Remix Culture: K-pop

 

Image courtesy of Sweet Chili Arts 

Today in this modern world, we live a life mix of cultures, trends, influences and ideas coming from people living in other parts of the world. We came to realize the existence of different languages, social values, cultural practices, racial, ethnicities, religious beliefs and etc.

K-pop wave, or also known as Hallyu, is an apparent occurrence of a remix culture. Listening to today’s mainstream Korean music, it certainly has transformed and evolved way beyond its roots. Unlike traditional folk song, K-pop is much more musically dynamic and hybridized. Sticking to native language and still containing Korean features, the speciality of K-pop songs would be the versatility and embedment of modern twist in tunes.

The resurgence of K-pop wave becomes a global phenomenon and also defeats the structuralism where cultural flow is usually from the West to the East. An evident example is PSY, a Korean pop star, who made a remarkable breakthrough into Hollywood with “Oppa Gangnam Style”; in which further creates uproar of the K-pop culture. It is interesting how K-pop is received and loved widely from fans all over the world although there is language barrier.

Remix culture has built a new transnational cultural flow in the global market. Typically, most assumed the West to be more trendy and hip, but K-pop manages to transform this shift in the global binarism. It is considered to be valid stating that mass media is one of the largest contributors influencing our cross cultural experiences.  The information highway—the Internet, specifically, has enormously changed our lives.