How Popular is Kpop in Korea?

[@hhelenawang]

You guys debunk every internet myth. Hands down the best channel on Kpop ever.

[@wisejack7975]

Yeah, Please stop asking me about K-pop because I'm Korean. K-pop is just a genre of the dance music in Korea and there are so many different types of Korean music. If I don't like dance music, then it means I don't know jack shit about K-pop, but I listen to Korean ballad. Is K-pop super big in Korea? Among teenagers, yes. Do all Koreans love K-pop? No.

[@lynnkueh]

+trust Hello I am BTS fan and not underage.

[@lynnkueh]

+trust You mentioned a lot of Kpop fans are underage and naive. And they do not have the money to travel. I have to admit a lot of international kpop fans are sadly. Some are like just 10 years old and some do not have money to buy albums as they are not working. I am not kpop just BTS fan and being an old fan it is lonely. Plus I find it a struggle even to join their official fan club as they prefer Korean fans I think. Used to be Apop.

[@lynnkueh]

+trust I know and I agreed with your a lot.

[@Natiree]

+Wise Jack Ballad is so pretty! ^_^ ♥

[@jessica4656]

+Herro Mongorian okay...but you talk as if you have a great wealth of knowledge on koreaboos...like you've been studying them or something...

[@MADEbySOUL]

"Meh, Kpop is ok. We know it exists. We don't love it but it's ok sometimes you know?" Exactly how I feel about American music. Is it really possible that a lot of native feel the same way about the music from their own country? So, they listen to songs they don't understand just for something different?

[@noricenojams]

MADEbySOUL it could be!! I'm from Spain and I never liked spanish music; in fact I've always listened to amerian/english music and that's how I learn english. The last year I discovered kpop and now I barely hear apop anymore... so yeah XD maybe you're so used to your native music that it gets boring

[@MADEbySOUL]

Mery Sky​ That is so amazing you did that! My father did that too when he immigrated here! Your English is great too!

[@noricenojams]

MADEbySOUL thanks so much ^^ I failed english in year 8, but that summer I started to love music so much and that's how I done it. Now I want to learn korean through kpop but it's way difficult than english TT your father also learned by music??

[@MADEbySOUL]

Yeah, and so did my grandparents. They were in South America and my dad listened to bands like The Beatles and loved it. He would learn the notes for songs and try his best to keep up with the lyrics. I've been trying to learn spanish to speak with my relatives but it's been so hard. All the conjugations are so hard for me to learn.

[@somethingstuffles9084]

MADEbySOUL Yeah I think so, I like songs in other languages for its different sounds/vibrations. I really enjoy foreign songs for this reason. My motherlanguage for example: Dutch, is very difficult to make it sound good in a song. To me it sounds very direct and unprofessional (like a farmer?) whereas English sounds cool, smooth and professional. It can also make things sound more funny for some reason. (except certain thick American accents and certain English ones) A lot of góod Dutch artists sing in English anyways. Most songs in Dutch have a very annoying folk/pub sound to them. (a few songs I kínda like are: Marco Borsato - Afscheid nemen bestaat niet, Abel - Onderweg, lange frans & baas b - het land van/zinloos) Then things like Italian, Spanish, Greek and Finnish has the extra rolling R and other specific sounds that can sound very beautiful in a song (Il Volo - grande amore, Manu Chao - me gustas tú, Koza Mostra - Alcohol is free and Turisas - the bosphorus freezes over) it has a charm that wouldn't be there if it was sung in English. Some German songs also sound better with its distinctive sound (Peter fox - alles neu and andreas bourani - auf uns) I'm personally not much of a western-pop (keep in mind that the songs you hear on the radio in America aren't all American, take Destine, Dotan or Kensington for example, they're Dutch) or asian-pop fan, but I really like EXO-K. They're the only pop group I currently like :p I'll check the lyrics to see if the lyrics is meaningfull or innapropriate, which could either enhance or decrease the listening experience.

[@yaelovesdietcoke]

I saw T.O.P in the thumbnail, had to click it. Stayed for the video.

[@lilianna9486]

Same

[@lashayholmes9488]

I'm pretty sure Martina made the thumbnail lol :-D

[@Ayy_Doll_Fiddler]

I just listened to Busker Busker. The fact that such bands exist proves that Korean Music Industry can still be saved. They're awesome. Reminded me of the first time Coldplay became famous.

[@christinebrown47]

No, K-pop is better! *no sarcasm intended

[@ThisZebraHasDots]

They literally just said that

[@Svaltz]

I'm Korean living in Korea but I'm a hardcore metal fan...

[@MrTuohitorvi]

Interesting. As a metal fan from Finland I'd love to know what kinda metal bands do you listen to?

