Countdown of the 10 most important things to know about K-pop

What is K-Pop and why is it all over the place all of the sudden? What's the fuzz all about? Well, K-pop (Korean Pop) is a musical genre that is taking the world and the internet by storm. And here's why: Countdown of the 10 most important things to know about K-pop plus 10 awesome samples of K-pop music videos in ascending order of greatness.

10.- K-Pop is big! The success of K-pop largely relies on the element of suprise. It's meant to be oversized, exaggerated, something able to catch your eye in today's world of information overload. Because of this need to be overly theatrical, K-pop can often be a source of hilarity, particularly in the eyes of western viewers. Ironic appreciation derived from huge bursts of eccentric K-pop energy is the main reason Psy' "Gangnam Style" was able to break international barriers in the first place

Gangnam Style - Psy

                                             

9.- K-pop is English-heavy. Most K-pop songs have English words incorporated or even an entire chorus in English. This tells us two things 1) Korean culture is heavily Americanized  2) K-pop was always meant to have international appeal. Many may believe that K-pop's entrance into western culture is a sort of funny pop culture accident, but the truth is that the South Korean entertainment industry had already been trying to break into the North American market for years. Now watch this power pop ballad, the korean response to Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful".

Ugly - 2NE1 

       

8.- K-pop and fashion. K-pop is a major source of youthful urban fashion in Korea. K-pop and the Korean fashion industry have a close "I scratch your back, you scratch mine" relation going on in a country where fashion is of unsually high importance for teenagers and young adults. Watch this urban partying music video by "Beast" and maybe you'll see what I mean.

   Beautiful Night - Beast 

    

7.- K-pop is very, very emotional. Needless to say, it predominantely caters to women and youth. In many ways, K-pop has come to fill the void left by emotional Amercian pop music from the 1990s. Just listen to Ailee's "Heaven" and try to tell me that you don't feel the nostalgia. 

                                                                         Heaven - Ailee

                                           

6.- K-pop is dance-heavy. Just another thing K-pop has going for it in terms of universal appeal. Watch this bizarre, dance-driven video by K-pop superstars "Super Junior" 

                                                              I wanna dance - Super Junior

                                         

5.- K-pop is an outlandish collage of American and South Korean culture. Part of K-pop's charm is its unhibited devotion to mix American cultural elements from an array of decades and styles. The final effect is a peculiar, luring mixture of culturally boundless joy. Watch this video by "The Wonder Gils", an all girls band known for their highly American brand of K-pop often incorporating pop music and visual styles from 1950s and early 1960s, R & B and even Hip Hop.

                                                             Be My Baby - Wonder Girls

                                         

4.- K-pop is perhaps the first major comercial music genre that owes its success almost entirely to Youtube. Agressive Youtube and social network marketing has been a cornerstone of K-pop since at least 5 years ago. Because of this, producing K-pop videos is an expensive, ambitious and stylish endeavor. Enjoy this video by K-pop favorites "Big Bang". Guess where I first heard/saw it? 

                                                               Love Song - Big Bang

                                          

3.- K-pop creates superstars, idols, stories. K-pop often relies on large boy bands or large girl bands so young teenagers can identify, stalk, admire or fall in love with a variety of industry-designed identities. K-pop is a world of celebrity scandals, public relations and cult of personality. The success of "Girls Generation", one of the biggest K-pop acts out there, is highly dependent on this. 

                                                         Twinkle - Girls Generation 

                                      

2.- By now you can probably tell that K-pop is not about the music. Well, not only about the music. K-pop is about the high-energy bursts of creativity and big budget, flashy music videos with elaborate choreography. K-pop is a product that consists of audiovisual thrills, idolatry, narratives and, above all, performance. This next video is only further proof: 

                                                             Sherlock - SHINee

                                      

1.- K-pop is growing worldwide. South America has been host to some of the biggest K-pop tours in history and thousands of K-Pop clubs are surfacing in high schools and universities worldwide. Record stores have started to import K-pop albums and although all fads come to an end, it doesn't look like we'll witness the end of K-pop until at least two or three years from now. K-pop has a lot going for it in terms of universal appeal, it oozes youth, energy, eagerness, it's ridiculous, hilarious, catchy. But don't take my word for it and see for yourself, here's Hyuna's "Bubble Pop"  

