Western stars leveraging K-Pop to advance careers
SEOUL: Western stars are increasingly leveraging K-Pop to advance their own careers. Among those riding on the coat-tails of the Korean wave are Wale, Kehlani and child actress Kylie Rogers. Top among the performers being used for this cross- genre promotion are BTS. When celebrities acknowledge each other or a particular brand on social media, it’s usually strategic. Only the savvy and cynical followers of celebrity social media platforms can pick up on pr e - pl anned promotions. For every post that doesn’t get stamped with the infamous and annoying “# ad”
Tinashe, who recently made headlines for saying she would like to collaborate with BTS (and J-Hope specifically), has about 644,000 Twitter followers. Kehlani, another alternative R&B singer on the rise, told her 360,000 followers to tell BTS “holla at me!”
hashtag, there’s two or three more that serve the same purpose as advertisements without being totally explicit or in-your-face.
The official Twitter account of BTS has 5.03 million followers. Their secondary account, used by their label for announcements and promotional purposes, has 3.24 million followers.
When BTS social media accounts are active, a significant number of people are paying attention. When their name comes up in news articles and trending topics, fans and onlookers alike notice. Can the same be said for those who have name- dropped BTS?
Tinashe, who recently made headlines for saying she would like to collaborate with BTS (and J-Hope specifically), has about 644,000 Twitter followers. Kehlani, another alternative R& B singer on the rise, told her 360,000 followers to tell BTS “holla at me!”
Furthermore, although Rap Monster collaborator Wale boasts an impressive 5.36 million followers, it’s worth noting that he hasn’t had a significant hit or feature verse since 2011’s Slight Work.
While BTS has been graceful and accepting of their international praise, they are actually doing the lesser-known Western acts a huge favour.
Acts like BTS and Big Bang gain the attention of international audiences even without English-language songs, whereas acts like Tinashe and Kehlani have to work very hard to establish themselves with a more critical audience in the US and Europe.
The current state of Koreanwestern pop music relations makes it seem like Western entertainment personalities need only mention K-pop to get noticed.