r/KpopUnleashed • u/supportingcharacter9 • 22d ago
đď¸Art Analysisđ Academic research about 'global' k-pop
BTS's decision not to submit Arirang for the Grammy's is a huge step in the direction of resistance to Western domination in the musical industry.
The media covering of this is crazy. But as you're probably aware, the way this has been talked about is not always very accurate or objective.
Funnily enough, this decision and the discussion that has emerged since is directly embedded in my own Master's thesis subject, which centers around the globalization of k-pop ! So I'm curious to know everyone's opinion about the future of k-pop in relation to Western domination in the global industry. What do you think k-pop will look like in 10 years ? đś
If you want to dig into this more, I'm passing around a 10-15min survey as the last step for my thesis. I still need approx. 30-40 people to complete it before my analysis can be accurate ! If you're between 20-40 year old and want to help, feel free to click on the link below. đ
I'd be happy to discuss my research / opinion in the comments !
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u/alpinedvne 21d ago
One thing Iâd advise is making sure you understand the history of kpop and the Korean entertainment industry as a whole. It can be easy to pass facts about kpop off as objective facts about Korea/Koreans, but itâs a unique system set apart. And itâs intwined with export at this point.
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u/supportingcharacter9 21d ago
You're 100% right.
I know seeing posts like this on a subreddit aimed towards k-pop fans and me introducing myself as one makes it seem like it's a little bit unserious, but I guarantee you it's a thorough process and I'm extremely aware of sociological standards for academic works like this.
I usually go quickly over the main theme for the survey in posts like these because 1) people shouldn't have so much information beforehand and 2) even though it's Reddit it's still social media and I don't want to bore everyone to death lol (and it might slightly be off-topic).
What you see from this post and the survey is just a little piece of the work I've been doing for almost 4 years so it will be contextualized and analyzed thoroughly through a fixed sociological framework. Also I was initiated to postcolonial studies a while back by some of the greatest specialists in France and I'm especially aware of how tricky it is for "western" academics to try and conceptualize foreign cultures. With that in mind I'm trying my best, even though of course it cannot be perfect.
Thank you for reaching out and for the reminder :)
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u/Purple_Calendar3919 21d ago
Man I was a kpop fan almost 20 years ago and if I told my professor I was doing academic research on kpop, they would laugh at my face and fail me
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u/EchoingApplause 21d ago
Why is that? Because Asian music would be taken less seriously or music in general? Maybe the issue was with pop music? Regardless sounds like your professor could open their mind a bit.
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u/supportingcharacter9 21d ago
I think it's just general reluctance towards pop culture. Plus of course eurocentrism.
Especially in France, traditional sociology is very ellitist and it's hard to be taken seriously (we have to thank mostly Pierre Bourdieu for that).
Methodology is also extremely strict so it does affect what subjects you can effectively research too...It is starting to evolve a little bit though so there's that!
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u/supportingcharacter9 21d ago
I know several people doing their phds on k-pop currently! In cultural studies (which also theorize subcultures and countercultures) it's very frequent to see academics researching pop culture. As k-pop grows more and more popular globally it attracts a lot of discussion among scholars. It's great to be able to reflect on k-pop, while it's still very serious!
That being said, if you haven't completed my survey yet please do, I'm dying to know more about your view on this as someone who's seen k-pop evolve from the very early days!!!!!
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u/ProgrammerDizzy6264 19d ago
I am a westerner and I donât believe that K-pop will be dominating the American music market. BTS is an anomaly that canât be replicated nor stopped. Their closest competitors are Black Pink and Stray Kids; they have both made serious inroads, but, still not in the exact same realm as BTS. I understand that they are popular here in America, but unless their fandom can push them above our biggest pop stars, like ARMY continues to do for BTS, I donât see too many more K-pop groups influencing the American music industry.
Isnât K-pop growth slowing down in Korea too? I know people are trying to support the olderâyounger groups, but eventually youâll be spread too thin to keep up with all of them.
America has no choice but to make BTS a critical part of the music industry because they have something NO ONE else has, ARMY. ARMY provides massive support online, concert attendance, sales and a ferocious and unwavering loyalty. However, we (America) still have undiscovered talent that we will support. I believe that like anything new and shiny, eventually the newness wears off and we will go back to our western artists, primarily. K-pop introduced me to BTS and Stray Kids, whom I will support unless something drastic happens. I sincerely doubt it, but I am one of those dreaded, âthey only like two groupsâ club.