"Kpop Music Industry: Building the Love, One Fandom at a Time"
I’ve been musing
about my K-Pop addiction for some time now.
If you had asked me a year ago, when I was fresh into discovering
K-Dramas, if I’d ever listen to some Asian boy band in skinny jeans or cotton
candy hair, I probably would have slapped you, scoffed, and assured the
questioner with sure-fire determination: Please, I’m an adult. I even missed
the boy band craze in the 90s, though I was right in the middle of that whole
generation. I like to think I had more
sense in my younger days. That is, until I finally admitted to myself, and to
my family, what had obviously become true, and that cotton candy hair is
actually quite sexy… So why was I taken
in? When and how did I become just
another dot in the K-Pop fandom?
It’s nothing new to
refer to the K-Pop industry as hardcore manufacturers, popping out singers and
dancers regardless of talent. One
pictures the giant machine that is the Company, swallowing children whole and
popping the lucky survivors out… Voila!
Yet one more idol group loosed upon the world.
If you’re an international K-Pop fan too, it can be especially hard to
defend this system which is more often than not based on fact. It’s a defense I’m also tired of making, even
if I bring it upon myself to explain to mostly uninterested parties. There’s only so many times I can say, “Yes… well
this group does sound an awful lot like that group… but you see, here’s the
exception to that rule…and that’s why I like Group B more than I like Group G!”
Because the truth is, sometimes I even like Group S, who look and sound a lot
like Group G…
There’s a nasty
theory, which on my darkest days, even I consider a pretty good possibility: Commercialization
and the state of falling prey to commercialization. I can’t tell you how many times I have read
articles about K-Pop groups hounding on the success or non-success of a
particularly stylization of genre, concept, trend, or marketing strategy. Discussing this year’s crop of rookie groups
(generally acknowledged to be too many to count) seems to be the favorite pastime
of many K-Pop analysts, professional or hobby.
‘Will these boys be
able to distinguish themselves with their radical new concept? Will these darlings manage to create a foothold
within their target age group? Will
their management company be able to market them better, put them on enough
stages, variety programs, allow their personalities to stand out, make them
shine? Will the viewers buy it, and become lifelong fans?’
I hate the idea of
buying into something that’s been tailor-made to suit my tastes. I think most of us do on some level. Advertising companies, commercials – they come
with a nasty mechanical and impersonal label, the middle-men between corporate
profits, and our poor little pocket books.
The entertainment industry masks itself better than most, and yet it’s
the same. Our favorite K-Pop groups? Their
companies make a lot of money because of fans who show up to concerts, and buy
their products. Am I any different? Take a look at this picture, and I’ll confess:
I swooned almost as much at the box label as I did for the products inside.
It’s true. I bought
into this system. Idle Revelry’s dire prophecy happened just as they knew it would.
Part of this irks me to no end, but mainly I don’t care. I could stand and defend myself, but
sometimes we have to admit that marketing works. Whenever I see a Whataburger commercial on
the TV, guess what? I want Whataburger.
Chances are within the week, I’ll still be craving a Whataburger and go
out and buy it. I’m weak and human, and usually hungry...
As far as K-Pop, I
have to be impressed some days with its marketing as a whole. Korea is phenomenal at propagating its
culture through K-Pop and K-Dramas alike, that infamous Soft Power that makes
people half a globe away interested in the workings of a comparatively tiny
little nation sandwiched in between Japan and China. I know the relative histories of those
countries, but does their culture affect me on a daily basis? No, and that is their loss. Fundamentally, I may dislike the self-imposed
connotation that I’m just a part of this system. On the other hand, if Korea wants to continue
making and training pretty boys for me to ogle at and sing along with to
ridiculous songs, as long as I’m mostly happy, I say bring it on.
I haven't really gotten too caught up in the kpop world yet, but I have to admit that I do find myself curious and I occasionally watch the videos people post on their blogs. It's probably only a matter of time.
ReplyDelete*Note to self: Post many intriguing Kpop vids for Julie* ;)
DeleteWho knows.. this world is a miighty strange place. There are days when I want to watch a drama. And there are days when I'm too tired to focus on a drama, so I listen to Kpop. Then, there are the days when I do both.. those are interesting..
"I hate the idea of buying into something that’s been tailor-made to suit my tastes. I think most of us do on some level."
ReplyDeleteThis sentence totally applies to dramas, too. As an American, all this carefully targeted output feels creatively bankrupt: It's hard to get beyond our romantic idea that art can only made by uncompromising, humorless people dying of consumption and malnourishment in their Parisian garrets.
But then, why do we love the prepackaged K-cheese so much? ;)
It does. Though I've long since come to grips with it :D The only mystery left is how we, as the non-target audience, still love and (mostly) accept the silliness that Korean dramas tend to throw out.. all those, 'Wtf, Korea? Seriously?' moments. I guess I think the same with American TV, but then when I just don't like whatever package it's selling, I'm not also trying to conquer the cultural divide to understand why at the same time.
DeleteCouldn't have said it better! I'm such a victim to the kpop-churning machine. You can tell how hypocritical I am because when I start listening to 'too much' kpop I switch over to some Epik High, Ali, Clazziquai, Outsider etc. to make myself feel better :P I also justify myself by saying I'm a YG fan and they're sorta, kinda less produced than other companies...which is utter bs.
ReplyDeleteLoved reading your take on this!
It's all subjective isn't it? When need a break from 'kpop' I switch over to Kdrama OSTs, or pre-debut Block B rap tracks. ;)
DeleteI've come across a lot of people who would say the same- that they're not the type of people (considering their other musical tastes) as ones who you would think would become fans of boy bands and girl groups- I'm the same as you in the sense that I was never interested in boy bands even when they were popular when I was young. I'm interested in K-Pop (admittedly not all of it) for lots of reasons, but I also genuinely think as an industry, they're producing some of the most interesting pop music out there. Some of it probably feels more interesting because of the cultural differences that make it seem more exciting, but there's something to be said for the hyper-real candy coloured explosions that K-Pop currently revels in. It makes me think of K-Pop more in line with say, Die Antwoord than One Direction. Although it's highly possible I'm just a sucker for aesthetic excess.
ReplyDeleteI also find it interesting how people consider the factory like system of K-Pop- from a Korean perspective there's an element of 'well of course you would do it this way' mentality- in the sense that they privilege the idea of hard work, determination and training. There are downsides of course to such a system, and likely a seedy under belly where young boys and girls are exploited. On the other hand, from a creative perspective, I really don't believe that factory + extreme control by a company automatically equals creative vacuousness. I think severe systems like this can be the catalyst for a lot of interesting creative output as well, although obviously it's missing a lot too. Take Hollywood back during the studio system days, there was a lot of great stuff that came out of that system, even as it stifled different kinds of film-making.
We're all being manipulated by marketing, but loving products that obviously embace their commercial roots is no different from loving products that apparently are not. I don't think you can avoid the capitalist urge even when you're listening to the most obscure band on the planet. I say embrace it! I'm sorry, I really didn't mean for this comment to be so long!
No need to apologize. :D
DeleteI do agree that I think K-pop happens to be producing some of the most interesting pop music right now, and I also attribute a lot of my love for the genre because it's foreign, and therefore unique. When I listen to k-pop on my Pandora radio station, Pandora occasionally throws in music that is sometimes very similar to my k-pop station of choice, and yet I automatically dismiss it and skip songs because, 'This isn't Korean!?! I only want to hear Korean!'
I think the old Hollywood system is a great example too. Point in case: I went through a phase a few years back where I only watched movies from that era, and ignored practically every other decade of film-making after the 50s, just because at the time I only craved that certain type of movie. :)