is j-music the great "hidden treasure" for Westerners?

Quote from auspop

Also let's be honest, although it is true that thanks to acts like bts or bp, k-pop has gained a lot of fame in the west, it is still relatively generic music, come on, 80% of the Korean music industry are idols, and the other 20 % is relatively boring music for a Westerner.

So is j-music superior to k-music?

If so, could you please elaborate on why, and, also if possible show us some comparisons between korean and japanese artists/groups, so that we can understand your point?

I'd not say it is a hidden treasure per se. Jpop had exposure before their economic bust.

They had an odd phase during early and mid 2000s which destroyed its momentum and never really recovered from unlike anime and games.

People who like specific genres like metal and rock will know about J-rock and J-metal, for instance, but these genres aren't for general public. It is catered to a niche. It will never captivate GP unless it becomes a fashionable genre.

One thing that hurts other genres besides Kpop in SK is the lack of concert culture. They have a festival culture which just feeds a smaller audience. Rock had a decent phase during the 80s, but that's about it. One of Kpop strengths is not being attached to a genre. It can be tailor made to a more general audience.

Even if you may not like certain songs or even groups, you are bound to find something you like in Kpop. Meanwhile if you aren't into rock or metal, you can dismiss a good chunk of J-music right off the bat. It doesn't help that Jpop can also cater to very specific niches, so you may get a bad example and find it weird and dismiss Jpop as odd.

The GP wouldn't get into it just like they don't get into other nation's music. Prejudice or not, J-music had some moments in the spotlight, but it never capitalize to it unlike anime and games. Other nations suffer the same as J-music. Brazil has as an amazing music scene as Japan, but Westerner GP won't flock to it save specific acts. Just people who are more knowledgeable about certain genres will delve into it. Westerner GP may know British rock and metal as they were very influential when these genres had some sway with GP, but how many of GP would check other European metal besides metal lovers?

Quote from auspop

80% of the Korean music industry are idols, and the other 20 % is relatively boring music for a Westerner.

that's not true at all

I think J-music has more variety

Quote from minigee

So is j-music superior to k-music?

If so, could you please elaborate on why, and, also if possible show us some comparisons between korean and japanese artists/groups, so that we can understand your point?

I give you some songs of different genre so you will get a look into what Japanese music is ~

Male soloists:

Female soloists:

Boygroups:

Girlgroups:

Pop-rock bands:

Hard-Rock bands:

Metal/metalcore bands:

Rap female:

Rap male:

And as bonus - When JPop is in Korean: