K-pop, as in Korean pop music, is a billion dollar business and impossible to not notice when in Korea. Needless to say it is a special music genre and very popular.
I started listening to k-pop after my arrival in South Korea. I want to listen so I can understand the culture better and I now really like some of the songs. My roommate Jaanika on the other hand already was a big fan so she can educate me with all the songs and different groups. Thank you Jaanika!
The impact of this music is huge. I wrote earlier about my reasons to choose Seoul for my student exchange but others have different reasons. Many started to learn Korean because they started listening to k-pop. The same goes for Korean dramas, which also has led to that people get more interested about Korea. A group called BTS also won over Justin Bieber at a Billboard music award. The more you know.
Three k-pop songs you need to know
I asked my roommate which three songs anyone should know and she gave some examples. These give a small taste of what the whole k-pop business is.
BTS – DNA
This one was released only a couple of days ago and already has almost 40 million views, wow.
Lee Hi – Breathe
A beautiful ballad.
Girls’ Generation – Gee
A cutesy song.
Dinosaur by Akmu is a good song and played a lot in stores and such at the moment as well as Psy’s songs, e.g. New Face. Another great groups are Block B (my favourite), IU, Black Pink, Seventeen – the options are endless and there are constantly coming up new k-pop groups.