                                                            Bubble Pop - Hyuna

                                       

  

The Gist: Micro Movie Reviews by Citizen Tex

Grading Scale: Highly Recommended Viewing, Recommended Viewing , Optional Viewing, Unadvised Viewing, Highly Unadvised Viewing


"Trance" by Danny Boyle: For the most part, Danny Boyle's latest effort is about style and ingenuity. It's an art theft thriller that revolves around the concept of hypnosis. The cast is terrific and Boyle has definitely refined his filmmaking. That being said, the effects of hypnosis seem blatantly exaggerated and the ending is kind of a tough sell; by the time the plot really starts unfolding you'll begin to realize that underneath all the elaborate plot devices there's not much to look at except a jumbled pile of neo noir fun. But if you're not expecting the next "Slumdog Millionaire", "127 Hours" or "Trainspotting" you're in for an enjoyable couple of hours. Optional Viewing.


"Spring Breakers" by Harmony Korine: It's literally the story of a bunch of teenage girls who rob a restaurant so they can have enough money to go on spring break vacation. "Spring Breakers" is probably Harmony Korine's most accessible film. Which is not saying much. I do believe, however, that in addition to being accessible it is his best, most coherent work since "Gummo". I wouldn't advise watching this film if you are unfamiliar with Korine's work, but if you are, you will be pleasantly surprised by harsh social commentary, dark ironic tone and postmodern reinvention of the idea of youthful spring break partying. Optional Viewing


"Star Trek: After Darkness" by JJ Abrams: Much like its predecessor, "After Darkness" is a major balancing act. It manages to simultaneously be a (resonably) action-packed Star Wars-ish sci fi flick and a geeky, faithful adaptation of the show that managed to capture the hearts of dozens (dozens I tell you!) of nerdy losers since the 1960s. So whether you're a clueless moviegoer or a hardcore trekkie, or anything in between, expect to be pleased and in some cases even enthused. That's the magic of JJ Abrams. Recommended Viewing


"Tabu" by Miguel Gomes: Set in colonial Africa, what a gorgeous, narratively rich film "Tabu" ended up being! Its well-crafted story is not inmediately appreciable for all its greatness, but in time you will start seeing Miguel Gomes' masterpiece for what it is: an aesthetic, cinematographic jewel of romance and storytelling. Even the prologue (it has a prologue!) is a sight for sore eyes and a story worth sharing. Highly Recommended Viewing


"The Great Gatsby" by Baz Lurhnman: Kids will love it. It's got a bitchin' soundtrack and the cinematography is so glossy it's like "Instagram: The Movie". Baz Lurhman has definitely got talents of some sorts and for the first half of the film it really shows. It may not be a great adaptation, but for the first half it starts out as an exciting, dazzling story in its own right. It's such a shame that by the end of the film, such careless, blasé take on what is often considered one of the greatest american novels ever has rendered the source material's core themes inert. By the time Tobey Maguire utters the words "tomorrow we'll run faster, stretch out our arms further" you can hardly tell why such a line would be there in the first place. Unadvised Viewing.


"Weekend" by Andrew Haigh: LGBT cinema has a pretty diverse, heterogeneous canon. It's hard to pick exactly which films would be considered "quintessential" for the gay community. I'd like to make the argument for Haigh's "Weekend", a humane, suprisingly authentic story about two men who make a genuine, raw connection over the course of a weekend. At times it may just seem like a gay chick flick, but other than that it's got a lotta soul and that alone is worth seeing, believe me. Highly Recommended Viewing.


"The Place Beyond The Pines" by Derek Cianfrance: After "Blue Valentine" Derek Cianfrance definitely has some indie cred, and "The Place Beyond the Pines" is just further proof of his very quaint American indie style of filmmaking. His latest film, a cops-and-robbers epic of sorts, is much more ambitious, insightful and self-important than his last but at the same time it feels less cohesive, more bloated, more of a disaster. Don't get me wrong, there are good scenes there, tons of stuff worth watching. It's only as a whole that the film seems lacking, longing for a clearer message. Optional Viewing