The Resurgence of Girl Groups: What They Teach Us About Girlhood

By: Brooke Erickson

Welcome Back Ladies

After much anticipation, we’re happy to report: the girl group is back - and she’s ready to score. The music industry has always moved in cycles, shifting between solo dominance and group supremacy. And while the era of the solo star has delivered its fair share of icons, there’s been a growing sense of something missing - the eclectic, chaotic, and deeply symbolic expressions of girlhood that only girl groups seem to embody. 

The 1990s and 2000s saw bold celebrations of femininity, from the Spice Girls to Destiny's Child, and later to Fifth Harmony and Little Mix. Yet the early 2020s, particularly in Western pop, have felt like a relative dry spell for these cultural mainstays. Now, thanks to the natural evolution of the entertainment industry due to platforms such as TikTok and Twitter, as well as the rising impacts of K-pop groups taking over globally, we are now once again seeing an abundance of girl bands all over our feeds. And as it looks like so far, they’ve been welcomed with open arms.

But who really embraces these feminomenons? Whose to determine what’s in, out, and therefore, the next step for these girls? With the industry’s crowned favorites evolving with each decade, it’s easy to misconstrue just how calculated these groups are. Apart from your typical solo artist, who is tasked with building their claim to fame through their own unabashed individuality, groups are formed to echo cultural trends and attitudes. Where the individual artist serves as a fashion leader and overall societal trendsetter, girl groups are there to foster those trends and become a cultural checkpoint for these values and aesthetics. To say the least: A girl group is much more than it gets credit for.

What Makes an Iconic Girl Group?

If forming a girl group were a class, there would be many prerequisites. It’s not enough to be a strong singer, dancer, or even the ultimate all-rounder. A girl group thrives on teamwork- on chemistry, trust, and the ability to move as one. To blend in harmony; literally. The magic lies in how the members connect, both on and off stage. While audiences come for the music, they stay for the dynamic: the inside jokes, the shared glances, the sense of genuine friendship. Fans don’t just want to listen; they want to belong. They want to imagine themselves as one of the girls - part of a tight-knit circle where the relentless grind of rehearsals, touring, and promotion feels less like work and more like a never-ending party with your best friends.

  Aside from technical aspects, girl groups also communicate an energy; a somewhat indescribable quality that can only be known as the ‘it’ factor. For better or for worse, these girls are tasked with maintaining their own individuality while also serving as a mouthpiece for a larger idea. Sell this, trademark that, convey a confidence that will inspire tweens, teens, and twenty-somethings to come into their own. 

The Top ‘Cats’ and Underdogs

As of right now, the industry’s top dogs can be seen with the group Katseye. Meticulously formulated by combined western influence and the K-pop methodology, it seems impossible not to hear about what these girls are up to. From hit songs that take advantage of viral marketing and ‘brainrot’ content, to addicting yet easy-to-learn dances and artful collaborations, this group has dominated the cultural conversations not just on girl groups, but on the power of marketing and influence; a true case study in the power of corporate strategy. Behind every music video, live performance, brand partnership, and even TikTok clip, there’s a sophisticated machine at work - a team choreographing not just dance routines, but narrative, visibility, and virality itself.

  Apart from Katseye, we are also seeing callbacks to the 2000s through groups such as Say Now, Girlset, and FLO. Once again, utilizing nostalgia content mixed with modern trends that can be translated onto each individual member, these groups are all looking for the next marketing move that will take them to the next level. But with so much noise in the current state of TikTok promotion tactics, what will it take to stand out and make an impression amongst such oversaturation? It seems only time will tell.

Slates, Soloists, and the Ever-Impending Disbandment 

The average life of a girl group is that of a butterfly (or a Sabrina album)- Short and sweet. Where a solo artist can evolve time and time again, a group will always be constrained by its own chemical makeup. People move on and begin to yearn for their own life outside of a package deal. Labels know this, members know this, and audiences pretend it doesn’t exist. 

Girl groups are also massive investments. Labels aren’t just backing one artist -they’re funding multiple careers at once, while carefully constructing a cohesive image and sound that feels authentic yet remains commercially viable and culturally sharp. With every added member comes another variable: more personalities, more dynamics, more potential for both magic and instability. The stakes are high, which makes the risk-and-reward equation even more dramatic. Success can multiply exponentially, but so can internal tension and/or public scrutiny. Within the group itself, competition often simmers quietly, sharpening performance and ambition, while audiences inevitably gravitate toward a standout - the elusive “it” girl. We’ve seen it time and time again: The Beyonce, the Camila, who will be the one to capture the spotlight and ensure longevity? That tension between unity and individuality is part of the formula: the group must function as one, even as each member fights to shine- a tale for women as old as time. 

So where does that leave us? When a girl group disbands, its members often find themselves stepping into one of three paths: pursuing solo stardom, exploring new corners of the entertainment industry, or quietly embracing an early retirement. The pop diva personas that once defined them don’t simply disappear- they evolve. What remains is a refined blend of confidence and vulnerability, now shaped by maturity and experience. In many ways, that transformation mirrors the journey from girlhood to womanhood: as Addison once said, the girl I used to be is still the girl inside of me.