[@Haylem]

MrTuohitorvi Weird as heck music 0.0 not regular metal....

[@Xamarth1]

How's the metal scene there?

[@RavenHikari]

I am a hardcore metal and rock fan, but kpop is my guilty pleasure

[@Kami42w]

RavenHikari literally same I love hardcore and punk but some kpop is definitely great

[@errorglitch6191]

I've noticed a lot more Korean comments in Busker Busker videos than in kpop videos, kpop videos are filled with English comments. Which is quite strange...

[@rbx211]

+Kitty Kata with a Cherry on top I've also seen many other videos that have different languages and they are also filled with English comments. Do you think videos that are in a certain language should only be commented by the people who speak the language?

[@deesaurus]

+Mighty Duck I think Kitty is just noticing that there seems to be a lot more english viewers watching kpop videos than koreans themselves - which is pretty much the point of this video

[@errorglitch6191]

deesaurus ^ exactly.

[@iprobablydislikeyou2735]

ERROR True but many Korean kpop fans comment in English anyway and we have our own Korean sites for idols, you know?(not that I use them as I can't read Hangul lol)

[@jueunjojo9489]

I lived in Korea before , and I went to school there, and there were group of kpop fans with different fan clubs. They support their own group. I mean seriously they were having a conversation saying if beast is better than infinite.. Yea kpop groups are very well known to younger generations

[@pixii89]

i think the easiest way to help people understand is that k pop is just one type of genre here in korea. The term kpop refers to that one genre, not the whole music industry in Korea.

[@jailene3107]

+sunni bae Exactly my point!

[@elizabethdill9099]

I'm not surprised I notice that on official MV on youtube most the people commenting are people outside korea and every once in a while I'll see someone say they or in Korea and love the song or see something fully written in hangul

[@madameaqua90]

Wow so true. I'm with the older generation whereas I first listened to 1tym, TVXQ, Big Bang, Se7en back in 2005/2006 and then, MBLAQ, Mighty Mouth, Epik High, FoCuZ, Super Junior, B2ST, SHINee, in my late teens. I feel so old. I fell in love with other groups like f(x), after school, 2NE1, EXO- M and K later like 2010. I'll still listen here and there to new groups but I prefer the my oldies but goodies.

[@fatalshot0093]

I dated a Korean. She hated it when I said K-Pop references or sing K-Pop songs to her. There were least 8 Koreans in my university including her (at the time of writing this comment). Only ONE of those Koreans liked K-Pop as much as I dis (although she was an EXO-L and only an EXO-L). She was the only Korean I knew (at the time) I could comfortably talk to about K-Pop.

[@sinha03]

The thing I find the most interesting about this is at first I was shocked, but when I thought about it, it makes sense. Whenever kpop bands come onto shows and talk about themselves I've realized they always talk about how popular they are in other countries; like how ze:a is really popular in southeast asia; they never talk about their popularity in korea. I always thought its to show the reach of their popularity, but its interesting they don't mention korea because they might not be popular in korea. wow. more for me! lol

[@junghashin3582]

I can't stop being surprised about your videos. Every. single. video clips. that you made is SO ACCURATE

[@fraschi89]

Every month here in buenos aires some kpop fans have arranged themselves organizing an entire kpop party in a club. The first time that ive attended the meeting i was so shocked...many or maybe the most of them were younger than me...hehe. and there were many songs that ive actually never heard. And of course some classics like "abracadabra" "lucifer" and stuff. This is the nearest thing that i know such as kpop club.

[@Byam09]

donde se haceee? soy de bs as!

[@claire1909]

Younger Koreans (early teens) will usually keep up with kpop idols pretty well, but they kinda grow out of it. Once you reach the late teen age-group, they'll be into a few of their favorite groups and the really famous ones, but other than that, they rarely keep up with the idols. I used to be really up to date with my kpop in my early teens, but after I entered college, I don't know most of the groups on music programs anymore. Then again, the number of kpop idol groups have grown exponentially over the last few years...

[@Piscesxire]

Still going crazy for 2ne1 and its been YEARS 💕 #Blackjack4ever

[@ceceliablack3317]

What were the songs they mentioned playing everywhere? I know they mentioned Big Bang's Fantastic Baby, but that's all I remember! Help!

[@vivilu1585]

G-Dragon That's xx

[@lianneveen553]

I cheated - G-Dragon & Park Myung Soo feat Park Bom

[@vsh1998]

Lianne Veen myungsoo as in L from infinite??

[@lianneveen553]

Bitch Please No, he's a different guy. I don't know the details, either; I just know his name :P

[@vsh1998]

Lianne Veen yea, i just watched the video and this Myungsoo is like a 40+ year old ahjussi lol... but thanx anyway :)

[@gomoley]

You guys are great, funny and refreshing to watch! Thanks for making these videos.

