Back in 2009, the Wonder Girls took the world by storm by being the first Korean group to ever chart on the Billboard Hot 100 with their American debut single ‘Nobody’ which later ranked no.1 on the ‘Year End Charts Hot Singles Sales’ section, topping American artists like Beyonce and Black Eyed Peas.The release of the Billboard K-Pop Chart was a testimonial to its recognition as a global genre. “We were already receiving requests for K-Pop charts from music fans of different nationalities and ethnicities few years ago. Billboard looked into the fast-spreading popularity of Hallyu and the success of Hallyu concerts in various countries” states Biilboard Korea.
More K-Pop Services
Before Billboard started servicing the chart, there was a lack of an official Korean music ranking medium for foreign fans. Now, through the Billboard chart, they can view the most up to date ranking of Korean music based on online source analysis. The Billboard K-Pop Chart uses a sound scanning system to data mine the charts of 13 online music services that are available in Korea. The collected data is then processed to provide automated rankings.
With the launch of K-Pop chart, Billboard Magazine and online Billboard Korea (www.billboard.co.kr) have begun to publish music-related news and other services. It is Billboard’s next project to customize the news to each local language abroad and service it with the K-Pop chart. Hopefully this new service will not only satisfy the craving for K-Pop fans, but will also help more Korean artists to go abroad.
Hallyu to the Next Level
The Billboard K-Pop Chart and YouTube’s K-Pop channel are not only good news for international fans but are also welcoming news to the Korean music industry in the hopes that the new services will bring Hallyu and K-Pop to the next level. . Music videos of dance groups like Big Bang, 2PM and Girl’s Generation are a big hit around the world. And behind this new wave of Hallyu is YouTube, utilized not only by ardent fans but also by Korean entertainment companies to promote their artists. Last year, YG Entertainment launched a showcase for the first solo album of G-Dragon and TOP (Big Bang members) through YouTube. The one hour streaming of eleven songs attracted 390,000 users worldwide. It is with hope that the new K-Pop services provided by the Billboard chart and YouTube’s channel will be an opportunity to promote K-Pop in places around the world that it has not reached yet, and be a starting point to introduce other Hallyu content.
My thoughts:
The internet is undoubtedly the most important medium in expanding Kpop fanbase to the world. Western fans were introduced to Kpop almost solely via the internet. With Youtube and Google paying more attention to Kpop, the fanbase in the West is now steadily growing. Google is even holding a free Kpop concert with live broadcast on 21st May, which is a big step ahead in promoting Kpop to the world. Fans can also make some noise and promote their Kpop Idols with the help of the internet. With many awards now having the online voting systems, fans have worked so hard to vote for their Idols so that they can garner more attention from the general public. Case in point; all Kpop fans united to vote for Bigbang for MTV Europe Music Awards. In turns, many new fans have discovered Bigbang, and Kpop in general.
America is the dreamland of any artists but is one very tough market to get into. With more Kpop artists like Wonder Girls, Girls Generation and JYJ debuting in the US, although they were only moderately successful (and some even consider it as a flop), they are in fact opening the path for Kpop to become household names in the US, and the rest of the world (Hey, even Will Smith mentions Wonder Girls in his interviews, yo)
English albums – Arguably, Wonder Girls’ English version of Nobody is the more popular worldwide. Their English album has garnered worldwide attentions and new fans. However, Kpop artirst need to get the lyrics proffesionally translated. Girls Generation’ English lyrics of The Boys doesn’t make sense – this will only invite critics and general public to make fun of them. Another thing to note, with Korean language out of the picture, the artists need to show the world what makes Kpop different. In other words, they need to maintain the distinct Kpop sound (and dance), or else it will be just another pop songs from Asian artists.
Korean dramas – a lot of fans (including yours truly) discovered Kpop through K-dramas which often features catchy soundtracks from Kpop artists (the “almost paaaaradise”soundtrack from Boys over Flower immediately comes to mind). With k-dramas like Protect the Boss and Love Rain being sold to European countries, this could also spread the Hallyu wave to the West.
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Last but not least, for the love of Kpop, please, dear Kpop idols: learn English. I’m sure they just need a little bit of polishing since Korean learn English in school. As much as we Kpoppers love Korean language, English is the global language. Fans, the media and general public can relate more to the artists, and they can express themselves better, without relying on translators.
karenkasimir 