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WINDS OF CHANGE: K-POP OF GOING GLOBAL
Collaborations with the likes of Dua Lipa, Nicki Minaj, and Jason Derulo are pushing Kpop artists into the mainstream
At a recent concert in Berlin, K-pop star Chanyeol (member of the boy group EXO) sang the classic English rock ballad Wind of Change by Scorpions. As images of the fall of the Berlin Wall played on the screen behind him, it seemed symbolic of how South Korea’s music industry is slowly but steadily breaking down geographical, cultural, and language barriers.
Need proof? One of the biggest global ambassadors of K-pop, the boy band BTS was invited for a discussion on the evolution of their music, at the Grammy Museum, Los Angeles. This was just weeks after their latest song, Idol, featuring American rapper Nicki Minaj, was released. Fast forward to last week and GOT7, another K-pop group, released their latest album, which contains a song entirely in Spanish! Collaborations with Western artists, or even performances in the West, are not new to K-pop, though. Its legends G-Dragon and CL teamed up with American musician Skrillex as far back as 2014. The Black Eyed Peas performed with CL at the 2011 MAMAs (a South Korean music award ceremony). But the last few years have seen exponential growth in the exposure Korean musicians, especially third generation K-pop acts, get worldwide, thanks to social media. Billboard’s social charts have been featuring K-pop acts quite frequently. The fans’ zealous streaming ensures that K-pop music videos boast impressive YouTube views. Here’s an example: BTS smashed YouTube viewing records with their Idol video, with over 56 million views in 24 hours, a feat held by Taylor Swift’s Look What You Made Me Do video. BTS also won Top Social Artist at the 2017 and 2018 Billboard Music Awards, dethroning Justin Bieber.
THE WORLD IS OPENING UP
K-pop’s impact can be seen even beyond social media. A contender for the title of biggest boy group in the world, EXO enthralled audiences at the Winter Olympics closing ceremony this year. The recent Asian Games invited Super Junior and iKon to perform at their closing ceremony. The inclusion of the first-ever K-pop song, Power by EXO, in the Dubai Fountain’s playlist (a major tourist highlight) was a nod to the attraction of the genre even in the Gulf.
Acknowledging K-pop’s popularity, many mainstream Western artists, including Troye Sivan, Lady Gaga, and Pharrell Williams have shown interest in Korean musicians. In an interview, singer Lorde said, “There are a lot of amazing artists in Korea. I particularly like former 2NE1 member, CL. I’d love to collaborate with her.”
LDN Noise, London-based songwriting duo told Billboard, “K-pop’s profile is being raised around the world with the incredible international fan base — songs are charting and gaining more views than ever before — so artists and labels want to be a part of it.”
LOOK OUT FOR THESE UPCOMING COLLABS
Black Pink X Dua Lipa: The English singer and the K-pop quartet have teamed up for a new song, Kiss and Make Up, for Dua Lipa’s next album.
NCT 127 X Lay X Jason Derulo: An interesting collaboration called Let’s Shut Up and Dance is in the offing. It will be a tribute to late King of Pop Michael Jackson.
BTS X Shawn Mendes: In an interview in June, the Canadian singersongwriter promised that he was working on a collaboration with BTS. “It’ll happen. Promise,” he said.