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THE 7 MOST IMPORTANT K-POP ENTITIES TO KNOW

2021-07-01T22:56:34.436Z

K-pop artists such as BTS and EXO, as well as BLACKPINK and Red Velvet, have taken the world by storm. If you didn't know, K-pop singers are handled by a variety of entertainment firms after years of training, with many beginnings as early as the age of 13. We've compiled a list of seven of the most important Korean music industry organizations to be aware of — read on to discover more about the businesses that represent some of your favorite K-pop acts.

Check out some of the finest K-pop female bands of all time while you're here.

SM Entertainment is a production company based in Singapore.

Since the inception of the Korean idol group movement, even before TVXQ's peak in the mid-2000s, SM Entertainment has been one of the most powerful K-pop organizations. It was one of the first to house training facilities for trainees in their adolescent years, changing the business. It was founded in 1989 by Soo-man Lee, who is also regarded as the pioneer of the Korean wave. In the mid-to-late 1990s, SM's initial idol groups were boy band H.O.T. and girl group S.E.S., and with groups like TVXQ and Girls' Generation, the company expanded into overseas markets such as Japan. With newer acts like Red Velvet and NCT 127, the company is thriving, and TVXQ, EXO, and even Super Junior are all contemplating comebacks.

JYP Entertainment is a Korean entertainment company.

JYP Entertainment, established by famous musician Jin-young Park, is another K-pop pioneer. The firm has developed a solid reputation for its performers and is also recognized for conducting worldwide auditions to identify fresh talents overseas, with the founder appearing in several K-pop audition events. JYP is most recognized for its main performers, which include Wonder Girls, Suzy Bae of Miss A, and more recently TWICE, GOT7, and ITZY. It all started with 1st generation boy band g.o.d. Although the firm tried to expand internationally earlier with the popular song "Nobody" by the Wonder Girls, it was able to break through later in 2016 with TWICE and ITZY, one of the newest girl groups that just took first row at Louis Vuitton's latest Cruise 2020 show in New York.

YG Entertainment is a Korean entertainment company.

YG Entertainment is still a significant K-pop label, with global names like Big Bang, 2NE1, and BLACKPINK. Despite the recent controversy surrounding Big Bang's Seungri and his club Burning Sun, which led to the founder's departure from the label, YG Entertainment is still a notable K-pop company with global names like Big Bang, 2NE1, and BLACKPINK. Jennie, Rosé, Jisoo, and Lisa have all been invited to some of the world's most prestigious fashion and entertainment events, including Coachella. The label has been so successful that Tencent, a Chinese social networking firm, has invested $85 million in the company, giving it a 4.5 percent stake.

Entertainment that is a big hit

Big Hit Entertainment, which began as a tiny label, exploded after BTS became one of the most successful K-pop groups of all time. While BTS is the company's main emphasis, it also houses TOMORROW x TOGETHER, a new boy band that released their debut album earlier this year in March. We're looking forward to seeing what BTS has in store for Big Hit Entertainment after appearances at the Grammy Awards and the Billboard Music Awards.

Cube Entertainment is a company that specializes on providing entertainment

Cube Entertainment was at its pinnacle in the late 2000s with idol groups BEAST and 4 Minute, however the two groups are no longer with the business. The label, which currently represents PENTAGON, BTOB, CLC, and (G)I-DLE, has lately expanded into international markets, with (G)I-DLE collaborating with Sephora and Memebox on Kaja Beauty.

Pledis Entertainment is a company that specializes on providing entertainment to

Pledis Entertainment rose to prominence in the late 2000s following the release of After School, a girl group, and Orange Caramel, a unit group. While the two groups have taken a break from the K-pop scene, the business has recently focused on boy bands NU'EST and SEVENTEEN, as well as female group Pristin.

P Nation is a group of people that are passionate

P Nation, while being a tiny and fledgling firm, has garnered a lot of attention since its inception in May of last year. The agency was founded by PSY, the singer of "Gangnam Style," and has signed notable artists such as HyunA and E'Dawn from K-pop, as well as Korean American singer and rapper Jessi. PSY's fans are still waiting for further information on which musicians he will work with in the coming years.