[@Storyteller_iyagikun]

… so when foreigners talk about "Kpop", they're referring mainly to the idol groups… ok, that makes sense. As a Korean, I was a bit confused lol

[@xanathjo2421]

That hurts my head... im from LA and i think some kpop bands are allright but im not really a die hard fan. Still when i heard about a singer called Ali i just cant stop listening to her voice. But still i dont know if i should consider her kpop

[@xanathjo2421]

***** ummm actually no... that girl ailee has a somewhat nice voice.. but i was talking about Ali, she is an artist in the whole extenyion of the word.... look her up ;) you should check out her song ill be damned

[@JulesBagyo]

aeriaRIA yes, it's the idol groups they are talking about. internationally, it is generalized as kpop

[@cianvane6411]

The KINGS( BIGBANG and SUPER JUNIOR) and QUEENS( 2ne1 and Girls Generation) of KPOP are mentioned :) happy ^_^

[@stu33s]

Wonder Girls are the Queens of KPOP!!!

[@daraliams5594]

Yeah.. how about SHINee? They're my bias group. Well, based from the shows and all, I think they're pretty popular in Korea. But I don't know about the reality. :/

[@irissung74]

Im korean myself and Shinee fandom is hugeee in korea.

[@firawiji2708]

+irissung74 fandom tho

[@irissung74]

+Fira Wiji Utami they are well known in korea of course. theyve been in the music industry for 8 years or so.

[@lynnkueh]

+irissung74 How about BTS?

[@usagismile]

This was a very insightful video guys. I've always wondered about the popularity of k-pop in Korea as well as international music's popularity there as well, and I learned something! All of your TL;DRs are great!

[@TashyTilly]

for the past few months i have become a massive fan of kpop/korean drama's/movies and also trying to learn the language, i'm a fan of 2pm, suju, mblaq & shinee!!! cn blue, btob, block b and loads more and i live in england but found it all through youtube one day and now obsessed :) although i wish we could get ramyun here cuz i'd love to try it! cool video! :D

[@fatalrob0t]

I'm all about listening and watching BigBang.

[@1sindydesire]

Lmao me too.I love bigbang.

[@kayaharleykhaleesi]

YAS GIRL

[@yooasmiracle]

"DON'T EVER SAY BAD THINGS ABOUT SUPER JUNIOR!!!" HAHAHA I LOVE YOU♥

[@trogdorthe8th]

+Irene Daniela M LOL, RIGHT!? I also love that they have brought this particular topic up on SEVERAL occasions in their videos- they never tend to explain, they always just say "don't diss SJ" as though fans will emerge from the shadows and eat your very soul.

[@Ihuben]

Dear Simon and Martina, what are some major differences between the Busan and Seoul dialects or accents? Are there any stereotypes or particular things associated with these different accents? What do you guys think? And how about North Korean and South Korean differences? Can people understand each other? Are there many differences? Thank you.

[@Buzz-sj2wy]

a studious boy

[@Ihuben]

Ning Luo 哈哈，必須的

[@BlackdrOPPER]

In my opinion in Korea I personally think it floods more thru K-Ballad, K-indie, K-rap or underrated groups/singers. My friends love listening to Urban Zakapa, Busker Busker, Sweden Laundry, Epitone Project and etc etc....

[@kxyr28]

by far the best tl;dr from you guys. thanks for answering such a question. way too often i hear of intl kpop fans being flabbergasted by their korean friends not knowing kpop (like it's a crime!) but korea has so much more to offer than just pretty idols!

[@alice990218]

I'm Korean student, and I really love JYJ TVXQ Bigbang + Now I'm a fan of BTS :)

[@mspenelusuk]

Kim Hanbi It's a crime if Korean people don't like (or at least know) TVXQ heheh they really have talents. It's rare too see idol groups sing passionately like them

[@sahota93]

BigBang are amazing 😉love their songs 😁

[@leannyly]

Coldplay never let their music be used in commercials, because they said they don't want their songs to lose the meaning. 😊

[@hikariuchiha977]

Wow really?!

[@valentinetrain839]

Now that I think about it I have never heard their music in any American commercials, not even Viva La Vida (I think that's the name?).

[@streetsofi169]

Coldplay is legend.

[@thema1998]

@@hikariuchiha977 That's a bit inaccurate. It turns out that Coldplay was an iTunes back in the late 2000s.

[@cosmicjihyeon4963]

K-Pop burst into the music scene here in the Philippines because of Dara suddenly debuting as a member of 2NE1 after years of MIA from the entertainment industry here and Wonder Girls' "Nobody" becoming a hit here. Before that, it was basically all Taylor Swift and Jonas Brothers.

