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| GIRLS’ GENERATION: Nine girls and their bubblegum cute looks recently conquered the American coasts with their super-energetic performances — looks like they’re on a roll! |
Gangnam Style stormed the world and introduced many music lovers to K-pop, short for Korean pop. But my affair with K-pop started much before the rest of the world discovered Psy and his jerky dance moves.
One of the first few videos I remember watching is I Got A Boy by Girls’ Generation, a group of nine girls, who, well, look straight out of Barbie’s world! Remember the ’90s song I’m a Barbie Girl/ In a Barbie World by Aqua? That could be them.
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| SEO TAIJI & BOYS: One of the first K-pop boy bands back in the ’80s. Their videos aren’t that widely watched anymore because of the more glamorous hi-def ones these days, but they are important in terms of discography, having triggered the K-pop craze. |
Though utterly pink, with an overdose of cheerleader cuteness, it’s impossible to take your eyes off GG, as we fans call them. Neon clothes, too much hairspray, short shorts and shorter minis and candy-coloured hair… but before you start judging me, check out their video Gee, which currently has 106,642,397 hits. That should keep you from LOL-ing.
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| PSY: He introduced K-pop to the rest of the world with Gangnam Style. What we love is his confidence in rocking that not-a-popstar body. |
Two more K-pop bands making ripples internationally are girl group 2Ne1 (pronounced as ‘21’ or ‘twenny-one’) and all-boy band Big Bang, both with a fan following in Southeast Asia that would give Bieber and One Direction a run for their money. But don’t let K-pop fans catch you comparing their ‘gods’ with Bieber’s acts! These guys are the real deal.
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| SHINHWA: The six-member boy band has stayed together for a decade. Named after the Korean word that means ‘legend’, they moved from bubblegum pop to dance songs. |
Most K-pop videos are a mash of Korean and English lyrics. Some enterprising fans of K-pop have started including subtitles. And you don’t have to know Korean to enjoy the videos. Rest assured that you’ll start getting it once you tune in enough (after a couple of 100 videos, I mean). Recently, a lot of K-pop artistes have started rapping in English, given that the bands are now doing major international gigs.
K-pop videos are full of colour — someone went crazy with a box of crayons — but they still manage to rock the style in a way nobody can. That’s the deal with K-pop — it’s addictive and you just can’t stop watching. I love the bling-bling. I love the slick dance moves. I love the catchy tunes. I love the high-powered choreography.
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| BIG BANG: With their crazy costumes and hair colour, Big Bang has arrived. Check out their hit video Fantastic Baby — judging by all the noise the video is getting, this is just the start. |
Don’t worry if you can’t get past Gangnam Style in K-pop. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea. It’s more like sweet wine, an acquired taste. I’ve got Nan Arayo by Seo Taiji & Boys on loop. Give it a try. Jeulgyeo! (That’s Korean for ‘enjoy’.)
K-POP PLAYLIST:
1) I Got A Boy by Girls’ Generation
2) I Know by Seo Taiji & Boys
3) 2gether 4ever by Shinhwa
4) Gangnam Style by Psy
5) Oh! by Girls’ Generation
6) Paparazzi by Girls’ Generation
7) Tonight by Big Bang
8) Ice Cream by Hyuna
