Hoai-Tran Bui

USATODAY

The K-pop wave has been on the verge of hitting the U.S. for years — but you can get a splash of it at this year’s KCON, the annual K-pop music festival and convention in New York and Los Angeles. Started in 2012 in southern California, KCON has since expanded to the East Coast and beyond the coasts — now holding events in Abu Dhabi, Chiba, Japan, and Paris.

Popular K-pop artists have been flocking to perform at KCON since its inception, but with the con's rapid growth in its five-year existence, there are nearly too many good (and not-so-good) boy bands and girl groups to count.

Here are the acts you should know at the 2016 KCONs in both New York and LA.

BTS (NY and LA)

With crisp, striking choreography that could rival America’s best dance crews, and soaring choruses mixed with EDM-infused hip-hop, BTS is one of the most promising young K-pop boy bands. The septet’s socially conscious lyrics set them apart from the rest of the lovestruck boy band crowd, but it's their equal exuberance for both ballads and bangers that elevates them.

Mamamoo (NY)

Put four Cool Girls in a room, give them brassy funk-pop songs and eye-popping hair colors, and you’ve got Mamamoo. Nicknamed the “dark horse of the battle of girl groups,” the quartet’s jazzy retro sound is complemented by their strong vocals — not to mention the miles of midriff each of the four ladies proudly flaunt.

Crush (NY)

One of Korea’s foremost hip-hop and R&B singer-songwriters, Crush quickly rose to fame since his debut in 2012, bringing a renewed edge and sexiness to the K-R&B genre. His collaborations with Block B rapper Zico and fellow R&B artist Zion T have given the Korean R&B a creative boost that it hasn’t seen in years.

Dean (LA)

Los Angeles is getting their own honey-voiced R&B artist with Dean, whose sultry tunes are a shade darker than the more mellow Crush. The singer-songwriter actually made his musical debut in the States, with the Eric Bellinger collaboration I’m Not Sorry before heading over to South Korea to make his mark.

Ailee (NY)

Arguably one of the strongest female singers in the world of sweet-toned bubblegum pop, Ailee boasts a chesty, raw voice that shines in both her ballads and dance pop songs. A native of New Jersey, the Korean-American singer will be making a homecoming with her KCON performance at Newark’s Prudential Center.

Girls Generation - TTS (LA)

Three of the most interesting members of Girls Generation, Taeyeon, Tiffany and Seohyun, formed the subgroup TTS or TaeTiSeo. Taeyeon and Tiffany have both embarked on successful solo acts, with Tiffany’s I Just Wanna Dance emerging as one of the best songs of the summer. Girls Generation remains the popular girl group in Korea, and their continued success as one of the main purveyors of classic, saccharine retro pop showcases the lasting strength of K-pop.

Block B (LA)

Boasting one of the best rappers in South Korea, Block B’s brand of frenetic and dynamic hip-hop sets them apart from the crowd and have let them keep their status as one of the strongest and more fascinating boy bands since their debut in 2011. Their leader and producer Zico has notably crossed over into the underground hip-hop scene, and has collaborated with many famed rappers and R&B singers.

Eric Nam (NY)

One of the artists at KCON less known for singing than for his television hosting skills, Eric Nam is one to watch out for. A Korean-American who was discovered through his cover songs on YouTube, Nam recently made a soft U.S. debut with Into You, a catchy tropical house dance collaboration with EDM upstart Kolaj.

SHINee (LA)

One of the old guard of K-pop, SHINee is a good glimpse into what the Korean music scene was like before the EDM craze. Dance pop and bubblegum are their strengths, and those are a few of the reasons the five-member band is still around after eight years.

KCON New York is held June 24-June 25 at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. KCON LA will take place at the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles from July 29-31. A live stream of the event is available here.

Epik High is the K-pop rap group crashing Coachella

BIGBANG: The biggest boy band in the world you probably haven’t heard of