Kpop
Situations Vol. 5 (Winter 2011) © 2011 by Yonsei University
Yun-Jung Choi
Teacher at the Writing Center
(Yonsei University, Seoul)
The Globalization of K-Pop:
Is K-Pop Losing its Korean-ness?
The recent news of Korean boy and girl bands making headlines in Eastern and Southern
Asia, Europe and the US are sending new hopes and energy through the K-Pop (short for
Korean Pop) industry following the surge of pride when the Korean Wave first hit Japan and
China in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The spread of Korean music and the increasing popularity of its singers is mainly due to the three major entertainment companies that dominate the K-Pop market: SM Entertainment (SM), YG Entertainment (YG) and JYP
Entertainment (JYPE). SM is the oldest and largest entertainment company in the Korean music scene. It gave birth to the first generation of K-Pop boy and girl groups, including
H.O.T, Shinhwa and S.E.S. It now produces the more recent teenage idols, TVXQ, Super
Junior, SHINee and Girls’ Generation. YG is known for its hip-hop and electronic sounds that are well represented by its current acts Big Bang and 2NE1. JYPE also has a lineup of i dol groups under its name: Wonder Girls, 2AM, 2PM and miss A. As K-Pop’s influence and popularity continues to spread, the three entertainment companies are keenly trying to keep up with the demand and expectations of K-Pop audiences around the world. The three K-Pop powerhouses are incorporating experienced foreign—more precisely, Western—talent for both music and choreography in order to make K-Pop more appealing abroad. But a look at the major girl groups of the three labels—SM’s Girls’ Generation, YG’s 2NE1 and JYPE’s
Wonder Girls—raises an important question: is the “Korean” element in K-Pop being undermined by its global goals?
69
SM was the first entertainment company to introduce a Korean boy band reminiscent of the
Backstreet Boys or ‘N Sync. H.O.T still remains a legendary pop sensation in the Korean contemporary music
Yun-Jung Choi
Teacher at the Writing Center
(Yonsei University, Seoul)
The Globalization of K-Pop:
Is K-Pop Losing its Korean-ness?
The recent news of Korean boy and girl bands making headlines in Eastern and Southern
Asia, Europe and the US are sending new hopes and energy through the K-Pop (short for
Korean Pop) industry following the surge of pride when the Korean Wave first hit Japan and
China in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The spread of Korean music and the increasing popularity of its singers is mainly due to the three major entertainment companies that dominate the K-Pop market: SM Entertainment (SM), YG Entertainment (YG) and JYP
Entertainment (JYPE). SM is the oldest and largest entertainment company in the Korean music scene. It gave birth to the first generation of K-Pop boy and girl groups, including
H.O.T, Shinhwa and S.E.S. It now produces the more recent teenage idols, TVXQ, Super
Junior, SHINee and Girls’ Generation. YG is known for its hip-hop and electronic sounds that are well represented by its current acts Big Bang and 2NE1. JYPE also has a lineup of i dol groups under its name: Wonder Girls, 2AM, 2PM and miss A. As K-Pop’s influence and popularity continues to spread, the three entertainment companies are keenly trying to keep up with the demand and expectations of K-Pop audiences around the world. The three K-Pop powerhouses are incorporating experienced foreign—more precisely, Western—talent for both music and choreography in order to make K-Pop more appealing abroad. But a look at the major girl groups of the three labels—SM’s Girls’ Generation, YG’s 2NE1 and JYPE’s
Wonder Girls—raises an important question: is the “Korean” element in K-Pop being undermined by its global goals?
69
SM was the first entertainment company to introduce a Korean boy band reminiscent of the
Backstreet Boys or ‘N Sync. H.O.T still remains a legendary pop sensation in the Korean contemporary music
Cited: [Seoul] 17 06 2009, n. pag. Web. 16 Jan. 2012. <http://www.hankyung.com/ news/app/newsview.php?aid=2009061751277>. pag. Web. 16 Jan. 2012. <http://www.koreaherald.com/entertainment/Detail.