I read an interesting story on CNN today about the increasing popularity of Korean TV shows, music, and celebrities in Asian countries such as China and Thailand. This wave, termed "hallyu," has also been referred to as "hallyu-wood" to reflect the current cultural trend.
The numbers are staggering: in 2009, South Korea exported $3 billion in entertainment to other countries in Asia. KBS, one of the leading broadcast companies, exported $65 million last year alone.
Part of the appeal is in the shared beliefs and customs: honoring parents, hierarchy in society, and Confucianism.
You can read more in the article found here.
To my readers: what is your opinion of the Korean wave? Are you actively engaged in Korean TV, movies, and music? Is it a passing fad? Do you have trouble keeping all the dramas and K-Pop groups straight on a day-to-day basis? I'd be interested in hearing your ideas.
Oh my gosh, I LOVE k-pop as an American teenager =) I was surprised myself when I started listening to it that I could pick out who was singing in each band and could identify who was who in each band I listened to (even Super Junior at its largest, 13 members), but only if I listened to that specific band for a week or more.
ReplyDeleteIt's not that hard to keep up with. Sometimes it's a little difficult because many Korean names are similar, but it's fairly easy when you're used to it. I liked allkpop.com on facebook so I get updates on k-pop celebrity happenings, so it's also easier to keep up. I don't think it's a passing fad- a lot of my American friends (and my parents and brother) either hate it because they don't understand or just nod to agree with me so I'll shut up D; And also, because of k-pop, I discovered through videos on youtube that teaching ESL in Korea is what I want to do when I grow up... it's not a fad for me, I think it's something that I discovered and will keep forever =)
But to tell you the truth, since kdrama episodes are SO long (an hour or longer), I don't watch them as much or keep up with them ad much as I do with kpop. I've watched 3, and I have to watch them on youtube. I have watched 2 movies, one because almost the entire cast was one my favourite kpop bands, and the other because I saw a clip of one of the members in another favourite band in a funny scene, so I watched the whole thing. lol