[@sike5043]

True, I remember when it was back in 2009 everyone was just basically either listening to those local rappers and bands, old songs and the extremely mainstream t.s, d.l and all that.

[@cosmicjihyeon4963]

+Lhilac Lyh Yeah haha like K-Pop was so unknown to us but now, it's everywhere!

[@Natiree]

+Kurunakuma JONAS BROTHERS!! YASS!!!!

[@LittleDhampir23]

YESSSSSSS

[@twentysevenand]

I'm so glad you covered this. It was really weird when I studied abroad in Korea last year, and I would talk about Kpop to local students, and I get blank looks. Haha! I studied in the winter/spring of last year, and I remember Busker Busker would play endlessly when I walk by stores. Fantastic Baby played all the time, too! Even when you go to music shows, the age range of fanboys and fangirls are pretty young, too. As a 20 y/o then, I felt like I was in the eldest bracket of fans at the shows.

[@alice990218]

I'm Korean, and I really like iKON. They are really hot in Korea although they didn't debut yet

[@taz4770]

I can't wait for their debut! 😊🙌

[@mspenelusuk]

Kim Hanbi Are still in high school or elentary school student?

[@loshav3abdul]

Kim Hanbi are u serious !!!! jjang!!

[@loshav3abdul]

nooooooooooooo!! u completely misunderstood me !!! i meant to be more surprised !!! more happy !! u didnt get me i love love love love ikon so much and there my main interest for a long time and the fact i heard that there that much famous in korean public and not only good merchandised for us international fans is something i really wished to hear !!! so thank you thank you soooooo muchhhhhh for saying that .. im sorry if u got me wrong it wasnt what i meant

[@alice990218]

loshav3abdul oh I'm sorry! I completely misunderstood. I'll delete my comment

[@parendise]

2NE1 was mentioned yaaas

[@ForeverCellist]

One thing I really want to find are Korean rock bands. I know bands like FTIsland, Nell, Day6, etc., but those are more pop-rock. Does Korea have many rock bands that are heavier? I really like rock and although I like K-Pop, I think it would be awesome to find Korean rock bands. I know rock is really big in Japan right now and there are some awesome Japanese rock bands, but it's just like with German and Chinese music (since I'm studying German, Korean, and Mandarin). I just can't find any good rock bands. :/

[@Scarletdollie]

+ForeverCellist CNBLUE when they first came out gave me that K-rock kind of feel idk how they are like now. I think TRAX were also a rock band but idk how they're doing now.

[@yunjichoi9705]

Guckkasten is a good Korean band. The music is heavy and it has a psychedelic touch to it

[@danielbenner7583]

+ForeverCellist if you like punk, crying nut is pretty dope.

[@paulee8519]

Wow, I love your videos. But this video make me laugh cause I'm fan of Super Junior, but, don't worry I get how is that. It is like Martina said, when you are in your own country you do not like the top 40 of the songs that are popular, instead you listened to ohter stuff. That's why KPOP is popular in other countries across the world. For example, last year on a party in Mexico they put Gangnam Style and after Mr. Simple and I was completely in shock that they knew these songs. We love it and because of that all these kpop bands gave concerts in other places.

[@PurplePandaLotus]

THANK YOU for making a video of this topic. I've been trying to explain this to some people here in the states. Mind you, since I'm not Korean and haven't actually been to Korea, my word is basically kaput. But now I have proof! Yeahya!

[@rachelhellums3096]

Totally get it, Martina! Before I taught in Hong Kong, I didn't know about One Direction, but when my students in HK adored them, I ended up liking them and then when I got home, I got my little sister obsessed. Understandably, they're British and HK is still extremely influenced by British and French culture (mainly in music and fashion), but 1D was EVERYWHERE as well as Super Junior, BIGBANG, Justin Beiber, etc. I remember buying my first Justin Beiber and 1D song while I was IN China. In North America, you don't usually find a lot of younger guys that were okay with boy bands, but in Asia I found that boys (middle school to high school) LOVED boy bands, they idolized them. Also an interesting difference...

[@hyunskrrtskrrt9888]

so its like every other country...

[@caitlynn.4677]

My Kpop Story: Saw commercial of 2ne1, loved the music, searched the music, liked it, saw Super Junior, and now is officially obsessed.

[@yooasmiracle]

+Caitlyn N. My 2 favorite groups right there♥.

[@mis-fitdiaries1590]

I went to Seoul when BIGBANG released their "Still Alive" album...holy crap, that was everywhere!!!

