Korean Music Discussion - Page 4770

On May 27 2013 13:58 Cramsy wrote:

CrispiCrunch maintain to be the only group who look like they actually enjoy what they're doing

Also, what's Italy's problem with Korea?

On May 27 2013 22:12 Portvilla wrote:
Seems like the perfect time to start a discussion on how the kpop scene is going atm.

Focusing on the girl side, I don't even want to start a conversation on how a female group/artist can break into the US market. The language barrier/completely different culture in how they act/dress/dance makes it impossible to do so. But lately, the songs have just been really stale this year . There have been no standouts, and the girls just keep doing their same old cutesy dance with no vocal abilities whatsoever.

Is the flimsy foundation of bad vocals and good looks that kpop is built on starting to show for anyone else....or am I just having a mid-life-kpop-crisis? help??

On May 27 2013 22:12 Portvilla wrote:
Seems like the perfect time to start a discussion on how the kpop scene is going atm.

Focusing on the girl side, I don't even want to start a conversation on how a female group/artist can break into the US market. The language barrier/completely different culture in how they act/dress/dance makes it impossible to do so. But lately, the songs have just been really stale this year . There have been no standouts, and the girls just keep doing their same old cutesy dance with no vocal abilities whatsoever.

Is the flimsy foundation of bad vocals and good looks that kpop is built on starting to show for anyone else....or am I just having a mid-life-kpop-crisis? help??

On May 27 2013 22:21 Cubu wrote:

sorry for being off topic but
They got screwed over by the referee in korea vs italy match in 2002 world cup. Also, that match against spain and portugal really made it suspicious that the ref might have been bribed to favour. I want to believe that it was just stupid refereeing, but with korea having quite a history with corruption, i wouldn't be surprised if the ref was bribed.

On May 27 2013 22:50 Prog455 wrote:


I don't think the scene is more stale now than it used to be. Compared these two videoes:

Shinhwa 2001:
+ Show Spoiler +

Shinhwa 2013:
+ Show Spoiler +

It is still basicly a boy band dancing in sync. Not that it is a bad thing though. The appeal of k-pop is that it is kitch, and works as an outlet for peoples bad taste. It can be very liberating to listen to k-pop because what you see it was you get, which is hot girls singing and dancing in a commercial context. Nothing more, nothing less.

On May 27 2013 22:20 klogg wrote:
You are just seeing K-pop for what it is for the first time.

On May 27 2013 18:09 Wesso wrote:
+ Show Spoiler +

I really like this song, not big on the other ones.

On May 28 2013 00:45 SamsungStar wrote:


Yes, this is what Kpop has always been. Pretty girls trained in a robotic sort of way to do heavily choreographed dances, which they continue to do repeatedly in every live performance with very little innovation or variation in style. In a very sophisticated and competitive market like the USA, the shallow and stagnant nature of Kpop becomes quite apparent.

You contrast their performances, which are literally just recreations of the dances in their MVs with the kinds of performances put on by Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Britney Spears, Beyonce, etc, and what point is there to ever be interested in kpop?

The only real draw for Kpop for foreigners is the fact that they're singing in a language you don't understand with a different aesthetic to the one you're used to, therefore you are one step removed from the shallow, vapidness of it all. That allows you to enjoy it without realizing how mindnumbingly stupid the lyrics are, whereas with songs in English most of you understand it quite well and realize it's mostly doodoo.

Another possible reason is that as Asian-American/Europeans, there is a sense of pride and desire to see people of your own ethnicity playing the pop star. And listening to Kpop is a sort of Asian pride thing.

But even so, at least in American pop, a singer tends to have one specific identity as an artist and writes/performs songs that fit their image. Pink is all rebellious rocker chick. Kesha is ironic party girl. Rihanna is soulful yet dysfunctional bad girl. Britney is fierce girl power. Nicki Minaj is a maniacal BBW rapper.

But then you look at Kpop and most of the groups are downright schizophrenic. They have no identity at all. One song they're going for a "cute concept." The next it's a "sexy concept." After that they're pretending to be middle schoolers. There's no rhyme or reason to it, other than what sort of tune gets tossed their way by the producers/companies. And that leads to shallow music, because the girls are really just glorified back-up singers/dancers.

You know 100% when a Rihanna, Mariah Carey, or Adele song starts to play. Can you say the same for APink? Orange Caramel? Secret? I often find myself really really liking one song from a group. Then the next single they release is pure crap. And why? Because the girls aren't responsible for the music. Some producer is who gets shuffled off to release a track for another group the next month. There are a few exceptions to this. IU is distinctive. Ailee is a knockoff beyonce but at least I know when I hear Beyonce in korean it's probably Ailee. BEG have their own distinct style. There are a few that stand out, but by and large the majority of Kpop is really generic and interchangeable.

All the same, I do like Kpop and find the colorfulness and choreographed dancing etc to be entertaining in their own sort of way. But do I think it will play well in a country that prizes individuality and creativity like the USA? Hell no.

On May 28 2013 02:30 .DrK wrote:


sums up my thoughts on why i don't enjoy k-pop minus a few exceptions.