Back in 2018, when I was just a K-pop fan with no interest in anything ‘Korean’ besides idols and languages, I never acknowledged traditional stuff. When BTS launched ‘IDOL’, it honestly surprised me how wonderful it is to mix Korean heritage with modern pop. In my opinion,I really admire their

K-pop fans are uniquely different from other fans in how they consume content. While typical fans passively listen to music or buy product, K-pop fans,on the other hand, transform into active creators, becoming one of the driving forces behind the industry.

In 2026, the newer K-pop generation has become more cautious about cultural appropriation. Not only have companies become highly circumspect in music production and concept, but the idols themselves also have to be highly careful about their behavior. It’s a result of audiences becoming more

The first things that come right to my mind when we discuss what’s driving change in K-pop girl group sexualization and objectification are the artists themselves and the fandom. In the K-pop industry, there are plenty of female artists who clearly express their attitude, despite the

Masculinity’ in K-pop has been a hot topic of discussion within the industry and among fans. Many K-pop idols with the 꽃미남 (flower boy) aesthetic are criticized for not being "real men" just because they don’t act the way society expects men to. But what does being a "real man" actually mean?

When discussing the male gaze, the one idol we can’t forget to mention is Hyuna, the all-time K-pop sexy icon. I’ve been watching her since I was a child and always thought her primary audience was men, especially since I didn't even know what the 'male gaze' was back then. youtu.be/bw9CALKOvAI?...

ENHYPEN are ambassadors for several brands, both individually or as a group.However, the most relavant colllaboration with ads and an actual song campaign is the ENHYPEN x Pokemon, with the theme song 'One and Only'. youtu.be/CJsZTiYnRgI?...

At first,I thought artists would get a high percentage of profits as performers because they're the one who are on-air. But from what I learned deeper today about copyrights and royalties,it showed that the artists are being paid way fewer than they should be paid

Watching K-pop growing globally is considered a pride for the locals , or among Asians. However, it's still frustrating to see that in Western society , K-pop still can't shake off 'Orientalism' that has been rooted in the world since ancient time. Even now,their success is often called 'inorganic'

JYPE , on of the biggest company among the K-pop industry , was founded by Park Jin-Young. But behind this successful company, Park Jinyoung didn't originally want to form a company. His path in this industry has been challenging for him. nolae.eu/blogs/overvi...

In this class,we discussed Korean Folk music and how it is associated with Korean politics. Similar to general folk songs, the lyrics convey philosophies of life,and daily experiences.Yet it uses common instruments and easy-listening melodies that give us the feeling of hope and freedom

Reading about the "Music and oppression in the 1970s" article made me realize that musical production of Korea in the 1970s was beyond melody, it also showed the burden of being controlled by the government. Artists barely had any freedom both in terms of their lyrics or musical expression.

When discussing Korean music,it’s essential to mention diverse range of genres exist. As I personally a huge fan of Rock n’ roll,I’d like to introduce ‘Korean Rock n roll godfather,Shin Joong-Hyun (신중현). One of his masterpieces is Beautiful rivers and mountains(아름다운 강산). youtu.be/sVWCLB5Q9YY?...

I’d like to discuss Gim Haesong and Bak Hyangnim’s ‘전화일기‘, a Jazz song introduced in the 1900s. This type of song,specifically 전화일기 which also includes 3 languages lyrics,were seen as ‘lack of Koreaness’ in some perceived sense as it’s pretty far away from traditional youtu.be/ZIcIThm1A2s?...

According to Korean disheartening history,it became an extremely sensitive topic to all Koreans. The fact that they’ve been colonized and dehumanized by the Japan colonial,it grew national consciousness among Koreans. www.koreaherald.com/article/3039...

For Heeseung’s departure on the March 10,there has been massive wave of fans activism,including mass online protests with different hashtags and prompts for each day. They’re using online platform to call out for ENHYPEN Heeseung. This prompt is referring to how BELIFT LAB allegedly ‘suppressing’

The term "idol" is not only a performer,but also a person who is admired,idealized , and emotionally looked up to. They are constructed public figure who represents beauty,moral perfection,etc. To put it harshly,sometimes they can seem like puppets of the company. They're expected to make revenues