Topic: K-pop

What is Kpop?
K-pop (short for Korean pop; Korean: 케이팝 ) is a
genre of popular music originating in South Korea. It is
influenced by styles and genres from around the world,
such as experimental, rock, jazz, gospel, hip hop, R&B,
reggae, electronic dance, folk, country, and classical on
top of its traditional Korean music roots.
You may see the Korean pop written as K-pop, K pop,
Kpop, K-Pop, and KPOP.
Characteristics: Systematic
training of artists
Management agencies in South Korea offer binding
contracts to potential artists, sometimes at a young
age. Trainees live together in a regulated environment
and spend many hours a day learning music, dance,
foreign languages, and other skills in preparation for
their debut. This "robotic" system of training is often
criticized by Western media outlets.
Characteristics: Copyright
K-pop music is easily accessible online mainly due to
Korean entertainment companies' deliberate
openness to having their content as widely
distributed as possible. This is done by having it be
openly available via a large variety of content
distribution methods, such as YouTube and other
international social networking sites that are not
exclusive to Korea.
Industry: Agencies
K-pop has spawned an entire industry encompassing
music production houses, event management
companies, music distributors, and other merchandise
and service providers. The three biggest companies in
terms of sales and revenue are SM Entertainment, YG
Entertainment and JYP Entertainment, often referred
to as the 'Big Three‘.
Industry: Agencies
These record labels also function as representative
agencies for their artists. They are responsible for
recruiting, financing, training, and marketing new
artists as well as managing their musical activities
and public relations.
Culture
K-pop artists are frequently referred to as idols or idol
groups. Groups usually have a leader, who is often the
eldest or most experienced member and speaks for
the group.
Social media
Social media sites such as YouTube, Twitter, and
Facebook allow K-pop artists to reach a global
audience and to communicate readily with their fans.

END