Currently, Korean bands have been a success all over the world. The most popular at the moment are BTS, EXO, and TWICE. But the origin of music in Korean pop culture is not so recent. It can be said that it began in 1885 when American and British folk songs were implemented in a school. In Korean, this was called changga. And although it was culturally from another region, the songs were sung in Korean.
The first Korean pop album was in 1925 called Yi Pungjin Sewol (This Tumultuous Time), by Park Chae-seon and Lee Ryu-saek. South Korea's musical culture began to develop in the 1990s with the mixing of styles such as rap and rock. But it was only in the early 2000s that South Korean musical groups began to expand, paving the way for BTS, EXO, and TWICE as we know them today.
A song that became very popular and that opened doors for people to be more interested in South Korean culture was the music video "Gangnam Style" by rapper PSY. This 2012 clip was the first You Tube video to reach 1 billion views.
Currently, the Korean music and drama entertainment market makes millions annually and bands like BTS, EXO and TWICE are only growing. Let's see now the most outstanding aspects of these bands that are growing more and more worldwide.
Table of Contents
BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan)
fandom name: ARMY - Adorable Representative MC for Youth
: Suga, J-Hope, V, Jin, RM, Jimin, Jungkook
Suga his name is Min Yoon-gi (민윤기), born on March 9, 1993, and originally from Daegu. He is a rapper and music producer and developed an interest in music in the fifth grade of elementary school, and at thirteen he began writing his own songs. At 17, he ed a rap group called D-Town,
J-Hope whose real name is Jung Hoseok (정호석) was born in Gwangju on February 18, 1994. The artist is a rapper, dancer, songwriter, and music producer. J-Hope has always stood out in dance and has won several awards in the category. He began his career in 2012 as a street dance dancer.
V whose name is Kim Tae-Hyung (김태형) is not only a singer but also an actor and songwriter. He was born on December 30, 1995, in Daegu. Unlike the other , he did not discover his talent in childhood; in fact, he thought he would be a farmer like his parents, but he was discovered by a scout from Big Hit Entertainment to the group BTS.
Jin Actually, his name is Kim Seok-jin (김석진), born on December 4, 1992, in the city of Gwacheon. Jin was also discovered by a scout from Big Hit Entertainment to be a model. At that time, he was attending university to become an actor. It was in the same year that he debuted as one of the of BTS. He is a tenor and plays guitar. In 2018, he opened a Japanese-style restaurant along with his brother.
RM The acronym refers to Rap Monster in the past, but when adapting it, he said he prefers the meaning of Real Me. His real name is Kim Namjoon (김남준), originally from Ilsan, born on September 12, 1994. He is a rapper, songwriter, and music producer. In addition to his artistic talents, he stands out for his intellectual abilities; he is among the top 1.31% of the South Korean population with the highest college entrance exam scores in the country. His IQ is 148, and he is also self-taught.
Jimin Park Ji-min (박지민) is also known as Baby J and ChimChim. He is from Busan, the second most populous city in South Korea. Jimin was born on October 13, 1995. He started his career as a dancer while still in elementary school. Jimin is one of the most popular . In 2018, he ranked ninth among the most talked-about celebrities on Twitter and the eighth most tweeted musician in the world, as well as the seventeenth best boyband member in history.
Jungkook who is called Jeon Jung-kook is the youngest member of the band, born on September 1, 1997, in Busan. Composer, dancer, and music producer. In 2011, he received offers from seven companies, but in the end, he ed Big Hit. He was officially recognized at the launch of the group BTS with the single 2 Cool 4 Skool What would be the first song of your school trilogy?
Trajectory by BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan)
The Korean band BTS also known as Bangtan Boys (방탄소년단) emerged in 2013 through Big Hit Music. The official debut was the same year on June 13th with the release of the single “No More Dream”. The group became so popular that in 2018 they were among the most influential South Korean celebrities.
The first mini album was released in September 2013 titled O!RUL8,2 consisting of 10 tracks. The second was the following year, also with 10 tracks with the theme Skool Luv Affair. On March 7, 2014, Japanese versions of songs from the 2 Cool 4 Skool album were announced.
In April 2015, the third mini album was released, The Most Beautiful Moment In Life pt.1. The second part of this album was only released in November. In 2015, there was the Japanese tour BTS's First Japan Tour-Wake Up: Open Your Eyes. Since then, BTS's success has only increased with 3 world tours and 4 Asian tours.
10 facts about BTS
1 – The band has 6 videos with more than 1 billion views;
2 - BTS participated 3 times in the UN General Assembly;
4-In 2019, J-Hope was elected the richest member of BTS;
5 – BTS's official channel has become the most profitable K-pop channel on the platform;
6 – BTS channel on You Tube has more than 57 million subscribers and a total of 12 billion views on all videos;
7 - BTS was originally a hip-hop group;
8 - The group began to form in 2010;
9 – The first member of the band was RM and the last was Jimin;
10 - The song “Spring Day” has completed 240 consecutive weeks in the Top 100 of the most listened to chart on the Melon streaming service (South Korean music service).
