Converging theory and practice, this book provides a unique analysis of Korean youth’s attempts to become global celebrities within the growing K-pop phenomenon, which is rapidly becoming part of global media systems and culture. K-pop has become one of the most popular cultural forms in the global music markets, despite having a relatively new global presence. Its recent spread around the world suggests that K-pop exists as a local-based genre of music in global markets, including Western markets. Unlike other existing books on K-pop, which mainly focus solely on academic analyses or industrial perspectives, K-Pop Idols: Popular Culture and the Emergence of Korean Music Industry combines theory with industry and musical aesthetics. Following the idol group Nine Muses through a year-long chronicle, the authors portray the everyday lives of young girls relentlessly pursuing happiness, satisfaction, and the achievement of their dreams in the K-pop world.
Focusing on female idols’ proliferation in the South Korean popular music (K-pop) industry since the late 1990s, Gooyong Kim critically analyzes structural conditions of possibilities in contemporary popular music from production to consumption. Kim contextualizes the success of K-pop within Korea’s development trajectories, scrutinizing how a formula of developments from the country’ rapid industrial modernization (1960s-1980s) was updated and re-applied in the K-pop industry when the state had to implement a series of neoliberal reformations mandated by the IMF. To that end, applying Michel Foucault’s discussion on governmentality, a biopolitical dimension of neoliberalism, Kim argues how the regime of free market capitalism updates and reproduces itself by 1) forming a strategic alliance of interests with the state, and 2) using popular culture to facilitate individuals’ subjectification and subjectivation processes to become neoliberal agents. As to an importance of K-pop female idols, Kim indicates a sustained utility/legacy of the nation’s century-long patriarchy in a neoliberal development agenda. Young female talents have been mobilized and deployed in the neoliberal culture industry in a similar way to how un-wed, obedient female workers were exploited and disposed on the sweatshop factory floors to sustain the state’s export-oriented, labor-intensive manufacturing industry policy during its rapid developmental stage decades ago. In this respect, Kim maintains how a post-feminist, neoliberal discourse of girl power has marketed young, female talents as effective commodities, and how K-pop female idols exert biopolitical power as an active ideological apparatus that pleasurably perpetuates and legitimates neoliberal mantras in individuals’ everyday lives. Thus, Kim reveals there is a strategic convergence between Korea’s lingering legacies of patriarchy, developmentalism, and neoliberalism. While the current K-pop literature is micro-scopic and celebratory, Kim advances the scholarship by multi-perspectival, critical approaches. With a well-balanced perspective by micro-scopic textual analyses of music videos and macro-scopic examinations of historical and political economy backgrounds, Kim’s book provides a wealth of intriguing research agendas on the phenomenon, and will be a useful reference in International/ Intercultural Communication, Political Economy of the Media, Cultural/ Media Studies, Gender/ Sexuality Studies, Asian Studies, and Korean Studies.
-How to pass k-pop audition -Tips & Advices for k-pop audition participants -How to become a k-pop idol -Stories behind k-pop stars' trainee life and debut -Written by an experienced k-pop journalist Do you want to become a k-pop idol? Do you want to become a k-pop trainee to realize your dream? Well, the most common way to start off on a long journey to become a k-pop idol is to take part in various k-pop agencies’ auditions. K-pop agencies usually have year-round audition schedules, and they always pay attention to find talented would be singers. You can take part in k-pop auditions either online or offline. If you apply for an online audition, you can put in an application by e-mail and attach a video that shows yourself singing and dancing. If you apply for an offline audition, you should attend the audition and sing in front of the judges. And if you pass the audition, yeah, you can become a k-pop trainee. It doesn’t guarantee your debut, though. Becoming a k-pop singer requires years of training, and you should compete with the other talented trainees too. As a k-pop trainee, you will take a variety of lessons such as singing lessons, dancing lessons and personality educations, while you will have a test periodically. And you will also have to go on a diet to improve your figure. It’s never easy to become a k-pop idol, huh? By the way, the question here is how you can pass your audition and become a k-pop trainee. You may be able to search for various information about k-pop auditions on the Internet, but you know, there is no one who tells you about the actual way how you can pass your audition and become a k-pop trainee. So, here’s what you’ve been waiting for. Kpop Audition Bible: How to become a k-pop idol includes all the stories about k-pop audition. The author, who has been working as a k-pop journalist since 2010 gives you answers to questions such as “What is the evaluation standard of k-pop audition?”, “I’m fat and ugly. Can I become a k-pop trainee?” and “I’m a foreigner. Can I become a k-pop trainee?”. And the book also contains tips & advices for k-pop audition participants and a variety of stories behind k-pop idols’ trainee life and debut. If you want to become a k-pop idol and you want to become a k-pop trainee to realize your dream, Kpop Audition Bible: How to become a k-pop idol must be a very useful guide for you. We dedicate this book to all the potential k-pop idols all over the world. Go for it, guys!
-Unknown stories about kpop stars such as BTS, EXO, BIGBANG, TWICE, BLACKPINK and more -Korean stars' real personality -With whom and how they date -How much they earn Aren’t you curious about k-pop stars’ real personality? Aren’t you curious about unknown stories about them? Here’s what you’ve been waiting for! Kpop Secret is released! Welcome to the real world of k-pop. We tried to include all the secret stories about Korean entertainment industry in Kpop Secret. We want to share all the stories behind k-pop stars with fans all over the world.
K-pop, described by Time Magazine in 2012 as "South Korea’s greatest export", has rapidly achieved a large worldwide audience of devoted fans largely through distribution over the Internet. This book examines the phenomenon, and discusses the reasons for its success. It considers the national and transnational conditions that have played a role in K-pop’s ascendancy, and explores how they relate to post-colonial modernisation, post-Cold War politics in East Asia, connections with the Korean diaspora, and the state-initiated campaign to accumulate soft power. As it is particularly concerned with fandom and cultural agency, it analyses fan practices, discourses, and underlying psychologies within their local habitus as well as in expanding topographies of online networks. Overall, the book addresses the question of how far "Asian culture" can be global in a truly meaningful way, and how popular culture from a "marginal" nation has become a global phenomenon.
There are so many k-pop boy groups, while the groups are too numerous to mention one by one. However, some of them just disappear after debut, and only a very small minority of k-pop boy groups can become popular. By the way, there is a boy group who has been on the steady rise since its debut and is now considered as one of the most popular k-pop idol groups. Yeah, it’s BTS. As BTS is enjoying a huge popularity at home and abroad, many people in the k-pop world are now saying "The boy group is the future of k-pop." Actually, BTS' success is considered as being very special by people in the k-pop industry. Because BTS is in Big Hit entertainment, which is not as big k-pop agency as SM, YG, or JYP. Achieving success as an idol group of small and medium agency in the k-pop word is much harder than you could ever have imagined, and that’s why BTS deserves to be called “The k-pop pioneer”. Then, what do you think is the reason for BTS’ great success? First, the main reason for BTS' success is that the boy group differentiated itself from other boy groups by doing "real hip hop" music. The group writes its own music and sings about teenager's life, arousing empathy from young k-pop fans. Second, some of BTS fans may disagree, but the members have ordinary looks unlike other pretty k-pop idols. They’re not traditionally good-looking, and frankly speaking, I thought they are too ugly to be idols when I saw BTS for the first time. However, because of this, they could become the hottest idol group. I mean, fans could feel more comfortable and familiar with the members because they do not look like cartoon characters. Third, BTS is an idol group, but its members, Rap Monster and Suga have released their mixtapes just like underground rappers do. By doing so, they stressed the fact that they’re different from other puppet like idols. Especially, Rap Monster, who has polished his rap skills in the Korean underground hip hop scene before debut is getting the spotlight in the k-pop industry by showing off his outstanding rapping ability. He’s been active not only as an idol but also as a rapper, and he was also featured as a rapper in the album of MFBTY, comprised of Tiger JK, Yoon Mirae, and Bizzy who are considered as heavyweights in the Korean hip hop scene. BTS certainly succeeded in fascinating k-pop fans and it’s mainly because of the group’s image as a skilled hip hop idol. Oh, it's not just an image. The BTS members have sufficient performing skills and always prove it on the stage. Unlike other puppet like k-pop idol groups, they enjoy the stage and show high quality live performance. Have you been to BTS’ concert? It’s really gorgeous. So, are you a big fan of BTS? Do you want to know all the stories about BTS members? < BTS: The k-pop pioneer> contains all the things about BTS. The author, who has been working as a k-pop journalist since 2010 gives you answers to all the questions about BTS such as “What are their real personality like?”, “What were they like in school?” and “How did they become k-pop idols?”. The book also includes various stories behind BTS members. So, welcome to the real world of k-pop. Enjoy your time, and love yourself!
This book is about K-pop dance and the evolution and presence of its dance fandom on social media. Based on five years of ethnographic fieldwork, interviews, choreography, and participation-observation with 40 amateur and professional K-pop dancers in New York, California, and Seoul, the book traces the evolution of K-pop dance from the 1980s to the 2020s and explains its distinctive feature called ‘gestural point choreography’ – front-driven, two-dimensional, decorative and charming movements of the upper body and face – as an example of what the author theorizes as ‘social media dance.’ It also explores K-pop cover dance as a form of intercultural performance, suggesting that, by imitating and idolizing K-pop dance, fans are eventually ‘fandoming’ themselves and their bodies. Presenting an ethnographic study of K-pop dance and its fandom, this book will be a valuable resource for students and scholars of Media Studies, Korean Studies, Performance Studies, and Dance.
Minjoo is a 16-year-old girl who has always dreamed of being a k-pop star. Fortunately, she passes her 21st audition and becomes a trainee of Fish Entertainment, one of the biggest k-pop agencies. There she meets two handsome trainees, Minho and Giho, both of whom like her. And she continues her efforts to realize her dream. However, she’s faced with an unexpected ordeal. Can Minjoo realize her dream by debuting as a k-pop idol? And will she be happy together with her boyfriend? This novel has been reconstituted based on a true story. The author has been working as a k-pop journalist since 2010 and has heard many stories regarding k-pop idols’ love and dating. He included the stories in the novel, and the book also contains unknown facts about the k-pop industry.
Pop City examines the use of Korean television dramas and K-pop music to promote urban and rural places in South Korea. Building on the phenomenon of Korean pop culture, Youjeong Oh argues that pop culture–featured place selling mediates two separate domains: political decentralization and the globalization of Korean popular culture. By analyzing the process of culture-featured place marketing, Pop City shows that urban spaces are produced and sold just like TV dramas and pop idols by promoting spectacular images rather than substantial physical and cultural qualities. Oh demonstrates how the speculative, image-based, and consumer-exploitive nature of popular culture shapes the commodification of urban space and ultimately argues that pop culture–mediated place promotion entails the domination of urban space by capital in more sophisticated and fetishized ways.
