K-pop: the global phenomenon

Part 1

How did Koreaboo start?

When I was thirteen or fourteen, I started listening to the K-pop singer, BoA, because I grew up in Vancouver and J-Pop was popular back then. A friend of mine originally introduced me to BoA, and a couple of years later I started to expand and started listening to more popular bands. I couldn’t find any fast or reliable resources on the internet for K-Pop music, so I started Koreaboo, which launched in 2010.

Given the sudden surge in interest in Korean pop music, you must have seen strong growth on your site.

Yes. When we started, we had a launch event in Los Angeles. As K-pop expanded internationally, our traffic grew with it.

The popularity of Korean pop music is fairly established in Southeast Asia, China, and Japan. In your opinion, what does this music offer that its predecessors did not?

I think K-Pop is super catchy and the production quality is super high. That is really important. The music videos are high-budget, well-made, polished, and it’s just super catchy pop music! This music has its own tendencies and its own style. Even beyond that, there are different styles within the genre, and it’s not done in a 90s style of music. In fact, they keep up with trends and what’s new.

What is the general age range for K-Pop fans?

They are very young! I think our demographic is 14-26. We are holding an event called KCON and I see posts from 11 year olds! However, there are fans over their twenties.

Your blog is a great resource. How do you keep it updated?

Most of the writing is done by staff editors and managers. In terms of successes, the controversy always gets a lot of hits. We try not to report the controversy too much unless it is fully investigated. We make sure it is 100 percent accurate before we publish the information. Regardless, if you’re an SM artist, we get tons of hits. When we first posted the news of SHINee’s comeback, we got a huge amount of traffic. It is still one of our most read articles.

How would you differentiate your blog from similar K-Pop websites?

We differentiate ourselves by working strongly with the community. We work with all communities. We brought together two of the first K-Pop conventions with our SM Town event. The KCON event is our first North American convention. So not only are we online, we also do a lot of community activities.

Let’s talk about the unprecedented popularity of Gangnam Style. The singer, PSY, has made more television appearances in the United States than any other Korean artist to date. What’s your take on the Gangnam Style phenomenon?

When I first saw it I thought it was cool, but it wasn’t really my style of music or what I liked. In the United States it started because it was a funny video. This is how it spread, like most viral videos. In terms of trends, I don’t think it is possible to maintain the popularity of Gangnam Style. I don’t think most of the people who like Gangnam Style listen to other K-Pop.

For K-Pop fans who don’t speak or understand Korean, what do you think is the appeal of the music?

I like certain types of K-Pop because it’s nice to listen to. I mostly listen to ballads and hip-hop. We don’t need to understand exactly what they are saying, but through music videos you can know what is going on. If it’s catchy, it doesn’t matter what language it’s in.

Finally, what kind of translation do you do for the blog?

We receive entertainment news directly from Korea. We check with our partner’s website to see if our translations differ. We often conduct peer reviews as well. Therefore, high-level writers will check other writers before posting, and we try to minimize error as much as possible.

Part 2

What ignited your interest in K-Pop?

Wendi: It all started with Rain. I was amazed at his talent and also who he was as a person and his struggles and his rise to fame. So yeah, I’m a huge Rain fan. Through him, I learned about MBLAQ, a group of guys that I was training. It was just a natural progression in the K-pop world from there.

Kris: For me, it started with the hit Korean drama, ‘Boys over Flowers’. I became interested in Kim Hyun Joong, later I found out that he was the leader of SS501, a K-Pop group. It sparked my interest in Korean pop music.

They are both working on an exciting site for K-Pop fans right now. Tell us a little about kPOPfix.com.

Wendi: kPOPfix is ​​a collaboration between Kristina and myself. We both love K-pop and we know how staunch K-pop fans can be. So Kristina came up with the idea to take a citizen journalism approach to K-pop. We have learned from our own experience that K-Pop fans have a lot to say and contribute, and there really was no way out for them. So we thought that a site where K-Drama and K-Pop fans could express their thoughts directly would be great. That’s kPOPfix!

What does K-Pop offer that other music genres don’t?

Kris: Offers fun, fashion and excitement. It’s the only genre of music that I know of that really upsets fans ahead of the release of a new music video. In addition, it offers an inside look at the lives of idols. Create a more intimate level of entertainment. Not to mention, it offers hot guys and girls!

Wendi: I have never seen as much time and money invested in visual appeal as I have with K-Pop entertainment companies. Everything is cute and adorable. Aegyo is a very important skill that K-Pop idols must have in order to woo their fans. They are all beautiful, the boys are so beautiful, the girls are so pretty. Also, I think K-pop is an interpretation of western pop, hip-hop and R&B, but with a very special Korean touch.

What’s your take on the Gangnam Style phenomenon?

Wendi: I am very happy for PSY, and as someone who has been following K-pop for over three years, it is a good feeling to see K-pop finally receive mainstream recognition in the US. the best to PSY and any other K-Pop crossover artist. I would love to see other artists like Rain, Big Bang or 2NE1 succeed as much as PSY has.

Kris: I think it’s cool and a little crazy how it has gotten so many views on YouTube. It has exploded overnight. I am very happy that he is putting the Korean entertainment industry on the map. However, ‘Gangnam Style’ isn’t everything, and it’s not the full definition of K-Pop. There is much more than the “horse dance”.

For K-Pop fans who don’t speak or understand Korean, what do you think is the appeal of the music?

Kris: I think it’s a combination of cool fashion, bright colors, fresh young faces. Whether you understand what they are saying or not, it is the rhythm of the music. It can be played at any club in the world.

Wendi: I find the style often used in K-Pop music to be reminiscent of the music I listened to growing up. It’s kind of retro and has a different feel to what you hear on the radio now in the West. K-pop speaks to your heart, not your head.