K-Pop (ending)

Popularity and influence

Having visited many different concerts, I was amazed by Korean pop music. The staging, choreography and performance were amazing, but more importantly, I felt the soul of the music. Korean music has a bright future. Quincy Jones in an interview with a Korean magazine.

The largest consumer of Korean pop music is Japan, this genre is 7.81% of its music market, and this share is growing. In 2011, sales of Korean performers in the country exceeded $ 300 million, which is 22% higher than last year, despite the overall decline in sales in the Japanese music market.


More and more American artists agree to work with the Korean, among them such famous musicians as Kanye West and Jonas Brothers. In addition, Korean pop music was favorably appreciated by such famous music producers as Quincy Jones, Teddy Riley, and Grammy producer Alicia Keys.

Billboard magazine since 2011 has begun to publish a hot hundred key-pop (Billboard Korea K-pop Hot 100), and YouTube, at a meeting with the President of South Korea, announced the opening of a special channel at youtube.com/KPOP. The New York festival of Korean pop music gathered more than 40,000 visitors, and the French concerts were held with 14,000 sold out. Korean singer Rain topped the list of one hundred most influential people in 2011 according to readers of Time magazine, and CNN called key pop a third reason to visit Korea. Big Bang hit the top 10 iTunes service and received the Best World Artist award at the MTV EMA 2011 awards. SHINee became the first Korean band to hold a concert in London, while other Korean bands began to appear frequently in the tops of German MTV. Wonder Girls became the first Korean pop group to lead the Billboard Hot 100.

Analysts attribute the success of the Korean pop industry to the fact that its marketing model is different from global practice. First of all, it is a developed system of fan clubs, thematic institutions and services for fans, as well as the active participation of idols in communicating with fans through social networks. This was also facilitated by active support and distribution of products and information via the Internet thanks to social networks, portals and video resources.

Governance and Corruption

Korean pop industry is often criticized. The fact that large agencies are trying to get the maximum profit from young talents and the contracts tightly link the career of singers with themselves, the BBC called "contract slavery." They often conclude exclusive contracts with performers for many years, which, according to some opinions, is simply not profitable for musicians financially. Leading companies in this business are often criticized for trying to make the most of their money on musicians and planning excessive work schedules. In June 2009, a trial was held with the participation of SM Entertainment, who were accused of abusing and creating too heavy work hours for members of TVXQ and Super Junior, as a result of which the court ruled in favor of the musicians.

In 2009, actress Chang Ja Yong, known for her participation in the popular drama “Boys more beautiful than flowers”, committed suicide and accused the manager and a number of directors of inducing sexual acts in a farewell note. In April 2012, the police arrested the owner of the label and the agency, accusing him of systematic sexual harassment and threats.

In 2002, Time reported that a number of Korean television producers were arrested on charges of organizing a system of fees for guaranteed performances for young bands and performers. According to the Seoul District Attorney, Kim Kyuhon, the arrest was only a small part of a widespread investigation of systemic corruption in the Korean music business. According to The Economist, corruption is rampant in Korean show business, in 2011, 29 radio and television officials were arrested on charges, and the shadow income from the manipulation of official position is more than 30 million won.

Creation

As for the musical characteristics of the genre, the conveyor nature of the production of key pop music, as well as its commercial orientation, is subject to the greatest criticism. Some critics also blame the genre for thoughtless imitation of American pop music, highlighting in Korean pop music “superficial or just meaningless lyrics mixed with simple English phrases, endless imitators of more successful performers and a general lack of originality.” Others accused the genre of artificiality and focus on the external effect more than on music.

But at the moment, K-pop is still moving forward. BTS debuted in America at the annual American Music Awards festival. Also, the band became the first to ever surpass the 300,000,000 votes at the Billboard Music Awards, setting a world record for BBMAs.

The magazine "New York" notes that the Korean girl group recruited girls according to external data, which are then improved by plastic surgery, and called the songs "easily remembered, but non-original." The main factor in the popularity of these groups, the magazine calls the appearance of the participants, and not the music, while responding very highly to their “modesty” and attitude towards the fans. "When you see them on stage, it seems that they came to you personally."

Among other problems, propaganda of sexual violence is also called, according to some critics, caused by the overt sexuality of Korean performers.

Obsessed fans

The main point in K-pop criticism is the preoccupation of some fans of the genre, as well as their impulsiveness and inclination to invade the personal life of musicians. For naming such fans, the term “Sasen” is used in Korea, mostly girls and young girls. It is known that some fans hire taxis to secretly spy on their idols, and firms openly offer their services for this kind of thing. Korean officials recognized the uniqueness of this problem, and also expressed concern about it.

At one of the press conferences, JYJ participants confirmed cases of such harassment, as well as attempts to interfere in their lives. According to the singers, there were repeated attempts to hack their houses, taking photographs of the premises and stealing personal belongings. The band members faced a similar phenomenon as early as 2004, when their debut album was released. Near the home of one of the band members, Pak Yucheon, the fans installed a number of hidden video cameras, and the singer Yon Yunho from another group, someone added superglue to the cocktail, after which he had to provide medical care. Subsequently, it turned out that behind this was one of the haters of the group.