Only Idols and Trot Singers make money in Korea
According to an unidentified Korean music producer, “Other than idols and trot singers, nothing else makes money now. We can thus only concentrate our efforts on areas that make money.” That pretty much sums up the present state of the Korean music industry in recent years.
The Korean music scene has been enveloped by a sweeping wave of “idol mania” in recent years which shows no sign of slowing down at all. It all started with Big Bang about 2 – 3 years ago and this was followed by groups like Wonder Girls, Girls’ Generation, SHINee, 2PM, Kara, etc as they continued to be red hot and coming to a point where there’s no return. This has continued in 2009 with female groups like 2NE1 and 4minute who have become really popular in a short period of time and further strengthening the market’s belief that “idols will bring in the money”.
Music labels/companies are thus on their toes to unload their own idol groups if they haven’t got one, in order to keep up with the market demand. DSP Entertainment who boasts of SS501 and Kara are preparing to unleash a new female group while JYP Entertainment and Cube Entertainment are preparing to release a new 3 member female and male group respectively as well. There are likely to be more.
O the other hand, the trot world has not been spared either with many new acts debuting even though they are the complete opposite of idol groups. Trot used to be performed by middle-aged singers but the trend is gradually shifting thanks to the popularity of young trot singers like Jang Yoon Jung, Park Hyun Bin, etc which is a strange phenomenon to many. Just this year alone, we have a 3 member male trot group, 3Chongsa (3 Musketeers), LPG 2nd generation, Rani (Jang Young Ran), etc.
The problem becomes more apparent as everyone does the same genre of music and the market becomes oversaturated, creating a situation where only the best survives while the rest feed on scraps and eventually get eliminated. A DSP Entertainment representative expressed, “H.O.T and Sechs Kies brought about an idol mania back in the late 90s as they became really popular. Many companies tried to feed on the mania, and hastily assembled their singers and groups to get a share of the pie. But inevitably, most of the companies go bankrupt and everything returns to normal.”
Jang Yoon Jung’s management expressed, “It’s something to be happy about to see so many newbies debuting as trot singers but they do not foresee the problems. Most of the time, trot singers have to perform in adverse conditions. Many of them do not understand that and only have the idea of making big money as a trot singer. Most of them just give up in the end. You have to be mentally prepared if you are entering the trot world.”
o.o big bang started idol groups????
i thought it would be either super junior or dbsk since they were before big bang. but thats fine with me XD I LOVe big BANG !!!! when are they coming back?? :( I MISS THEIR KOREAN SONGS.
wow new groups…>.> theres already so many !
i agree with #89.. but yeah it does suck for solo artists when its mainly based on idol groups.. *sigh*
i agree
i agree that the kpop industry has gone to hell…
i mean all the songs are REALLY CATCHY but they dont require all that much talent…i mean everyone in kroea has to know how to dance and look pretty (cough plastic surgery cough) and be fashionable just to survive in Korea’s incredibly superficial society (im just calling it like it is) so generic/repetitive/over-produced songs like Gee, Sorry Sorry, etc. aren’t all that impressive (i still love the songs haha im just saying…not a ton of musical value)
and to Ms. (im assuming) I LOVE DBSK TO BITS AND RAWR TO ANYONE WHO HATES ON THEM…. please… S…T…F…U!
i adore DBSK too but srsly…its embarassing
its cuz of crazy fangirls (im assuming again) like u that DBSK/other groups’ fan bases get bad raps…u need to calm the EFF down…
DBSK <3
216, Its not Only Big Bang Who Does all that…Really…
omg.. all these comments are annoying. The facts of the matter is.. there are too many ‘idol groups’ hot because of their popularity and not so much their talents. I mean, there’s like so many other artists not getting any or as much recognition because they’re not doing it big.. that’s not fair.. and from all this things are going to get over saturated. There’s too many overrated idols. It’s really starting to bug me.
wow..
yah i did notice that in Korea.
and so with the music and stuff..
but still.
i’m loving it since..in my country we mostly have bands just like F.t island but
not much of groups..like in korea.
some dbsk fans in here are really making it real easy for us to laugh at them…lol
it’s getting boring in the Kpop hood w/ all these shit loads of idol groups debuting, releasing the same material as what we call as ‘catchy songs’ w/ nuisance lyrics and poor musicality,.. the only thing exciting about it IMO is the fanwar just like what is happening in this article’s comment section,.. but still after what is said and done, it only leaves us fans from different groups a bruised ego,.. i hope that Kpop will move on from this idol trend since it is all i can see for the past 2 years and so,..
….the only thing i will say is that out of all the groups pictured above, bigbang’s the only group CONSISTENTLY writing, composing and producing their own music (thanks to GD mostly, and TOP too). that’s what sets them far apart.
it’s getting boring in the Kpop hood w/ the shit loads of idol groups debuting, releasing the same material as what u called catchy songs w/ nuisance lyrics,.. the only thing that is exciting about it is the fanwar like this but still it only leaves us fans from different groups a bruised ego,..
