The K is for Korean
People in close-knit family groups who compete against each other and other groups in order to become the best singers, dancers, and entertainers.
A description of modern idols and idol companies, or traditional gwangdae troupes originating from the Goryeo era?
Here is an interesting academic paper tracing the Korean roots of K-pop. The authors are saying K-pop actually comes from a Korean tradition of entertainers, and is not simply a mix of Western music styles coupled with Korean lyrics.
Is this just an attempt to make K-pop special, or could it be that there is something inherently Korean in K-pop other than the language? Who knows.
But considering the idols coming from other countries around the world, I’m more convinced than ever that K-pop is on another level. And now we might have one more clue as to why.
(The paper is called “K-Pop Strategy Seen from the Viewpoint of Cultural Hybridity and the Tradition of the Gwangdae” by Sim Heechul, Kim Seolah & Lee Byungmin).