South Korea has a strong economy now due to many developments made in the past sixty years. K-pop was developed because of the economic success within South Korea, and they are now able to entertain people who live there. K-pop has sprouted over the years, and many people believe that it is healthy for people to listen to the good morals and stories written in the words of the Korean Pop music. K-pop, founded in 1992, is a relatively young addition to the Korean culture. Music has been a very large aspect of America’s culture for a much longer amount of time. It was not until six years after the founding of K-pop in 1998 that it arose and became a well known form of entertainment for people of all ages, along with Korean dramas known as K-dramas also became popular. K-pop companies have been growing, expanding, and spreading throughout Korea. Now they’re spreading to other countries.

Pledis Entertainment, a K-pop entertainment establishment, holds nineteen different K-pop artists and groups. Those of which include my personal favorite: Seventeen. Seventeen has thirteen members: their names are S.Coups, Junghan, Joshua, Jun, Hoshi, Wonwoo, Woozi, DK, Mingyu, The8, Seunggwan, Vernon, and Dino.  Seventeen debuted in 2012 with a song called Adore U. An interesting fact about K-pop bands is that they have to write their own songs and make their own choreography to the music that they make;  unlike many of the stars in America. American pop stars’ musical talents are usually limited to singing and sometimes, if  that. On rare occasions, American pop stars can write some songs;  however, writing the music is not a talent possessed by most stars today in America.  In Korea, to become a K-pop star, one must have a record similar to a Politian in America. K-pop stars were originally issued as a political statement and role models  to have the society look up to and aspire to be like. Over time, however, that vision has been altered. Now, K-pop stars are not so much a political statement, rather than entertainment and role-modeling.  K-pop stars must be physically fit in order to dance the intense dances that their jobs require. Being a K-pop star requires all of their  time, effort, and oftentimes even costs sleep and meals.

At the surface, many people out of the Korean culture would automatically think of K-pop as some kind of Anime thing. Or possibly just another strange thing that people who want to be hipster would be interested in for attention. However, if you actually look at the dances, pay attention to the hard work that they do, and appreciate the music, the voices, and do research, may be you would be able to proudly say that you are a K-pop fan.