[@doodleloverika]

Omg I can't believe it's true. Maybe that's why kpop groups holds concert more often in other countries.. makes sense to me now..

[@kheeloo7992]

I'm a highschool senior in Korea and the girls are mostly into Bigbang, TVXQ, and sometimes EXO.But I heard that in my brother's middle school, girls are crazy for B1A4, VIXX and all. I am a huge fan of Bigbang and all those fans in our school have been their fans since like elementary school .So it's like we grew up listening to bigbang and tvxq songs. And many of us are also highly interested in indie bands such as Jrabit, urban zakapa, vanilla acoustic..etc

[@---zd5nu]

Is it by like (for example) 1D is popular to their fans but only in that fandom but no one else cares?

[@jordync.3538]

basically

[@renee8746]

Yeah 2012 did have a lot of KPOP groups debuting

[@kristian2468]

After the Super Junior comment, 'Martina was found murdered 5 days later.' HAHAHAHA

[@withlovemays]

I think the same thing works with every country. For example in America, there'll be a lot of songs we other countries like and love the groups, but American people don't really regonize them. That happened with me tbh. There are lot of german bands and solo artist and a friend in America is obsessed with German and lists so many groups and artist who sing German, and I've never heard of them here and you never hear them on radio xD !

[@KP-jx1wy]

When I was in korea a lot of people I knew were into those slow korean ballad songs, korean hip-hop, and american songs. These were people in their mid 20's.

[@asianlegend1000]

saw a clip from SNSD in a store in the Netherlands on a LG TV

[@valentinapino5855]

They got a contract with LG..

[@asianlegend1000]

Yeah, I already though of something like that. But kpop is not really promoting or getting promoted in the Netherlands

[@valentinapino5855]

Im from Chile, and here kpop isnt really promoting eather.. And a long ago, on LG tvs you could watch "Genie" and "Oh" videos on stores.. Now its all about Beyonce haha

[@asianlegend1000]

i guess it is because music get hyped. the mv from SNSD i saw was in the period when gangnam style was a thing so maybe that was the whole reason

[@Pippurd]

Wow im Dutch and kpop is not a thing at all here It should be tho

[@pfever]

I have been in KPOP Clubs in Korea, but there are not so popular haha and most of them instead of playing modern kpop plays 90's kpop =D and everybody remembers the dancing xD

[@tsubasangel]

you should give martina and simon directions :D

[@dt4654]

They don't know that much 90s kpop..soozee is the one who knows 90s kpop lol

[@kpoptrash1433]

oh my jeez its like how i feel about listening to the radio in america hahaha!!!

[@windycityhallyufan3974]

I had a question that is semi-related to this topic. I'm not sure if it's been asked before or not and it might be silly, but how popular is foreign music in Korea? I know in the US we don't really hear much music produced by groups outside the US in public places or on the radio (aside from instances like Psy thanks largely in part to the internet). I guess I should say we don't hear much non-English music outside of ethnic communities and the internet. But I've noticed in quite a few dramas that a lot of the background music playing at cafes, malls, etc. seems to be popular English songs. Is this also the case in real life, or is it something that's confined to the fictional world of Kdramas? It doesn't have to be specifically English songs, but rather music in other languages than Korean. Also, thanks for sharing all the awesome videos! :-)

[@adelepenguin13]

thanks for making this video!~ it's really helpful =] three science teachers went to my school last week to observe american education, and we had a little q and a session. and one of the questions was, 'what do students do outside of school/besides studying?' and the teachers answered 'sleep or dance to the latest k-pop songs'

[@athrun4]

Been interested in K-Pop since I was 13 and I am 18 almost 19 now! Still enjoying it. And not just because the people are pretty or attractive. I just really like the songs, and voices.

[@rias1038]

I know....my family are like..why do you even like it...you dont even know what theyre saying..but so what!? Its catchy, you get hooked by the members personalities and variety things, you become more culturally aware and and most of all..its just plain fun!

[@OneThousandFinales]

i just came here for top.

[@hollziej4578]

Kpop is just my complete life!! but mostly SHINee and 2NE1 are my favorite!!

Really good! I discovered Kpop frew internet and has no one except the ones on the internet to discus it with so I didn’t know that I only got one perspective :( this is fantastic and if this is true ;) its really helpful cuz I thought every girl and boy down there LOVED k-pop but ofc its like here in Sweden when I think about it. I ofc know about are Swedish songs but I don’t listen to it that much and don’t really know so much about Swedish songs like I do about Kpop:D It makes sense I guess:P

[@sevenrandomthoughts]

I was in Korea from April till September 2012. Songs by Busker Busker (especially A Cherry Blossom Ending) is indeed all over the place (mainly played in cafes and roadside stalls) but the top song in my song count list actually was TaeTiSeo - Twinkle. Other than those 2 groups, it'll be the local flavour of the month (T-ara Day by Day was very hot in July) And surprisingly 1 out of 10 songs are English / pop music from other countries.

[@anitahailey753]

Ah, the infamous year of MAMA 2012 where we all got Busker Busker'ed.

[@jamiegalbraith4874]

CHOI SEUNG HYUN IS THE THUMBNAIL. MY FRIEND FANCIES HIM. HIS MUSIC IS AMAZING. BIG BANG IS AMAZING!

[@jo22k]

Jamie Galbraith yes and BigBang has new music coming May 1st!! excited!!

[@jessicahull1237]

Don't let your freind fancy my fiance!!! >_

[@jessicahull1237]

Oops sorry spelling ***Choi Seung Hyun lolololz

[@jamiegalbraith4874]

jo22k​ it's AMAZING

[@jamiegalbraith4874]

Jessica Hull Choi is amazing tho :-)

[@xlanakeix]

>.< LOL! THEY ARE AMAZING AT DANCING! They should make music videos on the Kpop dances they learned! I would very much enjoy the entertainment! They are great at dancing and if they even a little are embarrassed at dancing in front of millions of people in the world (KZbin) they shouldn't be! Good idea? Bad idea? :3

[@tiny_tamsz]

I heard that BROWN EYED GIRLS Abracadabra was pretty much everywhere & in clubs back in 2009 like you said with the groups you mentioned. But maybe that's because they weren't particularly an Idol Group before & immediately when 'ABRACADABRA' was released, that only happened during & after. I know who Busker Busker are from when I went to Korea this June, but i'm not really fond of acoustic style music so they don't take my fancy tbh ahah..

[@Midnight0Mistress]

This actually answers a lot of questions I have about K-pop, especially about Exo because I am a huge fan of them for whatever god forsaken reason that they were able to have this hook on me. It's good to learn about the general attitude.

[@totatoka6123]

proud to be a vip ^^

[@shweetycartel6406]

yeah so true bigbang and 2ne1 is popular 3 them ..

[@essennagerry]

2:53 I would sooooo like to know... I would soooo like to know who the actually somewhat popular/liked bands are, lol, all you k-poppers be so blind, lol, I would so like to know... any Korean dudes or dudetes willing to enlighten me?

[@XTheLastPieceX]

I think that this question was superrr super interesting, and I suspected that it must be like this. The comparison to like, our top 40 being similar to kpop over there... I totally get that. I actually am not a big fan of the popular music in North America. But I hypocritically completely love kpop

[@63KrazyK]

This makes sense, because my cousin Nicole got back from South Korea last year and she's heard of Super Junior and Big Bang but has never heard of any other bands.

[@fridamartha]

*i don't really like Kpop. I only have interested in TAEYANG ^q^*

[@sssd8712]

yaayyy 2NE1 and Bigbanggg!!!

[@sovlur]

I knew Busker Busker would win and I was happy when they did.. they deserved it!!! awesome awesome guys.. and I'm glad y'all talked bout them even if it was just a little ^^ I wish ya'll would interview them or do more stuff w/them since y'all know Brad.. or at least tell us how you know Brad

[@idgon09]

I have to say another groups that are played everywhere in Koera are Primary and Geeks. I hear them blasted in stores and on the street a lot.

[@idontwant2bpoor]

I absolutely hate American pop. Also our top 40. Absolutely refuse to listen to any of the top artists. I will listen to Swedish artists, Japanese, and Korean Artists, that's it.

[@DemTerra]

And I'm sure there are plenty of people in South Korea who feel the same way about their own music.

[@idontwant2bpoor]

DemTerra I can agree with that.

[@amipop1108]

I kinda feel the same, though I wouldn't say I refuse ALL of them. I do like some.

[@thapoint09]

idontwant2bpoor You talk about pop and top 40 like there's a difference.

[@idontwant2bpoor]

thapoint09 I suppose that they are pretty much the same. Lol. It was like 3am when I wrote that.

[@nonanano7084]

KPOP IS MY LIFE !!

[@nadjiao1832]

Bts tho

[@jeffdaman6969]

Who?

[@nadjiao1832]

kpop band

[@katieboyle2677]

They are literally the best humans ever created. I adore them!!!

[@trishaaquino5638]

+Katie Boyle same here 😍😍😍

[@aesha1878]

This video was made before they even debuted :,)

[@janel2930]

simon, that roly poly and sexy love dance remix was amaze-balls! i luv yall xD

[@donuts833]

@Cuppedycupcake most "idols" enlist when they are in their late twenties. U can google about the enlistment in korea. Shinhwa, h.o.t, etc have served. For active groups... 2am Changmin finished his before he debuted. Suju Kangin just returned. Older members of active groups have started to enlist. Leeteuk, heechul currently serving. Some ss501 member too..

[@sugarwarlock]

TL;DR: Kpop in Korea is just pop...

[@Citlali24585]

ring ding dong ding ding dong ring ding dong

[@ForeverCellist]

Also, in regards to this video - I've noticed most Korean reality shows/variety shows feature a lot of K-Pop idols. If K-Pop isn't actually very big in Korea, how are these shows so popular (honest question)? Or, rather than because the groups themselves are popular, is it more for the members themselves as entertainment personalities? Like, for example, I've noticed idols like Henry or Jackson getting pretty popular or variety shows. Or for older examples, I see artists like Teukie all over the place in entertainment. Are these people (and therefore the shows they're on) popular because they're funny, rather than because of their music? Or is it just that those shows are watched more by K-Pop fans? I realize that was probably incredibly confusing, but if someone happened to get what I was asking and can give me a legitimate answer it would be much appreciated hahaha.

[@maymay1889]

+ForeverCellist variety shows features kpop idols is to target those kpop fans in korean (bascally those teens) , that's why occasionally running man invites idols just to fulfill those kpop demands. also sometimes it's the companies (sm or jyp) that organise their idols to be on the show rather than the actual variety shows requesting the idols to appear.

[@penguinic]

lol from 5:10 - 5:15 GD & Myeongsu Park (ft Park Bom) ? THAT'S MAH JAM

[@talynhastime9343]

So what you're saying is...international fans being absolutely nuts does little to sway the final tally in these popularity competitions based in Korea. What a shocker.

[@iamablackjackforeverxd7743]

Are you guys blakjacks and V.I.P.s?

[@c.s.k.5813]

Old School Kpop is much better. More talented. The new stuff is kinda sellout

[@c.s.k.5813]

***** Lol, cute

[@c.s.k.5813]

***** Yes you are. You're so ADORABLE. If you were in front of me in person, I'd pinch your cheeks!! xD Now run along now little girl.

[@c.s.k.5813]

***** Whatever you say little girl xD

[@c.s.k.5813]

***** awwwwwwe, little girl trying to pass of as being badass & feisty. Isn't that cute!!!!! xD *Pats head* Now run along & listen to your Girls Generation little girl xD

[@c.s.k.5813]

***** Who's talking about flirting? Lolz I just think your pathetic attempts to try to insult me is absolutely ADORABLE!!! xD

[@lynnkueh]

I would give everything to be Korean so as to be near my Kpop group BTS. Recently I read about Jungkook walking along in Hongdae and I was mad with envy. So now I know Hongdae because of Kookie. Why do I have to be Chinese? ??? 😢 Bantang Sonyeondan how can I see you.

[@DontGiveFuckAboutNam]

You need some help...

[@gypsyheart1798]

+BetterTL I😂 agree

[@Anabellw0w]

I'm a fan too but you're sounding kind of psychotic..

[@Кумятѕ]

Anabellw0w not psychopathic, that's too much. Probably just a fan who doesn't understand the culture fully. Hell, at least they aren't pretending to be Korean, and mumbling nonsense saying its Korean by adding "oppa" or other words known in the hallyu wave.

[@lynnkueh]

In love ❤ with Kookie. 好帅

[@EdAPC]

Great video guys! Good for educational purposes.

[@aysabellediary]

You guys are so adorable and funny!!!!!! I'm forever subscribed now yayyyyy! maybe one day I'll inspire one of your tldr

[@mintiefresh123]

You might like a couple of them or you may know them (top 40 or whatnot)- yeah, definitely agree. I don't listen to the radio or look up new songs whenever they come out so I am really never "up-to-date" with songs here (U.S.). Funny is that the songs I hear at stores and I end up liking, I think that they came out sometime during the current year. Then when I look it up, it's like 2+ years old, lol.

[@Dog-999i]

I was in Korea for about 1 day because my flight to Hong Kong got postponed, and I got to hear some of the music. The coffee shop that I went to played American music, but the tv channels were filled with kpop music videos from boy and girl bands.

[@Kristenmjp]

I know right! i've been a kpop fan for quite a long time now and I'm now not only listening to my fave groups, but i'm also paying much more attention to soloist and indie groups. every year there is that sorta incident when it comes to awardings.... Newbees need some getting used to :) I wasn't surprised when Busker busker was announced the final winner, I was more surprised that BAP and EXO actually topped the voting (news that was proven to be rigged votes) :P

[@COLLEGESTUDENT343]

-I love your tourism banner HA!! -I partied HAAARD to High High by GD/TOP @NB2 NYE'11 hahaha♥♥♥They were all surprised that I knew that "ha ha ha la la la" hand movemnet too..but they were ALL doing it as well! ...DAMN I miss Korean clubs! EVERYONES HOT& you just touch on hotties till 6am... LMFAO♥♥♥NomNomsss -I hadnt heard "I cheated" (바람났어) until now when I looked it up... CLASSIC Korean Club Music (You know, from the 4 nights I went haha♥) EXACTLY the type of thing u'd here.

[@jayjomae]

Did you guys happen to appear in a Running Man episode or two as judges? You both seem very familiar... Great video, btw. I am learning more about Kpop and Korean showbusiness industry (both negative and positive sides). Kamsahamnida!

[@cdkme1]

A new business just opened near me and they specialize in French fries and that made me wonder if there was some sort of business you think would be great in Korea, but you haven't seen? I know there are a lot of coffee shops, photo studios and places to eat, but what about craft stores, candle shops or gift shops? What type of business would you just really love to have around the corner?

[@Kpopluvr4bigbang]

Hey Simon and Martina! So I'm planning to go to Korea probably this summer, and I was wondering if you have any tips for tourists that are coming to Korea as in places to go, how to say things, how many days we should stay, etc. I'm sorry for the awfully large question I am asking, but I hope you can help!

[@ally31098]

i know this too. here in germany, of course there are some own bands of germany as well. you sometimes listen to some , but you dont really get into them so much. the most popular would be prob. "silbermond", which means "silvermoon" in eng. and prob. "glashaus" which means "glashouse" but the real problem is, tat those bands are more....ballady. they do a lot of depressed-be-more-happy songs, like uhhm..."krieger des lichts" which would be "warriors of light" in english, so, yeah, very ballady.

[@heyitsxalison]

Yeahhh! I wanna go to their concerts, but they don't seem to do international tours, as they are not famous overseas. But god bless them. Their music is PERFECTION.

[@Jun2thaKAY]

Sounds about right~ I think it's that way in a lot of places though. It's because it's something that's normal, not new, you just get tired of it, I mean like you said they listen to international song, and us from other countries do the same thing. We like something different every once in a while~ I do hope a lot of people see this though, and the ones who are trying to go to Korea just for the Kpop and to rant actually think twice about it.

[@Dianaflora2]

I'm kinda not shocked that Bigbang and 2NE1 are the most heard in Korea, but i didn't it's THAT not popular ! like i thought they would listen to it more or so ! anyway, then i'm a proud VIP knowing this :D

[@rustylh733]

How popular is A Pink? They have won a lot of the music shows in Korea. They debuted in 2011, so I went to the internet and looked, and only a few girl groups are in their league as far as awards goes. Only Sistar had as many awards. 2 other groups, AOA and Girl's Day had a fair amount of awards but well behind A Pink. I only looked at the third wave groups to compare them, not 2nd wave such as SNSD and 2ne1, because there weren't nearly as many groups that debuted in 2nd wave, thus much less competition for awards. So I was curious if you had heard of them, and how popular they are with your students. Now that their Maknae is old enough, they are starting to ease out of the Cute Concept into a more mature concept. They also just had their first full fledged concert tour, performing in Korea, Singapore, Japan, and China. Previous to this, they only performed in multiple group concerts, awards shows, promotions, etc.. Asking because they are the first group I found by accident, when I didn't even know about Kpop. Not a fanatic for Kpop, but I do like some of it. But for some reason, I love A Pink. Discovering Kpop was an eye opener. I saw how fans give gifts to the Idols. Being American, I can't imagine wanting to give any pop star here anything, except a punch in the mouth to Justine Bieber. LOL But, I have warmed to the idea of making something for one of them. I do wood working, so I am thinking about making a really nice Hope Chest/Bench Seat with a full back, and a cushion, for one of the members. Having seen the things they are given, this will likely be the most extravagant thing she has received. Any thoughts on this? Also any thoughts on most popular furniture styles there among college aged girls? And what about aromatic cedar? Good idea or not. I don't want to build the whole thing out of it, just a liner inside of 1/4 inch tongue and groove, to cover the sides and bottom. Maybe a splash of some Brazilian purple heart, and some other exotic woods. Just curious what you think. Oh, I should note, the reason I love Apink's songs is because they only sing positive songs about love, or heartbreak, but without blame. I'm really sick of the western pop where the songs usually fall into one of a few categories. Such as the "guys all suck, go girl power," crap. Or the slutty stuff, often social engineering. Yeah, like why couldn't Katy Perry make it until she, a Christian girl, sang a song about kissing girls? And since then, her songs are way outside of any notion of her Christian roots.