K-Pop: What Exactly Is It?

Most people have never listened to Korean Pop, or even thought about it. But as more and more big name producers queue up to work with acts from South Korea, is that about to change?

In the last few years, a musical revolution has taken place in South Korea. There was a shift from balladry and soft rock, to "K-Pop", a mesh of pop, rock, rap and dance music. In a short period of time, the music industry in South Korea was revitalised. Dozens of K-Pop acts have been successfully launched since. Debuting a new act is taken very serious by the labels, with many having years of training in singing, dancing and acting before releasing a single.

Despite the fact that the acts are usually singing in a hybrid of English and Korean, it doesn't really matter that you can't understand the words. When it's done right, like any genre of music, you can feel it and appreciate it regardless. Korean Pop as it stands combines the sheer abandon of 90's pop with a "harder" edge. Acts such as SHINee and 2NE1 combine both singers and rappers within the group, with joyful pop choruses often seguing into fast and furious raps. It all adds up to a synthy sugar rush, with many tracks having real lasting appeal.

Even without breaking the West, Korean acts are having huge success. BoA, above performing Dress Off has sold 24 million albums, figures acts in the "bigger" territories like the UK or USA can mostly only dream of. In fact, South Korea is one of the few markets to have had strong growth in sales over the last decade.

There are some frustrating aspects to K-Pop, however. Full albums are a rare thing, with most acts choosing to release singles and mini-albums largely comprised of said singles. For those importing, it's often hard to justify the costs for the amount of music you're getting. 

Although it's still largely a national phenomenon, acts are starting to push outside their borders, thanks in large part to the internet. In the last year, several groups have begun to have big hits in neighbouring countries. This includes artists such as Kara and SNSD having top ten hits in Japan (becoming the first foreign girl bands to appear in the Oricon top ten since The Nolans nearly thirty years ago). BoA has also landed the lead in an upcoming Hollywood dance film. Add to this the fact that several groups are venturing on tours to both Europe and America, and it seems less and less likely that the genre will continued to be confined to South Korea. It's unlikely to become a dominant force in Western mainstream, but it's proven that it's still possible for music industry growth.

Check out:

Go Away - 2NE1 by ikpopox

8) Bang! - After School by Tenshhi