“Do not wait for a miracle, the hard path in front can be an unknown future and a challenge, but we cannot give up. ” This translates ‘into the new world’ by Girl’s Generation, a K-Pop song or Korean pop music that has been used several times as a hymn of peaceful protest in South Korea and that has been interpreted again by the protesters who requested the dismissal of the president of the Asian country.
The K-Pop-Music Pop performed by young groups of several members who dance, sing and rappel-is the flagship phenomenon of the ‘Hallyu’, or the ‘Korean wave’, which also includes the series called K-Drams, as well as by Example ‘The squid game’, cosmetics, clothing, gastronomy, movies, literature and comics. Its popularity is such that only music injected annually more than 9,320 million euros to the national economy.
From the declaration of the Martial Law on December 4 and until the recent arrest of President South Korean Yoon Suk-Yool, the Internet has been captivated by the Korean manifestations. With creative banks and light sticks by the different K-Pop fans-better known as LIGHTSICKS-, These meetings could be confused with street concerts. “We sing new K-POP songs and also some folk song,” explains from Korea to Eldiario.es Kang Dahee, one of the protesters, “we use music to protest peacefully.”
It is not the first time that K-Pop and its followers move to defend a political cause. In the United States, during the political campaign of Donald Trump in 2020, thousands of seats of his rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, were reserved by K-Pop fans, which later did not appear, with the aim of boycotting the event.
International conflicts have also influenced the reaction of fans. In the last concert of the Onlyoneof group in the Razzmataz room in Barcelona, a group collected donations selling stickers with the Palestinian flag and the text “Lyons (It is the name that the group fans receive) For Palestine. “Even if it is in a K-Pop concert, or any other type of genre, we should have social awareness,” explains Anna, 25 years old, one of those attending the event that wore the pro-palestinian sticker.
This K-Pop fans show that, selling stickers or doing political acts does not harm the event, on the contrary, “shows a facet of young people and fans of certain musical genres that are never attributed to us: commitment and commitment and commitment and humanity”.
Not only are fans. Also musicians who emerged from the K-Pop such as Jae Park, former member of the Day6 band, of the JYP company, one of the most influential agencies of Korean artists, speaks openly against genocide and, being a American citizen, questions Trump’s statements Through X.
Also in Spain, during the same year, the K-Pop had its moment of stardom when on Twitter-now X-the hashtag became viral ”#Fachaqueveofachaquefancameo” This initiative was based on hanging in the comments section of the publications of ultra -right -party parties such as Vox Videos of Korean artists in vertical format – because they occupy more – called FANCAMS. In this way, with saturated responses, these publications were annulled as a tool for disseminating ultras.
The strategy of FANCAMEO It has been used on several occasions and is always a sample of the organization and coordination of K-Pop fans. Another example was shortly after the murder of George Floyd, when Dallas Police created an application so that citizens could upload videos of uncivic behaviors that reached directly to security forces. Well, again, there were the Kpopersthat with thousands of videos of FANCAM They managed to drop the application.
The political use of K-Pop music contrasts with the forced neutrality of the industry. “The idols (term used for singers of this genre) In general they avoid getting involved in politics, ”explain the administrators of the Fans account of the Ateez Korean group in Barcelona,“ sometimes by their own decision and other times because their agency does not allows ”. The reason is the protection of the artist’s image, who does not want to create confrontations. Even so, there are exceptions: “especially the most veterans, who play it a bit and decide to support certain causes,” add the administrators.
