Exo. Big Bang. Girl’s Generation. Ever heard of these? Did I just hear nos? Then perhaps you’ll find this one more familiar: Gangnam Style.
As a native Korean and a hardcore fan of the Korean entertainment industry, I always take it as my duty to promote this culture. This summer, I attended the 2014 CTY Summer Program, where I made an attempt to convert my professor into the fantastical world of Kpop. However, for the first time in my three years of preaching, I came across an obstacle.
As I was in a philosophy course, my professor asked me an unanswerable question: is Kpop a genre, or is it a collection of Korean songs that are popular?
So I took it upon myself to figure out an answer. I mean, I still felt the need to keep converting people. What is Kpop? There is no doubt that Kpop is obviously Korean. The capitalized “K” in its name says it all. The style of each song has similar qualities, yet the diversity in each sets Kpop from being a genre. So what now?
We all know “pop” is derived from a slightly longer term: popular. However, fans and other listeners will realize that Kpop isn’t just popular music. It definitely has its differences that sets it apart from American or Western Pop. I have narrowed down the differences into three points.
Rhythm and Beats
Firstly, the rhythms within each word in Korean make it impossible for the beats of the songs to be the same as the American pop. A single Korean word is divided into distinct syllables; most English words are not. For example, the word “ate” in English would be considered to have one syllable. In Korean pronunciations, “ate” would sound something like this: eh-ee-te. Three syllables.
Choreography
Dancing in Kpop is a must. Without choreography, the song would not be considered to be a part of Kpop unless the song is part of an album in which the title song would have choreography. Even for such songs, for the duration of concerts, the group would be assigned some kind of choreography. What’s the most famous part of Gangnam Style? That’s right. The so-called “Horse Dance.” Girl’s Generation’s award-winning song, I Got a Boy, too, has a complex choreography, that most don’t even try to venture. My personal favourite band (my “bias” in Kpop fangirl terms), Exo, has swept over the entire continent of Asia and is seeping into Europe. The twelve members are famous for their precise, accurate, in sync choreography.
Groups and Parts
Many non-fans (antis as we call them) argue that Kpop groups have too many members. I don’t disagree with this fact. Super Junior is most famous for having thirteen members in total. Next is Exo with twelve members. Then Girl’s Generation with nine. While the large number of people may seem distracting, the division of parts makes every member equally important. There is no doubt each member in the groups were chosen for talents in singing and dancing, but there is always a designated leader, vocal, or vocals in larger groups, rappers, dancers, visuals, instrumentalists, and many more. The leader is not always the oldest; the leader may be chosen for having the longest training. The vocals sometimes do separate projects, sub-units, and even solos. The dancers always do the demonstrations in interviews and other shows. The visuals are basically the most important roles; they’re the ones in the front of the group in posters, CD covers, etc. The problem is that because they’re always in the spotlight, fans are more familiar with them and they usually have larger fanclubs than other members.
Kpop, to me, is more than just a bunch of popular songs. It’s even past a genre. The interactions between the idols and fans disqualify Kpop as a genre; I see Kpop as a culture. However, this is not to say that the entire Korean culture revolves around Kpop.