Malcolm MacKenzie - Idols of K-Pop: Your Must-Have Guide to Whos Who

Contents

Contents BTS is you get the idea.She has aegyo, but do you know who else does?Here are two members of NCTturn to for the other 900.Steady yourselves, its EXO.Is it hot in here or is it just Wanna One?TWICE has tons of talent.Find SEVENTEEN . Awkward, arent we?If you like Red Velvet, youll love Victoria Sponge.K-pop doesnt just popit explodes like a confetti cannon! T he first time you experience K-pop, it seems like a lot, like A LOT, but when you snap back to reality, everything is drab by comparison: slow, predictable, and BORING. The pop music coming out of the South Korean capital, Seoul, is a juggernaut of exuberanceonce heard, never forgotten. It devours references from everywhere, feeding them into the K-pop meglo-machineuntil something astonishing emerges, shining like the future. That in a nutshell is BTS, TWICE, and EXO, and all the bands that cannot be contained by lowercase letters. and S.E.S. The second-generation artists like Girls Generation, Super Junior, and Big Bang went mainstream pop and started to have massive hits all over Asia in the mid-2000s. The second-generation artists like Girls Generation, Super Junior, and Big Bang went mainstream pop and started to have massive hits all over Asia in the mid-2000s.

This was the beginning of the Hallyu Wave. The third generation came around 2010 with idol groups 2NE1, SHINee, SISTAR, and Psy. The fourth generation probably emerged around 2015, when slick artists like EXO, BLACKPINK, TWICE, Red Velvet, and of course BTS started killing it globally. **This is not science, peopleits just a fun debate**Jennie (BLACKPINK) represents the 4th generation of K-pop (or is it the 5th? Or the 3rd?).Trainees say: Pick me! Unlike the UK and US business models, where managers and record companies put together bands because they look nice and can hold a tune, in Korea wannabe pop stars typically audition for special companies (SM, JYP, YG, etc.) that train them for years on how to sing and dance and basically become flawless entertainers. Only the very best will launch as idols. Lead vocalist: another great singer who often starts and ends the song. Sub-vocalists: the other singers who fill in the gaps. Main rapper: the best rapper in the band, who will get most of the rap parts. Lead rapper: the next most talented rapper. Sub-rappers: the back up rappers. Main dancer: the best dancer in the band. Lead dancer: the next most talented dancer. Leader: the one who leads and represents the group. Maknae: the youngest. Visual: the most typically attractive member according to Korean beauty ideals. Center: the one who tends to be in the middle. Face: the member whos most popular. Idols can have one role or many roles, and sometimes even switch roles.Take a deep dive into 11 things that make K-pop tick.1 Agencies In most countries, record labels run the music industry. Idols can have one role or many roles, and sometimes even switch roles.Take a deep dive into 11 things that make K-pop tick.1 Agencies In most countries, record labels run the music industry.

In South Korea, its a whole other ball-gameyknow, like Quidditch except with billions of dollars. Monolithic companies (SM, JM, Cube, JYP, Big Hit) exist to train kids and turn them into stars, a bit like the old studio system in Hollywood, except way tougherLassie had it easy. 2 Bulletproof Boy Scouts BTS has single-handedly (14-handedly?) changed the game. Not just for K-pop but how we think about music. Suddenly songs in a different language dont seem strange. 3 Capital letters The names of groups and idols are a cocktail of capital letters. 3 Capital letters The names of groups and idols are a cocktail of capital letters.

Sometimes its a full word like WINNER, an acronym like BTS, or a single letter like HyunA. Capital letters are powerful and strong with all their sharp edges and shouty attitude, plus this stylistic choice makes the words easier to read. 4 Dance routines American boy bands and girl bands have tended to scrape by on charisma. They mightve bopped about or had a few routines but jaw-dropping dancers like Kai (EXO), Jimin (BTS), or Momo (TWICE) have the skills of Maddie Ziegler, and its ONLY one part of what they do. EXO are the kings of choreo. 6 Frequency K-pop artists follow the little-and-often rule, releasing content on the regular and mixing up formats to keep things fresh. 6 Frequency K-pop artists follow the little-and-often rule, releasing content on the regular and mixing up formats to keep things fresh.

In 2018 alone, TWICE released two EPs including the killer What Is Love, a revamped album Summer Nights, super-kawaii Japanese album BDZ, six addicting singles, and eight glorious videos. 7 Gender challenging They wear makeup, have hair like cotton candy, and arent afraid to express their emotions: welcome to the world of male idols. These boys could have come straight from Lisa Simpsons beloved Non-Threatening Boys magazine, and thats part of their appealtheyre polite, pretty, and totally relatable.

Next page