An example was Edam Entertainment, the music company of singer IU, one of the most famous artists of Korea, who offered food and hands heater for all fans who participated in the protests last December. And also some Idolsdespite not being able to explain their support, they wanted to give signs. An example was Wooyoung, one of the members of the ATEEZ group, who published messages advising his fans be careful not to go cold and sharing the song of ‘Into the New World’ by Girl’s Generation, a well -known protest anthem among fans of the fans of the fans of the fans of the K-pop
Many fans use K-pop as a claim. It is heard and observed in the peaceful protests of South Korea, until now better known as ‘candle protests’. They were called like this because the protesters carried candles in their beginnings, but now they have been replaced by LIGHTSICKS of different K-Pop groups that colo the agglomerations. These lights, which are normally seen in K-Pop concerts and events, reached the demonstrations as another claim: “A congressman said that the candles went out when there is wind,” explains Kang Dahee, who manifests itself with her Lightsick De Astro, “that’s why we carry LIGHTSICKSbecause, although the blow wind does not go out. ”
The Korean wave in Barcelona
The K-Pop has been an international phenomenon for almost a decade, with certain groups having even more sales outside its native country than inside. In the streets of Barcelona, in front of reflexive surfaces such as the glass walls of the Pompeu Fabra University in the Glòries, it is easy to find K-Pop cover groups rehearsing the choreographies of the last COMEBAKCS – Word used for when an artist from the Asian industry draws a new song or album. The trend is so common that in the university enclosure they got posters asking to maintain the volume of low music during teaching hours.
K-pop fans know whether or not to dance, they usually meet in events such as the Manga Salon, but also in smaller ones that organize among them to celebrate their favorite groups. In the center of Barcelona, in the busy T4 Bubble Tea (Cafeteria specialized in a typical Taiwan drink made with tapioca balls), this type of activities organized by groups of local fans can be found. The followers of the K-Pop Ateez group, who will act for the first time in Barcelona in February, convened on December 7 to their community for a special day to celebrate the news.
The meeting was the idea of the administrators of the Ateez Fans account in Barcelona, which was created in 2021. There they regularly report the activities of the group and translate the information of the Korean, so they accumulate more than 4,000 followers in X and more 3,000 on Instagram. “It’s not just music,” says the administrators, “it’s art, it’s very visual and work hard to offer these Performances”
It is true that to understand the K-Pop you have to go beyond music. It is a phenomenon that connects very well with fans because each group and each idol They generate content continuously. It is common for various albums per year and are constantly uploading videos and making direct on the networks, where they even organize events and video calls with fans.
“I was living a bad time and felt the k-pop like me Safe Placemy shelter, ”explains Candy, 30. She, a professor by profession but now works as a clerk, began to listen to K-Pop years ago and ensures that the continuity of the content kept her animated. “You feel that you have another friend at a distance that will never fail you,” he says.
Therefore, the community is also very active in networks, which facilitates the organization and coordination when making protests or claims of a more political nature. In fact, K-pop fans, among all musical genres, are the most likely to create and share short videos with the music of their favorite artists.
A musical genre that revives physical sales
The enthusiasm and community that is generated around this Korean music also translates monetary and materially, being K-Pop five of the ten best-selling music albums in 2023, according to data from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry ( IFPI), among them the number one, ‘FML’ of the Seventeen Group, and number two, ‘5-Star’ by Stray Kids.
“In the K-Pop there is a lot of collecting,” explain the administrators of the Ateez Barcelona fans account. This Korean music has regained CD sales in young generations that have grown with digital media. According to the Luminate company, among all music listeners, those who listen to K-pop is more likely to buy a physical CD.
It also corroborates it The state of the music industry in 2024 of the International Fonographic Industry Federation (IFPI), which points to almost half the sales of physical albums in the world are given in the Asia region with 49.2% of CD sales revenue, with special emphasis on The K-Pop.
Within the albums, which many times have more than one version to collect, there are some cards called Photocards where small photographs of one of the group members appear. They come inside the albums and you never know which one will play, so there are fans who buy various albums to collect several. “Many exchanges are made and many friendships are created thanks to that,” add the administrators of Ateez Barcelona.
The strength of the K-Pop and the fans community, which has transcended various countries and political causes, does not seem to weaken. In their native country, protesters have generated a new culture of protest where they share food and, those who cannot attend in person, send paid orders at home for participants as a support sign. “This culture is something recent that did not happen with the dismissal of the previous president,” says Kang Dahee to eldiario.es, “we will meet until the president is necessary.”
#KPop #political #concert #social #awareness
