Understand K-pop


Book Description

Though K-pop has spread globally, a lot of English language discussion about it is dominated by American media. This led me to write this book to add the South Asian perspective in the discourse on this global music phenomenon. What’s in the book? 1. Delineation of all kinds of K-pop fans; from the creative ones to the crazies. 2. Analysis of K-pop Stan culture vis-a-vis Korean Idol industries' marketing strategies. Who can read it? 1. People who have stumbled upon K-pop and are completely lost right now. 2. Those who are veterans of the mess that’s K-pop Stan’s life and want to take a step back to critically look at the politics and dynamics of K-pop fandom. You can expect constant bouts of introspection and 20/20 hindsight. 3. All the lucky human beings who haven’t been infected by K-pop madness, yet. You have heard about it and are now curious. Come, my dear friends! Take this either as a warning or a road map to becoming one of us. *Crazy chants in the distance.* “One of us!” “One of us!” “One of us!” What to do once you are done reading? 1. Wait for some time. I will be back with another blogbook soon. As you are reading this, I am holed up in my room working on it, making sure you all don’t have to wait for too long. 2. While you are waiting, please leave a review. All of your feedback and encouragements will help me write a better book.




Fanocracy


Book Description

A Wall Street Journal bestseller From the author of New Rules of Marketing & PR, a bold guide to converting customer passion into marketing power. How do some brands attract word-of-mouth buzz and radical devotion around products as everyday as car insurance, b2b software, and underwear? They embody the most powerful marketing force in the world: die-hard fans. In this essential book, leading business growth strategist David Meerman Scott and fandom expert Reiko Scott explore the neuroscience of fandom and interview young entrepreneurs, veteran business owners, startup founders, nonprofits, and companies big and small to pinpoint which practices separate organizations that flourish from those stuck in stagnation. They lay out a road map for converting customers’ ardor into buying power, pulling one-of-a-kind examples from a wide range of organizations, including: · MeUndies, the subscription company that’s revolutionizing underwear · HeadCount, the nonprofit that registers voters at music concerts · Grain Surfboards, the board-building studio that willingly reveals its trade secrets with customers · Hagerty, the classic-car insurance provider with over 600,000 premier club members · HubSpot, the software company that draws 25,000 attendees to its annual conference For anyone who seeks to harness the force of fandom to revolutionize his or her business, Fanocracy shows the way.




Soul in Seoul


Book Description

K-pop (Korean popular music) reigns as one of the most popular music genres in the world today, a phenomenon that appeals to listeners of all ages and nationalities. In Soul in Seoul: African American Popular Music and K-pop, Crystal S. Anderson examines the most important and often overlooked aspect of K-pop: the music itself. She demonstrates how contemporary K-pop references and incorporates musical and performative elements of African American popular music culture as well as the ways that fans outside of Korea understand these references. K-pop emerged in the 1990s with immediate global aspirations, combining musical elements from Korean and foreign cultures, particularly rhythm and blues genres of black American popular music. Korean solo artists and groups borrow from and cite instrumentation and vocals of R&B genres, especially hip-hop. They also enhance the R&B tradition by utilizing Korean musical strategies. These musical citational practices are deemed authentic by global fans who function as part of K-pop’s music press and promotional apparatus. K-pop artists also cite elements of African American performance in Korean music videos. These disrupt stereotyped representations of Asian and African American performers. Through this process K-pop has arguably become a branch of a global R&B tradition. Anderson argues that Korean pop groups participate in that tradition through cultural work that enacts a global form of crossover and by maintaining forms of authenticity that cannot be faked, and furthermore propel the R&B tradition beyond the black-white binary.




K-POP Now!


Book Description

"This is the book on K-pop everybody has been waiting for.…A must-read!" --Charlotte Naudin, PR Manager, Torpedo Productions K-Pop Now! examines Korea's high-energy pop music and is written for its growing legions of fans. Pop culture expert Mark Russell features the most famous groups and singers and takes an insider's look at how they have made it to the top. In 2012, Psy's song and music video "Gangnam Style" took the world by storm. But K-Pop, the music of Psy's homeland of Korea, has been winning fans with its infectious melodies and high-energy fun since long before that. Featuring talented singers and eye-catching visuals, K-Pop is the music of the moment. Although K-Pop is a relatively new phenomenon in the West, it is rapidly gaining traction and reaching much larger audiences --thanks in large part to social media like YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram -- the Girls Generation single "Gee" has almost three hundred million views! K-Pop Now! includes: Profiles of current K-Pop artists and their hits. A look at Seoul's trendiest hangout spots. Interviews with top artists like Kevin from Ze:A and Brian Joo from Fly to the Sky. A look at the K-Pop idols of tomorrow. You'll meet the biggest record producers, the hosts of the insanely popular "Eat Your Kimchi" website, and K-Pop groups like Big Bang, TVXQ, 2NE1, Girls Generation, HOT, SES, FinKL Busker Busker, and The Koxx. The book also includes a guide for fans who plan to visit Seoul to explore K-Pop up close. Join the K-Pop revolution today!




Larger Than Life


Book Description

This nostalgic, fully-illustrated history of boy bands -- written by culture critic and boy band stan Maria Sherman -- is a must-have for diehard fans of the genre and beyond. The music, the fans, the choreography, the clothes, the merch, the hair. Long after Beatlemania came and went, a new unstoppable boy band era emerged. Fueled by good looks and even greater hooks, the pop phenomenon that dominated the '80s, '90s, and 2000s has left a long-lasting mark on culture, and it's time we celebrate it. Written by super fan Maria Sherman for stans and curious parties alike, Larger Than Life is the definitive guide to boy bands, delivered with a mix of serious obsession and tongue-in-cheek humor. Larger Than Life begins with a brief history of male vocal groups, spotlighting The Beatles, the Jackson 5, and Menudo before diving into the building blocks of these beloved acts in "Boy Bands 101." She also focuses on artists like New Edition, New Kids on the Block, Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC, One Direction, and BTS before ending with an interrogation into the future of boy bands. Included throughout are Tiger Beat-inspired illustrations, capsule histories of the swoon-iest groups, in-depth investigations into one-hit wonders, and sidebars dedicated to conspiracy theories, dating, in-fighting, haters, fan fiction, fashion (Justin and Britney in denim, of course), and so much more. Informative, affectionate, funny, and never, ever fan-shaming, Larger Than Life is the first and only text of its kind: the ultimate celebration of boy bands and proof that this once maligned music can never go unappreciated.




How to Speak KPOP


Book Description

Korean language and KPOP language are two very different things. Korean pop culture has an exceptionally unique language and it still evolves further as the K-POP, K-Drama, and K-Movies have been expanding to other countries and beloved by other language speakers. Some KPOP words wouldn't be easy for even a native Korean speaker to even guess what they mean. That's because it requires a deep understanding of the cultural background first before anything else.How to Speak KPOP is the most straightforward guide book to learn Korean words from Korean dramas, movies, and pop culture. It uniquely combines the most popular Korean slang words and trendy phrases that cannot be found in the ordinary Korean language textbook. And it will give you a full explanation of the cultural background of the word and help you to undersand why it is being used like that. This book will give you a fun and easy way to learn the most popular Korean words one by one.It will also help you to know how the word is pronounced with the Romanized alphabets. Please don't forget to read and say a word from the examples. The examples are thoughtfully picked to sound just like a native and a true KPOP fan who knows what KPOP language is all about. Try out words you learned to your Korean friend or write a fan letter with them to your favorite idol star. They will be pleasantly surprised.Learning a foreign language is very rewarding, and learning a cultural background even opens your eyes and heart to a whole new experience. You will get both from this book!




K-POP A To Z


Book Description

Everything You Could Possibly Need to Know about Korean Pop Music! K-POP is popping up everywhere! Korea’s infectious and high-energy pop music and entertainment scene is a relatively young phenomenon in the West, and it is rapidly gaining traction. Don’t be left out of the phenomenon. This book will help you learn the K-Pop lingo, culture, and important facts about the top stars of the industry, including: What it means when someone is your “Bias” Who has the best “Eye-smile” in the industry What exactly “Call” means Why you should avoid being a “Sasaeng fan” When G-Dragon started training for K-Pop stardom The meaning behind BTS’s name Where Wanna One got their start And much more! Impress all your “Koreaboo” friends with the knowledge you gain in K-Pop A to Z!




K-pop


Book Description

The Korean popular music consumed overseas under the banner of K-pop is pop and dance music performed by idol groups, who have mainly emerged since the 1990s and have come to enjoy popularity among teens. Since the 1990s can be considered the period in which K-pop directly took root, the development from the 1990s up through the 2000s when the popular music of the new generation entered the global spotlighted under the name of K-pop will be examined in this volume.




Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead


Book Description

The Grateful Dead-rock legends, marketing pioneers The Grateful Dead broke almost every rule in the music industry book. They encouraged their fans to record shows and trade tapes; they built a mailing list and sold concert tickets directly to fans; and they built their business model on live concerts, not album sales. By cultivating a dedicated, active community, collaborating with their audience to co-create the Deadhead lifestyle, and giving away "freemium" content, the Dead pioneered many social media and inbound marketing concepts successfully used by businesses across all industries today. Written by marketing gurus and lifelong Deadheads David Meerman Scott and Brian Halligan, Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead gives you key innovations from the Dead's approach you can apply to your business. Find out how to make your fans equal partners in your journey, "lose control" to win, create passionate loyalty, and experience the kind of marketing gains that will not fade away!




K-Pop


Book Description

K-Pop: Popular Music, Cultural Amnesia, and Economic Innovation in South Korea seeks at once to describe and explain the emergence of export-oriented South Korean popular music and to make sense of larger South Korean economic and cultural transformations. John Lie provides not only a history of South Korean popular music—the premodern background, Japanese colonial influence, post-Liberation American impact, and recent globalization—but also a description of K-pop as a system of economic innovation and cultural production. In doing so, he delves into the broader background of South Korea in this wonderfully informed history and analysis of a pop culture phenomenon sweeping the globe.