EXO (Exoplanet)
fandom name: EXO-L (from “Love”)
: Suho, Chen, Baekhyun, Chanyeol, Lay, Kai, Sehun, Xiumin, DO
Suho whose name is Kim Jun-myeon (김준면) he was born on May 22, 1991, in the city of Seoul. Besides being a singer, he dedicates himself to acting. He officially started his career as a singer with his debut in the band in 2012, and his acting career began two years later in the series Prime Minister and I. So far, he has 6 film appearances, 3 roles in theater, and 12 appearances on TV shows. He composed 8 of the songs used by the group.
Chen is the stage name of Kim Jong-dae (김종대) born in Siheung on September 21, 1992. He started his career as part of the group in 2011, but only debuted the following year. He has 5 awards won so far. The company SM Entertainment confirmed Chen's solo debut in March 2019, with the release of his first EP called April, and a Flower.
Baekhyun also known as Byun Baek-hyun (변백현) was born in the city of Bucheon on May 6, 1992. He sings, dances, and acts. His career started at the age of 11 when he began training to become a singer.
Chanyeol Park Chan-yeol (박찬열) was born on November 27, 1992, in the capital of South Korea. When he was in elementary school, he started playing the drums, and during his teenage years, he participated in the school band. He ed the band EXO in 2012, and the beginning of his acting career was in 2015 in the movie Salut d'Amour.
Lay is the stage name of Zhang Yixing (장이씽), he is Chinese, originally from the city of Changsha, born on October 7, 1991. He is a singer, songwriter, producer, dancer, and actor. He started his career in 1998, when he was quite young, participating at just 6 years old in Nós, o PovoHe played a few more roles on Chinese TV until 2008 when he went to the South Korean agency, SM Entertainment. But it was only in 2012 that he began to the group EXO.
Kai His real name is Kim Jong-in (김종인), he is from the city of Suncheon, born on January 14, 1994. Besides music as a rapper, he acts, dances, and is also a model. His career began with jazz and ballet at just eight years old. He ed SM Entertainment in 2007 and received training in singing, dancing, and acting.
Sehun Oh Se-hun (오세훈) was born on April 12, 1994, in Seoul. He ed SM Entertainment at just 12 years old after being discovered by a talent agent. He is also successful as an actor; in 2018, he was cast as the lead in Dokgo Rewind and in that same year, she took on several roles in TV shows. Her work as a model stands out for participating in and modeling for major brands like Louis Vuitton and Dior.
D.O His name is Do Kyung-soo (도경수) and he was born on January 12, 1993, in the South Korean city of Goyang. He also has work as an actor. His first acting role was in the series It's Okay, That's Love. But in childhood, he already participated in singing contests. He was called to SM Entertainment in 2010 and stayed for 2 years until officially ing EXO. He has participated in 9 movies.
EXO's trajectory
The Korean band Exo debuted on April 8, 2012, initially with 12 divided into two groups of 6, EXO-K and EXO-M, with songs in Korean and Mandarin. But currently, it has only 9 . The division was as follows: EXO-K: Suho, Baekhyun, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai, Sehun EXO-M: Xiumin, Luhan, Kris, Lay, Chen, Tao
Luhan, Kris, and Tao left after filing a lawsuit to cancel the contract. The first single to be released was Mama. In 2013, they released XOXO, the first album of EXO's career. This album sold 1 million copies, and this record made them the first K-pop artists to exceed that value. From 2014 to 2017, they were the most powerful celebrities according to Forbes Korea.
The album Overdose was the best-selling album in South Korea in 2014. The group entered the Guinness Book as the band that won the most Daesang at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. The band has collected over 100 awards received.
10 facts about EXO
1 – Chen posted a message saying that he no longer wants to receive gifts from his fans so that there are no misinterpretations for him using some gifts and not others;
2 - Chayeol became interested in music after watching the movie School of Rock;
3 – In 2014 Kris launched a lawsuit against the company alleging that his health was disregarded and that the group was treated as a trade, among other accusations;
4 - Suho was the first member to the agency;
5 – Suho, Baekhyun, Chanyeol, DO, Kai, Sehun became ambassadors for the Young Korean Red Cross in 2012.
6 – The member who learns the choreography the fastest is Lay;
7 - According to Suho, EXO will exist until the last member;
8 – In 2014 Luhan launched a lawsuit against the agency and claimed to be treated differently from the other and to have health problems;
9 – In 2015 Tao also filed a lawsuit against the agency to cancel his contract;
10 – In 2016, several EXO spent some time doing solo activities.
TWICE
fandom name: Once
: Nayeon, Momo, Jeongyeon, Sana, Mina, Jihyo, Chaeyoung, Dahyun, Tzuyu
Nayeon Nayeon (임나연) was born on September 22, 1995, in Seoul. In 2010, she started as a trainee at JYP Entertainment, and initially, the goal was for Nayeon to be part of a group called 6mix, but it never actually came to exist. To Twice, she had to participate in a talent show by Minet.
Momo Momo Hirai (平井 もも) is originally Japanese from Kyoto, she was born on November 9, 1996. Since she was a child, she enjoyed dancing and was interested in an artistic career. She was discovered by JYP Entertainment after they saw a video of her dancing with her older sister. Both of them were ed by the agency, but only Momo ed the auditions. However, the beginning of her career was with the group Twice.
Jeongyeon Yoo Jeong-yeon (유정연) is from the South Korean city of Gyeonggi. She was born on November 1, 1996. She also ed the auditions and managed to the group where her first professional work as a singer took place. In 2016, she and her older sister hosted the music program Inkigayo for 7 months.
Sana Minatozaki (湊崎 紗夏), known simply as Sana, is Japanese, originally from OsakaShe was born on December 29, 1996. She was discovered at 15 and soon after participated in auditions in April 2012. Sana has hosted 3 TV shows in 2016, 2017, and 2019.
Mina Myõi (名井南) or simply Mina is American and was born on March 24, 1997 in San Antonio, Texas, but grew up in Japan. Since she was a little girl, she loved to dance and did ballet for many years. She was found by a JYP talent scout. In 2014 she went to South Korea for JYP to become a Korean pop singer. She debuted in the group Twice in 2015, but in 2019 she was away from the group for 3 months due to anxiety and insecurity issues.
Jihyo Park Ji-hyo (박지효) was born on February 1, 1997, in Gyeonggi, South Korea. She started her career with JYP at just 8 years old and by the time of her debut in Twice at 18, she had trained with the agency. She was voted by her groupmates to be the leader of the band.
Chaeyou Son Chaeyoung (손채영) is from Seoul and is the youngest in the group. She was born on April 23, 1999. She is also a rapper, songwriter, producer, and dancer. She started modeling for a children’s magazine at a young age. She took singing and dancing lessons. Her first audition at JYP was at 14 years old. She has 8 song compositions.
Dahyun is the stage name for Kim Da-hyun (김다현). She was born in Gyeonggi on May 28, 1998. She is also a presenter, rapper and model. Dahyun in 2017 was among the most popular celebrities in South Korea. She also knows how to play the piano. Her career officially began with Twice in 2015. She has 5 of her own compositions.
Tzuyu Her name is Chou Tzu-yu (周子瑜) and she is of Taiwanese nationality. She was born in Tainan on June 14, 1999. She was discovered by talent scouts from Taiwan in 2013 and that same year she moved to the capital of South Korea to JYO Entertainment. Tzuyu underwent 2 years of training before starting her career in Twice.
TWICE's trajectory
The Korean band Twice (트와이스) debuted on October 20, 2015, and was selected through the reality show Sixteen. Fame came the following year with the single ''Cheer Up'' being the best single of the year. The next single called ''TT'' topped the charts for 4 consecutive weeks. The album Twicecoaster: Lane 1 was the best-selling k-pop album of 2016.
The albums Twicetsgram from 2017 and Eyes Wide Open from 2020 are Korean, while BDZ from 2018 and &Twice from 2019 are Japanese albums. In 2018, the movie telling the story of the group called Twiceland was released in 2018. The first award received by Twice was in 2015 (the same year of release) at the Mnet Asian Awards 2015, and the following year, the award for Best New Artist.
The group continued to receive more awards and for sure more to come. In August 2021 Twice became the girl group with the most clips with over 300 million views, suring even other groups like BTS and Blackpink.
10 facts about Twice
1 – Jeongyeon was removed again in August 2021 to treat anxiety and panic syndrome;
2 – The name that Jeongyeon was given at birth was Kyung-wan, but she thought it was a male name. So she changed her name to Jeong-yeon when she was in third grade, it was a legal process;
3 - The group has 3 Japanese ;
4 -The group is called Twice because the objective is to win over fans first (once) through their ears and then (twice) through their eyes;
5 – Jihyo was the member who had the longest training time at the agency;
6 – Twice is one of the groups that participated in Weekly Idol with the shortest debut time;
7 - TWICE has accumulated over 3 billion streams on Spotify, being the fastest Korean artist in history to reach the milestone;
8 - The group has songs in Japanese and Korean;
9 – As of June 2017, the album has sold over 135,000 copies in one week, setting a two-year record for the biggest sales week for a Korean artist in Japan;
10 – On October 1, 2021, the group's first single is released completely in English at 1 am.