I have got to say this…. there are really ALOT of idol groups in Korea…
Actually, it is not a bad thing, cos’ more choices for the people?
But this is really too much…. And most idol groups have similar images….
These companies are just producing idol groups like manufacturing some ‘fashion’ product.
It seems like they were overdoing it…. every now and then I will hear news of a new idol group, which leaves a very small impression on me… compared to the old ones.
Maybe they should take a break, and focus on the existing ones.
ooooohhhhhhhhhhhh……………..
Hmm..interesting.
omigosh, more idol groups=more money then!?
*sigh*
[""Since the Bands you like arent at there Level You became Crazy and Obsessed with Everythinf they do and say.""]you know what 160? I think that YOUR FAV BANDS are not at the same level as the legends.
People who are cussing each other here for example number 147, stop being a pathetic loser. When you’re cussing, it shows that you’re losing because you have nothing else better to say. And now can we shut the fuck up about all this bullshit? Who cares now, our idols are all making it big and earning big money, getting more fame and. Be happy about that, this ain’t a battle between bands.
the korean music industry is kind of hard to understand, for me. what im afraid of is how they r recruiting young people who r too young to be under the spotlight. kinda making them look like they’re pulling kids out of school to turn them into “cash cows”. another side is that it fullfils dreams for individual “idols” or artists and generate new music for fans. another thing im growing concern about is how materialistic its becoming. like the concept of “the more beautiful/perfect, the better” or “looks over talent”.like i read this article about SHINee’s MinHo(not like i have anything against him, i love him): he got into SHINee bcuz of his SMILE, and cultured his talent later. but i guess i might be wrong in some way but oh well…
i <3 2PM, Big Bang, DBSK, SNSD, SHINee, & Super Junior!
to Mr/Mrs 160 = I’ve been reading every single comment in here and first, I don’t think “my life wouldn’t suck without idol group” favorite bands are not at the same level because you see, her example are michael jackson and the beatles..it proves that her favourite bands are the legends. you cannot say that since the bands she likes arent at their level.. and also i did not came across this statement you wrote, ”’So much you want them Dead’.. Wow thats much.” she did not say she wants those idol to die, when the crazy fan who was talking back at her and telling her to die, she just say that when that crazy fan dies, will those idol be there for her or etc.. you seriously need to wash your eyes or wear spectacles..p.s. I bet “my life wouldn’t suck without idol group is not from korea..
to 173 I think what you wrote there was what 152s trying to say.. and to 184, stop copy paste..you moron..
I am not really surprised by this article. It is so easy to see. When I first got into kpop ( I am an African American and huge TVXQ & Rain fan!) one thing I really like was that fact that the groups I liked and BB had gone through lots of training and the companies made sure they were their best each time they performed. They were professional and hard working. But then this year it seems like some of these idols haven’t trained for one day. Most of them have little to no vocal or dancing ability. Their songs are completely uninspired and seem a bit the same. Everyday it seems like a new group is debuting and that ones that already debuted haven’t really done anything yet just releasing teasers and pictures of their “image”. Their definitely needs to be some diversity. At least when BB was in Korea there was a cool hip hop group. I don’t pay attention to the new artists anymore, just stick to my favorites.
how sad…
even though i like some kpop and korean music… its sad that theres nothing really goood about it. like musically… the artists have like no say so its not really like the artists expressing themselves… its just a way to make money and just for performing basically… and thats sad.
from wat i c, comedians and mcs can make money too =.=
That’s pretty interesting, actually. And it strengthens the whole “product” significance of the artists. Ayumi Hamasaki said it best when she said “It is necessary that I am viewed as a product. I am a product.” and it’s the same with all of these artists. With so much competition, marketing has to be fierce and cutthroat to get the appeal across. It’s not just about the music, but also about the costuming, dance, charisma, personality. I wouldn’t be surprised if every member is assigned a personality… “Seungyeon, you be the bitchy one! Gyuri, be a diva! Hara, act cute and shy!”… it’s all advertisement. And as fun as this is for us, the consumers, I do feel a little bad for objectifying the idol groups so much… SES was so hot in their prime, but now, they’re pretty much has-beens. FinKL… other than Hyori, what has happened to the other 3? I wonder, out of snsd, wonder girls, kara… the ses and finkl of this generation, how many will continue to shine like hyori while the others become has-beens? And as for boybands, most male idols’ popularity fades ALOT after their army duty, right? It’s a glamorous and fun job while it lasts, but it just makes the fall that much more pathetic and painful…
atleast DBSK isn’t being mentiond here as a fad or whatnot x:
oh wow. well, it has been piling up and it does seem that only the best do really well.