As talented as the contestants of MNet’s survival shows Queendom, Road to Kingdom,
and Kingdom are; only one can come out on top and be crowned ‘the real number one’.
In today’s video we will introduce you to the best among the greats that have won these
heated competitions and their journeys to glory.
1.
MAMAMOO - Winner of Queendom
Loved by music critics and the general public alike ever since debut for their vocal prowess
and appealing modernistic retro - jazz - R&B sounds, it comes as no surprise that Mamamoo’s
popularity and achievements continued to grow every year.
The group is a much needed fresh breeze that offers quality performances without the need
for any elaborative staging efforts and they are currently one of the most respected and
well-recognized female acts in Kpop.
Setting foot into Queendom, Mamamoo wishes to put forward more impactful live stages
while enjoying the process of creating a memorable performance.
Even when competing alongside big names such as AOA, Lovelyz, Oh My Girl, (G)-IDLE, and
ex-2NE1 member Park Bom; Mamamoo was still regarded as a group that others didn’t want
to be pitted against before the contestants themselves were even aware of the show’s
final lineup.
And delivered they did, as the quartet consistently presented powerful performances with a variety
of concepts that are both pleasing to the eyes and ears while still emphasizing the
unique Mamamoo charms of soulful live vocals and the ability to master the stage.
Viewers first saw Solar, Moonbyul, Wheein, and Hwasa dressed in black; showcasing their
beautiful voices while sitting on their chairs for the contestants’ opening performances,
unlike the other groups who instead chose to display their dancing skills and impressive
choreographies.
The girls of Mamamoo then donned white marching
band uniforms to perform a lively, free-spirited girl crush version of their hit song ‘Decalcomanie’
for the first round of Queendom despite having to constantly practice and perform for their
own concerts.
Mamamoo’s highlight stage is definitely the second round as they delivered a unique
and impactful rendition of fellow contestant AOA’s song ‘Good Luck’ with many music
genres mixed into one performance.
A powerful woman appeared everytime the beat changed: first came Hwasa in street fashion
and reggae, then dominatrix Moonbyul on a hip hop track, Solar in a dazzling feathered
bodysuit as cabaret jazz plays, and femme-fatale Wheein switched the mood to R&B ballad.
The four then came together to deliver an energetic climax which earned a loud round
of applause from the audience.
For the final round, Mamamoo performed a brand new song that they made for the show titled
‘Destiny’, which tells the tale of two people destined to meet again after a separation.
The four members wore cowboy-inspired outfits and delivered a soulful yet energetic performance
that the audience deemed was all about ‘the presence, music, and the heart’.
The way Mamamoo showed up as themselves and let their personalities and musicianship shine
without any hard choreographies, fancy stagings, or the burning desire to come out on top earned
them the respect, votes, and admiration from the viewers.
‘Destiny’ has helped Mamamoo become the crowned queen of Queendom after their streak
of ranking second for every other round.
Their experience in the competition has definitely helped Mamamoo further refine their skills
as the subsequent release of their second full album spectacularly earned the top spot
on the Billboard World Album Chart.
2.
The Boyz - Winner of Road To Kingdom
Even before their debut in December 2017, The Boyz had already garnered a great deal
of public attention as most of the members had previously appeared in TV shows or music
videos.
A total of 7 rookie awards and 5 other awards were given to The Boyz in 2018 and 2019 alone,
which proves the rise of their popularity as well as the quality of their performances.
The ideation of a male version of ‘Queendom’ brought about ‘Road to Kingdom’ as a first
step for underrated male groups with hidden potential to showcase their skills and grow
their fanbase, and The Boyz was invited with much enthusiasm to compete with ONF, Golden
Child, Pentagon, ONEUS, Verivery, and TOO.
In Road to Kingdom, The Boyz have displayed amazing teamwork, chemistry, and coordination
despite being an 11-member group.
All of their performances contain highly sophisticated dance moves which were executed with insane
synchronicity as well as a variety of stunts that only martial artists or professional
dancers can pull off.
For example, main dancer Q caught a free-falling sword as other members launched him into the
air in the introduction stage whereas in round 2, main dancer Juyeon wrapped his legs around
a backup dancer’s back then flung himself up and forward to wrestle the other to the
floor.
Not only can The Boyz execute incredibly complex choreographies with ease, they are also excellent
storytellers.
Props and camera angles were extensively utilized to create a visually appealing stage, and
each performance contains a story of its own that viewers can easily follow and understand.
A fan favourite out of The Boyz’ stages in Road to Kingdom must be their reinterpretation
of veteran idol Taemin’s hit song, ‘Danger’.
Transformed into a badass band of phantom thieves, the members went all out to compete
with absolute trust and confidence in their teamwork as well as their individual skills.
Namely, the absence of backup dancers and elaborative props in this performance made
way for the members themselves to fill the air with and emphasize on their powerful yet
elegant moves.
The stage was also a display of their raw creativity, originality, and courage to shock
viewers with multiple daring stunts, yet again.
For their final stage, The Boyz performed their original song ‘Checkmate’ with a
chess concept.
Just like how one has to anticipate every move and plan for every possible outcome to
advance to the final checkmate in chess, the song expressed The Boyz’s strategic thinking
in every round of performance and acted as a declaration of their readiness to emerge
victoriously.
As such, viewers can see elements of their past stages incorporated into the performance
before the song even started, and from then on it was an all-out visual treat of great
ideas, perfect execution, and stage utilization to create an engaging stage that you won’t
be able to take your eyes off of.
The Boyz’s consistently strong performances eventually but not surprisingly won them a
spot in the subsequent program, ‘Kingdom’, with an overwhelming lead in points.
A bit of a spoiler alert, although they only finished Kingdom in second place, they have
certainly earned the respect of the public and are now just a step away from becoming
international superstars.
3.
StrayKids - Winner of Kingdom
StrayKids consists of 8 members.
The members were chosen to be on the team by the leader Bang Chan himself rather than
the agency, and ever since debut they’ve upheld a reputation of being strong self-produced
idols with the trio Bang Chan, Changbin, and Han being involved in the production of every
single song in Stray Kids’ discography.
Competing in Kingdom was a chance for StrayKids to showcase their unique sound and creativity
to domestic and global music lovers alike, and even though they were up against other
trending and extremely talented groups, StrayKids was still able to hold an amazing record of
ranking first in 4 out of the 5 rounds in Kingdom.
Their strengths lie in the utilization of stage props and camera angles to create an
engaging storyline and the illusion of a big environment from a limited amount of space
as well as infectious and intense energy when performing.
Most notably, for the third round with the theme ‘No limit’, StrayKids transformed
into action heroes and took viewers on an adventure starting from a giant rice cooker
that “makes delicious music” to their final destination.
Blackpink’s hit song ‘Ddu-du-ddu-du’ was also rearranged to match with StrayKids’
own representative song “God’s Menu”
After a massive tank was revealed, the stage immediately turned bright red as it was filled
with smoke, fire, lazers, confettis, waving flags, and the energetic chant: ‘StrayKids
everywhere all around the world’.
The performance was so great that even Hollywood superstars Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman
immediately praised and followed StrayKids on Twitter.
For the final round, StrayKids performed their song ‘Wolfgang’ - a clever wordplay using
the great composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s name to portray their desire to be seen as
skilled producers as well as to represent their strong bonds like a wolf pack that sticks
together.
Two of Mozart’s classical pieces were actually incorporated into the performance and throughout
the song, the mysterious sound of a grand piano can be heard in the background along
with the barks and howls of wolves.
As wolves in the wild, StrayKids and their dancers were crawling and jumping all over
the place, filling the stage with a larger-than-life presence to deliver a musical-like and captivating
performance.
Not to mention that Bang Chan appeared shirtless :)) fully displaying his wide shoulders and
his well-toned body.
As the performance reached its climax, StrayKids executed a crazily sophisticated dance break
after putting on a wolf costume then reunited with their dancers as a solitary pack.
In the end, StrayKids won with an overwhelming lead in points both thanks to their own hard
work to consistently put out awe-worthy performances and the dedication of their fanbase.
So, who was your favourite winner out of the three?
Share your thoughts with us by leaving a comment down below.