How did K-pop become so popular throughout the world?

2021-07-01T22:54:19.333Z

Is there any place nowadays where you can't discover K-pop? With K-pop now performing at Coachella, major American and British musicians working with Korean groups, and stadium tours throughout the globe selling out in seconds, it's safe to say that K-pop has cemented its position in music and established itself as a household brand. But how did this come to be? Here's how K-pop exploded in popularity, breaking through barriers all around the world.

Part 1: K-beginnings pop's

The KPop Craze featured that the term "K-pop" didn't exist in Korea until the early 1990s. Sure, there was Korean pop, but it was aimed mostly at the older generation, who had grown up listening to Korean trot (a genre with its own characteristic two-beat rhythm) following the 1970s ban on American pop.

Korean pop music grew in popularity in the 1970s and 1980s, but it had its own distinct style that was rarely recognized outside of Korea. Younger folks get their pop fix by listening to international music. Then, in 1992, a television talent shows irrevocably transformed the face of Korean pop. Seo Taiji and Boys debuted with a hip hop, rap, and Europop sound, but with Korean lyrics. The judges didn't like it, but the people did, and the guys rocketed to the top of the charts.

Their popularity spawned a new generation of Korean singers who experimented with many musical influences, and K-pop began to expand throughout Asia. Idol bands were created particularly for a young audience, with people chosen to appeal to a worldwide audience.

Part 2: hallyu, or the Korean Wave

The word hallyu was developed to describe the phenomena of South Korean culture spreading and gaining popularity throughout the world. K-pop and K-drama originally gained popularity in other Asian countries, notably in the East and Southeast. Korea has completely adopted social media platforms such as Facebook (unlike other Asian nations like China, who have their own networks and rarely use international social feeds). This meant that K-pop could be readily shared online and spread throughout the world with minimal effort.

K-pop groups are built for success, not only musically, but also aesthetically. Perfectly executed dance routines, larger-than-life music videos, colorful clothing, and memorable melodies in the songs themselves are the ideal combination for appealing to a wider audience – particularly teenagers. Korean groups had become well-known across virtually all of Asia by the late 2000s, and K-pop was gaining traction.

Part 3: Gangnam Style.

We couldn't discuss how K-pop grew so successful throughout the world without including Psy. Gangnam Style was the first video to reach a billion views on YouTube, and it maintained the top place for five years. This was a watershed moment for Korean music, with the entire globe enthralled, showing that lyrics don't have to be understood to appreciate a song.

While Gangnam Style was more of a novelty song in the world of K-pop, it opened eyes and gave birth to a following. People all across the world began streaming K-pop in unprecedented volumes. The videos became famous thanks to the fans, with YouTube video views skyrocketing in a matter of hours. The Korean Wave has now spread throughout the globe, with these popular videos trending on everyone's YouTube home page.

Part 4: YouTube sensations

Without the Internet, where would K-pop be today? In the last few years, fandoms have exploded all over the world, with nearly every K-pop group now having their own dedicated group of fans eager to push their favorite artist to the top of web streaming platforms and shatter records left, right, and center.

In April 2019, BTS (Bangtan Boys), one of Korea's most prominent boy bands, released their track "Boy With Luv," which became an instant hit. It became the most-watched music video in the first 24 hours of its release, just days after Blackpink, a Korean girl group, accomplished the same feat with their single, "Kill This Love." Thanks to spectacular graphics, irresistible earworm songs, and dance routines that demand to be emulated – even if you have two left feet – K-pop had finally reached the charts in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Australia, and was here to stay.

Korean is rapidly gaining in popularity as a result of the Korean Wave. Students enrolling in university Korean courses increased by 14% in only three years, according to a report by the Modern Language Association in the United States, and Korean is one of our fastest-growing language study programs at ESL, especially among under 18s! Thousands of people now visit the nation to learn more about the language, to immerse themselves in Korean culture, and to dance to K-pop tunes in the place where it all started.

Why not see what all the fuss is about? A language stay is an excellent place to begin if you want to learn more about Korean culture and the country that gave rise to the Korean Wave. You'll fall in love with Korea just as we did!