K-pop is one of the most popular music genres right now and it has a lot to thank for that. Thanks to its growing global popularity, k-pop has become a symbol of Korean culture, adding even more value to the country.
Korean pop or K-pop or Korean popular music as it’s also known, has been around for over 30 years but it really took off when the digital boom happened in the early 2000s. With YouTube, video bloggers, and digital cameras at everyone’s fingertips, anyone with Internet access could share their favorite videos with people all over the world. And that’s exactly what happened when k-pop videos started going viral on YouTube in 2006. That was how global interest in Korea’s music industry grew even more.
The genre was introduced to Japan in 1999 by South Korean record producer Lee Soo Man who founded SM Entertainment. SM is one of the biggest entertainment companies in South Korea and they have dominated the k-pop scene ever since they started producing original content back in 1990. Some of your favorite artists are probably already signed up with SM Entertainment or another similarly big company like YG Entertainment or JYP Entertainment. But whether you like them or not, k-pop groups have become so popular now that they dominate radio stations and TV shows in every country where they perform! Even if you don’t care much about k-pop as a whole, you have to admit that there are some amazing
Who is the King of Kpop?
In the last decade, there has been a lot of speculation about who is the king of kpop. Some say it’s BTS while others think it’s EXO. It all depends on what you consider your favorite group to be.
The king of kpop doesn’t discriminate against gender or age; whether you are a boy or girl, old or young, everyone has an opinion on who the king is. The thing is that nobody really knows for sure because there is no one leader that dominates the entire industry like American music does. There are too many artists and agencies for one to be called king and even if someone were to take that title, they would eventually lose their throne because more and more new groups will keep forming and performing regularly in different parts of the world.
BTS
BTS is a seven-member K-pop group that was formed in 2013 by Big Hit Entertainment. Their latest album, Love Yourself: Answer, came out on August 24, 2017 and it has been breaking records ever since. The record for the highest-charting album on Billboard 200 is held by Love Yourself: Answer which debuted at number two with 155,000 equivalent album units (144,000 in traditional album sales).
BTS albums have also broken records for the longest time spent on the charts for an Asian artist with their Love Yourself: Answer album spending on the charts for over 50 weeks. The group’s most recent single Mic Drop has already hit number one and is also expected to be their first song to enter the top 10 of Billboard Hot 100 this week. BTS might be dominating YouTube right now but they’re just getting started!
EXO
K-pop is one of the most popular music genres right now and it has a lot to thank for that. Thanks to its growing global popularity, k-pop has become a symbol of Korean culture, adding even more value to the country. K-pop or Korean pop or Korean popular music as it’s also known, has been around for over 30 years but it really took off when the digital boom happened in the early 2000s. With YouTube, video bloggers, and digital cameras at everyone’s fingertips, anyone with Internet access could share their favorite videos with people all over the world. And that’s exactly what happened when k-pop videos started going viral on YouTube in 2006. That was how global interest in Korea’s music industry grew even more. The genre was introduced to Japan in 1999 by South Korean record producer Lee Soo Man who founded SM Entertainment. SM is one of the biggest entertainment companies in South Korea and they have dominated the k-pop scene ever since they started producing original content back in 1990. Some of your favorite artists are probably already signed up with SM Entertainment or another similarly big company like YG Entertainment or JYP Entertainment. But whether you like them or not, k-pop groups have become so popular now that they dominate radio stations and TV shows in every country where they perform! Even if you don’t care much about k-pop as a whole, you have to admit that there are some amazing individual artists
PSY
One of the kings of k-pop is Psy. PSY first came out in 2003 and in 2013, he had a historic performance during the ceremony for the MTV Music Awards. The rapping and dancing entertainer has received numerous awards since then but his most notable achievement is his global popularity.
PSY was born Park Jae-sang and has performed in a multitude of languages including English, Japanese, and French. He also released a few albums with his mother tongue language being Korean.
Despite not having that much success in Korea at first, PSY did eventually gain some recognition from South Korea’s music industry which is why he’s considered one of the kings of k-pop today.
2NE1
2NE1 is a popular k-pop group that was formed in 2009 by YG Entertainment. The group consists of four members: CL, Bom, Dara, and Minzy. Their debut album 2NE1 was released in 2011 with their lead single “Fire” reaching #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and their follow-up album Crush reached #1 on the Billboard World Albums Chart.
2NE1 has been recognized for its powerful vocals, choreography, and fashion sense. As one of the most popular k-pop groups in Asia, 2NE1 has sold over 12 million records worldwide. They are also known for being unique because they have a different style from other groups who usually stick to one genre or songwriting style. With so much success under their belt already, it’s guaranteed that 2NE1 will continue dominating the industry as they grow up!
SNSD (Girls’ Generation)
Girls’ Generation (SNSD) is a South Korean pop girl group formed by S.M. Entertainment in 2007. The members currently consist of Taeyeon, Sunny, Hyoyeon, Yuri, Sooyoung, Yoona, and Seohyun. They have achieved significant commercial success as well as critical acclaim since their debut in August 2007. They are also the first Asian girl group to top charts in Japan and the United States on Billboard’s World Albums Chart with their Japanese album Girls & Peace.
Girls’ Generation has accumulated an immense global following of over 100 million people from 178 countries making them one of the most popular K-pop groups today.
TaeTiSeo (TTS)
TaeTiSeo is a South Korean girl group under SM Entertainment. TTS debuted on October 3, 2012 with their first mini-album called “Twinkle”. They were the second most popular girl group in South Korea in 2012 after G-Friend and their debut single “Twinkle” was number one on the Gaon Chart for 7 consecutive weeks. They are also known as the “Nation’s Little Sister”.
TaeTiSeo has won awards such as Daesang (Grand Prize), Alreps, Golden Disc Awards, Mnet Asian Music Awards, Seoul Music Awards, and several other awards.
The Black Eyed Peas
One of the most popular artists to ever come out of the k-pop genre is Black Eyed Peas, a group that was created in 1995. The Black Eyed Peas are a hip-hop, pop rock band and this four-person group has been recognized as one of the most successful bands to ever come out of South Korea. The lead singer, Will.I.Am, has won a Grammy and two MTV Awards for his work with the Black Eyed Peas and has collaborated with some really big names like Michael Jackson and Justin Timberlake in their careers.
But it’s not just Will I Am who’s famous for being part of the Black Eyed Peas—the rest of the members have also had successful solo careers like Fergie, Apl De Ap, will.i.am and Taboo. And don’t forget about all those talented dancers! There are so many amazing moments to choose from with this group but we can say that they were able to produce some truly top-notch music that is making waves worldwide right now!
Other Acts to Watch Out For in 2019
So, what can you expect in 2019? You might be surprised to find out that 2019 is actually a really good year for K-pop! It’s not just because the genre has had waves of success over the past few years. It’s also because it seems like there’s an influx of new acts that are going to shake up the k-pop world. Let’s take a look at some of your favorite artists who will be putting out great music and getting fans excited for their latest projects in 2019!
That’s right, we totally called it! We said that BLACKPINK would be making a comeback this year with their third EP and now they’ve released their first single off of the project. Along with Jennie, Lisa, and Rose, Jisoo has finally made her comeback after being out of the industry for almost 3 years! If you still haven’t seen them perform live on stage yet, you better get your tickets ready because they are coming soon!
And now let’s talk about the legendary boy group that has been around since 1988… Big Bang is finally back with a new album so get those tickets ready early before they sell out!
We still have plenty more artists to talk about so don’t worry if these aren’t your favorites yet. There are tons of other k-pop groups that have been doing amazing things recently like NCT or Black Pearl! So check them out if you