Can Kpop as a genre be more popular than Olivia Rodrigo, Billie Eilish, Ariana Grande, Doja Cat, The Weeknd and Justin Bieber?
Will Kpop be able to conquer the western market?
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maybe
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Never say never
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why are kpop fans so insecure??
Kpop doesn't need the west to shine
I would rather kpop abandon the West altogether.
I think kpop best shines when it functions as a separate pillar of entertainment that maintains a differentiation, and isn't pursuing assimilation or appeasement from Western audiences.
By Asia for Asia.
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Realistically no, they will have a hit now and then and they will develop a bigger following like Anime, and become accepted and not shamed as much
But not mainstream, because its easy English speakers connect more with English songs, or a language they fully understand. The same in Korea where they listen to more Korean songs, or in MENA where they listen more to Arabic songs. Latinos are roughly 20% of the US population and yet the Latin pop is not mainstream as you might think
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Also dont forget that the big players in the US will not accept Kpop here. They will never allow it to be mainstream and do whatever it takes, including gatekeeping and sabotage. If Kpop ever threatened UMG, Sony or Warner, we would be seeing article after article highlighting all the negative shit about Kpop. Never mind that these corporations themelves are also complicit in manufacturing and controlling acts, stealing from and exploiting them, etc.
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Those are domestic Western pop acts.
Realistically no.
Kpop likely faces a ceiling not unlike Latin pop, etc. In that they may have individual acts that can break through to status on par with domestic acts.
But as a whole it will likely always be a niche subgenre.
Agreed, and I'd also add: the stars that have broken through and become popular in the western markets generally switch their western promotions to being mostly or entirely in English.
You get a breakthrough hit every now and again that's in a different language (Despacito, Gangnam Style), but the stars with staying power promote in English.
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It doesn't matter if Ariana is more popular or not. What it matters is that kpop artists are able to have international fans without needing the western industry . Like i said the kpop audience is huge worldwide kpop artists can have concerts outside korea and chart on western charts with their fans alone.
As well breaking Guiness World Records or enter the IFPI chart.
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Can Kpop as a genre be more popular than Olivia Rodrigo, Billie Eilish, Ariana Grande, Doja Cat, The Weeknd and Justin Bieber?
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Realistically no, they will have a hit now and then and they will develop a bigger following like Anime, and become accepted and not shamed as much
But not mainstream, because its easy English speakers connect more with English songs, or a language they fully understand. The same in Korea where they listen to more Korean songs, or in MENA where they listen more to Arabic songs. Latinos are roughly 20% of the US population and yet the Latin pop is not mainstream as you might think
Not to mention Spanish is a western language and comes from a western culture.
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Agreed, and I'd also add: the stars that have broken through and become popular in the western markets generally switch their western promotions to being mostly or entirely in English.
You get a breakthrough hit every now and again that's in a different language (Despacito, Gangnam Style), but the stars with staying power promote in English.
Yep. Even if the mainstream US listener evolves to accept or even want music in different languages, the power players in the US music industry will do everything to quash the growth. The English language is one of the core ways this country maintains cultural hegemony over the world. The big labels here lose power and control if mainstream America clamors for the next IU, BTS, or that Traffic Jam dude instead of the next Ari, Weeknd, Dua, or Drake.
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