” (which remain their most successful singles to date), the album itself became their highest-selling, with over 11,700 copies. It would also be their first comeback promoting as a sextet, with BaRon enlisting in the military just weeks before the album’s release.

But like many boy groups, when military enlistments begin, music promotions lessen or even come to a halt. For the next three years, VAV would remain inactive as the remaining six members began enlisting, until 2023, when the group made their long-awaited return with their seventh EP, Subconscious. It was a bittersweet comeback, however, as BaRon announced his departure from VAV and A Team earlier that year for personal reasons. Regardless, the group carried on, and while Subconscious was still considered a promotional success, it was the first time their album sales saw a notable dip, with 9,800 copies sold.

This could be explained by several factors: a three-year hiatus in the K-pop world is a long time, given how fast the industry moves. During that time, the landscape can and did change, including music trends, dozens of new rookie groups, and fans moving on from one group to the next. In VAV’s absence, other boy groups had slid in to fill the gap and move up the ranks in K-pop stardom, whether it was domestically, internationally, or both. But more notably, their CEO and head producer of six years, Ryan S. Jhun, transitioned to his own company (Superbell Company) in 2022, leaving many fans to speculate that his departure from A Team contributed to the loss. Still, their core fandom remained strong enough to justify their fourth U.S. tour across 10 cities in January 2024, with an equally strong turnout.

However, just a month after the tour wrapped, VAMPZ (their fandom) were met with a surprising announcement regarding VAV’s status. After much discussion with the members, A Team officially announced that both parties have agreed to terminate the group’s exclusive contracts, leaving the group in an indefinite hiatus or unofficial disbandment. Since then, the members have pursued their own individual activities — Ziu went into theatre, Ace started a solo career in Latin America, Jacob opened and runs a hotpot restaurant in his hometown of Jingzhou, Hubei, China. Even so, they’ve all expressed interest in reuniting in the future.

After seven years together (and nine overall), VAV was given a chance that many underrated groups do not: a shot at redemption. What could’ve been a short-lived, flash-in-the-pan experience became a surprising twist of events that carried the group to new heights. It cannot be emphasized enough how much a tonal shift can change the trajectory of an idol’s career. Not only did VAV’s updated, more refined sound breathe new life into the group, but it also extracted the members’ best qualities and performances that would’ve gone unnoticed otherwise. They may not have become a household name in the end, but internationally, they’re still recognized as a fan-favorite among underrated K-pop boy groups.