Killing 2Birds with 1Stone: Korean Wave

K-pop (an abbreviation of Korean pop, 케이팝 (kei-pap)) is a musical genre originated in South Korea, it refers to all genres of "popular music" but it is more often used to refer to a modern form of pop music such as : dance-pop, pop ballad, electronic, rock, metal, hip-hop music and R&B. The French audiovisual organization Institut national de l'audiovisuel defines K-pop as a fusion of synthesized music, sharp dance routines and fashionable, colorful outfits combining with the musical elements of electro, disco, rock, R&B, and hip-hop.

It is part of the Korean Wave (a neologism refering to the increase in popularity in South Korean culture since the 1990s, also known as Hallyu), which started with the spreading of K-dramas all around Asia and becoming a global phenomenon due to the spreading of K-pop music videos on YouTube. Also part of this Korean Wave are the language, technology (smartphones and automobiles) animated comics and films, and the cuisine.

We could say K-pop officialy started with a band called Seo Taiji & Boys, created in 1992. All along the 19th century Western culture arrived at Korea through the perfomances of artists like Louis Armstrong and Marilyn Monroe for the U.S. soldiers in Korea, after the Korean War. Little by little, the wersten culture influenced Korean culture and different music bands started to emerge. Seo Taiji & Boys brought a turning point in the hirtory of K-pop because they dealt with the problems of Koren society. They paved the way for the "success format" of K-pop songs by creating a change in the music industry of South Korea. As a result, the integration of foreign musical elements has now become a common practice in the K-pop industry. Thanks to Youtube and other social networking services, K pop has created a enormus mass of fans, for instance in 2013 there were 987 fan clubs with 9.3 million members. According to a 2011 survey conducted by the Korean Culture and Information Service, the total number of active members in Hallyu (Korean Wave) fan clubs around the world is estimated to have surpassed 3 million for the first time. Since the mid-2000s, the K-pop music market has experienced double digit growth rates and it is mostly present in Latin America, Middle East, North Africa, Northeast India, Eastern Europe, ... For example in 2011 France had over 100,000 number of hallyu fans.

Personally, I'm a fan of K-pop since 2011, and it really liked it when I discovered it. Since the I've been listening to different K-pop songs, and I could say one of my favorite bands is SHINee, among others like EXO, SNSD, Super Junior, ...

In addition to this, as I'm talking about the Korean Wave, I would like to say one or two things about the K-dramas, that in some way was the trigger of it all.

K-dramas refers to televised dramas in the Korean language, made in South Korea, mostly in a miniseries format, with distinctive features that set it apart from regular Western television series or soap operas. Korean dramas can be set in contemporary times or in historical settings. There are different genres that apply to these two types, from romantic comedies and action series to fusion science fiction dramas. South Korea started braodcatisng tv series in the 1960s but the actual dramas started in the 1990s. Korean dramas are popular worldwide, partially due to the spread of the Korean wave, with streaming services that offer multiple language subtitles. Some of the most famous dramas have been broadcast via traditional television channels; for example, Dae Jang Geum (2003) was sold to 91 countries.

Music plays an important role in Korean dramas. Original soundtracks, abbreviated OST, are explicitly made for each series, and in contrast to American series, fans have a need to buy the soundtrack album of dramas. This trend started in the 1990s, when producers swapped purely instrumental soundtracks for songs performed by popular K-pop singers. Tom Larsen, director of YA Entertainment, a distributor of Korean TV series, thinks that Korean soundtracks are polished enough musically to be considered standalone hits.

These are some of the dramas I have seen and liked: