Apart from Girls’ Generation, no girl group has been as consistently great as 4Minute this generation. Since their debut with Hot Issue, their popularity has gone up and down even when they went through changes with Brave Brothers over the last two years. They blossomed recently, garnering the biggest successes of their career and I […]
Film school was crucial to the formation of the Korean New Wave and the type of film that came out of it. It developed a new mindset for later Korean filmmakers, one which was more progressive and innovative than earlier filmmakers. So, in the midst of examining this era of cinema in Korea, I think […]
When Park Chan Wook was a young boy, his local priest told him he would make a good clergyman. Park thought it was because of his manner, or maybe the priest thought he didn’t like girls. Whatever the reason the priest had, this idea represents an interesting lens in which to look at the career […]
Since it’s the new year, those of us at KultScene will be branching out into other areas of contemporary Korean culture other than, but not forgetting about, K-pop. To start, this I am beginning a new series on modern Korean cinema. Despite being the second wave of Korean film, we will style it the New […]
The idea of authenticity in pop music is always a contentious one. In the west, every effort is made to make sure the pop star is seen to be the real deal. While in Asia, the idol system is a transparent one in which the fans know young girls and boys train for years to […]
Dancing is hugely important to a complete K-pop performance. It is what sets them apart from western pop stars and is one of the biggest draws for western fans. So it is appropriate that we celebrate the year in dances and showcase the best K-pop has to offer. There is a great amount of variety […]
K-pop exists in a strange musical universe in which the biggest labels can afford to take creative risks and produce the most diverse range of music while the smaller labels have to play it safe and bet on already successful names. While the big three companies (SM Entertainment, JYP Entertainment, and YG Entertainment) often buy […]
‘Tis the season to be jolly, which means we are coming towards the end of the year, which also means it is the season of end of year lists. We are starting off the look back at this year with a consideration of the new. We’re highlight the K-pop rookie groups that have stood out without […]
The release of Sticky Sticky has completely transformed what kind of a group Hello Venus is. This is not a new type of change either; it is one which we have seen more and more in the past two years. The sexy concept has become a staple of the K-Pop industry to the point where if a […]
Wa$$up made a splash in 2013 with their self titled debut Wa$$up, but failed to find a place in the K-Pop world as anything other than controversial rookies, who gained attention for being the first K-Pop girl group to “twerk.” With their new release Shut Up U, Wa$$up are taking a trend from 2013 and using it […]