My Slight Obsession with K Pop Bands
The last few weeks, I have been so caught up with two popular Korean bands, whether on youtube or on Spotify, because one day I decided out of boredom to learn the names of all the members of BTS when they released their latest single. My exposure to K pop music stemmed from my fitness classes, K Pop X and K Kardio. Their music is very catchy and are great to dance or work out to and you truly get to enjoy yourself even you're deadbeat tired trying to make those moves.
So there were a lot of fan made videos of the band's appearances on variety programmes that showed the silliness of the members and behind the scenes video footages where you get to know their personalities better. Speaking of performances, you can't hep but be captivated by their high energy singing and choreography done in synchronisation without missing a beat. It's not easy and requires many hours of training but they get better and better with each performance. They are also multi talented performers because they have to sing, dance and rap and every song has their own unique choreography. Besides being performers, some of them can write songs, produce music and come up with the dance choreography.
Every other US artists wants to collaborate with them or have collaborated with them though at times, their fans think that some of them are just leveraging on their popularity.
Recently, they became the first Korean band to win one of the major awards at the Billboard Music Awards which is a very big deal. They got to perform at the Rose Bowl too where few major artists have performed and are currently on tour in America and South America. This achievement showed how successful they are and their overwhelming support from their fans called ARMY has brought them to various parts of the world where each time, they are warmly welcomed by these fans.
If I have not seen these videos, I wouldn't think of them beyond being performers adored by millions of their local and international fans. I came to understand how BTS became so big because they were relatable and their songs, influenced by music of different genres, were written based on real life situations that fans could also relate.
Their personalities were also very interesting and though I can't pick a favourite, if I were to choose one, it would be Jin because he was such a people person and language is no barrier for him. He is also very humble as he went around making quick random conversations with people as he toured around during his free time when travelling with his band, lol. He didn't have any airs like look at me, I am a celebrity, and instead of people asking to take picture with him, he asked to take pictures of those random people he got to know, for his own memories.
He is also very cute when he's angry haha..I know that sounds weird, but it truly is! He would start to talk very fast and nag like some old uncle. But it didn't stop his other members from picking on him even though he's the oldest because he gets along with each one of them so well. And one more thing that I like about him, is that he's very 'extra'..such as naming his team with his full name and coming up with a quick cheer based on his namesake. To me, he is truly having the time of his life without getting fame get into his head. He definitely epitomise living an idol life.
But for these Korean bands, whether girl or boy bands, they look out for each other, whether they're performing on stage or off stage, because living and practising together for years brought them closer. Being Idols, they don't have much interaction with the outside world unless they take part in these outdoor variety programmes, and their phone usage is also limited to avoid distractions. The pressure of being in the limelight can be so overwhelming that what we see on camera, whether or not they're performing, can be very different from how they are off camera. In 2017, a member of a popular Korean band, took his life, as he faced depression and loneliness of being an idol which reveals how stressful being an idol can be. They somehow still have to put on the show and not let their agencies and their massive groups of fans down as things can get competitive as more and more Korean bands emerge.
I do not think this K Pop obsession will die down any sooner because these bands are getting so much media coverage from overseas. They still have their haters who believe that they're just some cookie cutter boy bands because most of them are seriously good looking but of course, talented too, but they choose to believe they're not making good music, just popular and appealing music. Whatever it is, wishing these bands much success in life and to take care of their mental well being too.
So there were a lot of fan made videos of the band's appearances on variety programmes that showed the silliness of the members and behind the scenes video footages where you get to know their personalities better. Speaking of performances, you can't hep but be captivated by their high energy singing and choreography done in synchronisation without missing a beat. It's not easy and requires many hours of training but they get better and better with each performance. They are also multi talented performers because they have to sing, dance and rap and every song has their own unique choreography. Besides being performers, some of them can write songs, produce music and come up with the dance choreography.
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| Monsta X |
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| BTS |
Every other US artists wants to collaborate with them or have collaborated with them though at times, their fans think that some of them are just leveraging on their popularity.
Recently, they became the first Korean band to win one of the major awards at the Billboard Music Awards which is a very big deal. They got to perform at the Rose Bowl too where few major artists have performed and are currently on tour in America and South America. This achievement showed how successful they are and their overwhelming support from their fans called ARMY has brought them to various parts of the world where each time, they are warmly welcomed by these fans.
If I have not seen these videos, I wouldn't think of them beyond being performers adored by millions of their local and international fans. I came to understand how BTS became so big because they were relatable and their songs, influenced by music of different genres, were written based on real life situations that fans could also relate.
Their personalities were also very interesting and though I can't pick a favourite, if I were to choose one, it would be Jin because he was such a people person and language is no barrier for him. He is also very humble as he went around making quick random conversations with people as he toured around during his free time when travelling with his band, lol. He didn't have any airs like look at me, I am a celebrity, and instead of people asking to take picture with him, he asked to take pictures of those random people he got to know, for his own memories.
He is also very cute when he's angry haha..I know that sounds weird, but it truly is! He would start to talk very fast and nag like some old uncle. But it didn't stop his other members from picking on him even though he's the oldest because he gets along with each one of them so well. And one more thing that I like about him, is that he's very 'extra'..such as naming his team with his full name and coming up with a quick cheer based on his namesake. To me, he is truly having the time of his life without getting fame get into his head. He definitely epitomise living an idol life.
But for these Korean bands, whether girl or boy bands, they look out for each other, whether they're performing on stage or off stage, because living and practising together for years brought them closer. Being Idols, they don't have much interaction with the outside world unless they take part in these outdoor variety programmes, and their phone usage is also limited to avoid distractions. The pressure of being in the limelight can be so overwhelming that what we see on camera, whether or not they're performing, can be very different from how they are off camera. In 2017, a member of a popular Korean band, took his life, as he faced depression and loneliness of being an idol which reveals how stressful being an idol can be. They somehow still have to put on the show and not let their agencies and their massive groups of fans down as things can get competitive as more and more Korean bands emerge.
I do not think this K Pop obsession will die down any sooner because these bands are getting so much media coverage from overseas. They still have their haters who believe that they're just some cookie cutter boy bands because most of them are seriously good looking but of course, talented too, but they choose to believe they're not making good music, just popular and appealing music. Whatever it is, wishing these bands much success in life and to take care of their mental well being too.
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