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There’s just something about Korea

5 Things You Should Know Before Seoul | The Voyaging Teacher

So you’ve decided to travel to South Korea, great! Maybe you know about the country and wanted to experience it first hand or you’re on

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A website created to shed some light on some of the strangest and exciting k-pop videos and k-dramas out there

Hello Everyone! We've recently decided to change the way that the website is run, instead of review written by those who run the site, I want to have you guys review these videos and movies! I want the site to be for the people by the people instead of just my reviews so, in order to do this if you see a video or tv show that you want to review shoot us an email with your review and what name you'd like to be referred as and we'll post it to the site! This way everyone has the chance to review the videos they love, let me know what you think!

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Review: Coup D'etat by G-Dragon

As his second album, “Coup d’Etat” was set to be received very well by fans and critics alike. Featuring a slew of well-known artists such as Missy Elliot, Sky Ferreira, and several popular Korean artists the fourteen songs on the album were expected to be above and beyond the norm. Before its release this album had over three hundred thousand pre-orders of the physical album on September 10th. The title track, “Coup d’Etat” was the crown jewel of the album with the music video gaining over five million views in the first month of release, which is a huge amount for a Korean based performer. The music video for “Coup d’Etat” has gained popularity for its crazy images and overall has become one of the most interesting music videos this year for the Korean music fan. Because it is the title track of G-Dragon’s new album, “Coup d’Etat” holds a lot of weight as the hook of the album, the song meant to start a buzz. A collection of synth, trap, and hip-hop, this music video goes beyond the norm to create a fantastical environment where G-Dragon creates his world.  While he does include previous singles in the album, the most weight is on this title track to carry the piece. “Coup d’Etat” is a creation of G-Dragon, Baauer, and Diplo. Baauer is known for his hit song, “Harlem Shake”, that song gained fame through the internet meme society that boosted its popularity by using the first 30 seconds of the song. Diplo, a former Temple University student, has been the producer of several hit tracks including the “Harlem Shake” and “Earthquake” both of which became internet hits on the app Vine, and YouTube. G-dragon’s latest video “Coup d’Etat” has been seen as a commentary on several different things. The most popular viewpoint is that the video is about the nature of politics. He used symbols like wearing a blindfold and standing in front of a firing squad, never flinching as if he is not afraid of the bullets. Many sources believe it is to symbolize how politicians are not afraid of what they cannot see. Another scene finds him in a kitchen boiling money, which can symbolize the way that politicians make money and spend it. The money is produced in large quantities to the point where the pot boils over, alluding to how politicians have so much money. Another good symbol is the juxtaposition of G-Dragon and a young boy, both saluting a tomb, showing their allegiance to the dead. We as a culture praise politicians and when they die people will show their allegiance even after death, this can be seen with the death of presidents and leaders. The most profound symbol however, was the frail version of himself as he threw a tiny rock at a stone wall, which on impact exploded. This is a very good example on how one small person can cause an explosion in society just by words or an action. There are so many instances of symbolism in the piece that there is no way to talk about it all.  Using references to the poem, “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” by Gil Scott-Heron at the beginning of the song, “Coup d’Etat” was expected to be a revolutionary piece. While catchy with its synth beats and clever Korean-English rhyme scheme, it still falls short in some aspects. When translated the song does not hold the same effect as it does when it’s just about sounds and how the language works together. The way that he uses American slang as well in this piece allows the American listener to build a relationship with the artist in such a way as to be a promotion tool.

G-Dragon uses visual and audio references to his previous videos that connect all of the parts of his strange world together. If one is an avid G-Dragon fan finding the commonalities is light work, he has so many references between videos. The most sharp and unexpected transition is the one of the persimmon tree in his “Crayon” video to the visual where the tree has died in the video “Coup d’Etat”. This was why the VIP community will see G-Dragon differently. While “Crayon” was a fun, upbeat music video about having fun and wondering the all-important question, “Why so serious?” from the Batman franchise, “Coup d’Etat” is much darker and has a more serious approach to it. 

You find that there is a much larger contrast between two videos made within a year ago. The history behind this piece can be disputed and the ideology behind it as well can be questioned, however, it remains the same, he uses his unique style to send a message, about politics, love and the change in himself to show people his view of the world. 

Rating

Overall, my rating is an eight out of ten. I would have given it a higher rating if the symbolism had not been as jumbled as it was. Symbolism as a whole is great to an extent however, it can be lost if there is not a good enough connection between the parts. As an artist, he has only to grow a bit more and he can conquer the American market, but right now, if someone is looking for the revolution to be here, they might just miss it. He packed so much symbolism that can be disputed in so many ways that it became hard to find the message. Therefore, the eight out of ten rating is bestowed upon him. That is really the only issues I have with it, other than one minor detail, the words, “Swag check/Mic check” are clearly in English and are a subtle grab for a more American audience, which I being a person who is more excited about an artist’s music that is good without reflecting the market they want to infiltrate. Therefore, G-Dragon had an album with a lot of hype, but not a huge amount of good reception from critics.

check out more reviews at: KPDFTCO 

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Haru Haru by Big Bang

HARU HARU - BIGBANG

HARU HARU which translates to Day by Day is an older BIGBANG video from their 3rd mini album, "Stand Up". The video follows G-Dragon and Min Young, his love interest, as he goes through their hard breakup while she has apparently moved on with TOP.  This video really highlights GD's and TOP's rapping and singing abilities, each having several verses each. Both have very distinct voices and even without watching the MV you can make the distinction between the two. The MV is filmed with a sepia filter probably meant to make it seem more like an old fashioned movie or video, examples of this being the use of older cars, televisions, and clothing. The only time it's shows anything modern is the phone call between Taeyang and G-Dragon when they're shown with very modern cell phones. Another example of this slip into modern times is where Min Young's surgery takes place, which is obviously not a legitimate hospital. My reasoning for this is: - Min Young is getting a surgery that will stop her heart and will kill her. Something that is seen as inhumane and would most likely not fly in any hospital I know of. - Also, there's no waiting room for the members of BIGBANG they're just hanging out in a random hallway, something that would probably be a big problem in a real hospital because, hey, it blocks doctors and would inhibit necessary measures and precautions. Plus, wouldn't there be a place with comfy chairs? - GD is allowed to stop the doctors and see Min Young, right away after she dies, usually I'm pretty sure they would put you in a room where you can say your goodbyes to your loved one. Final consensus? Dr. Kevorkian is obviously running a hospital in Korea where he does mercy killing for dying patients... Questions and Answers: Why is GD destroying his apartment while Daesung and SeungRi just watch? -This seems to be one of those apartments where everything you touch is breakable. Nothing in the entire apartment besides the armchair and TV seem to survive GD's rage. I believe that they let him do it because he's so distraught over the breakup. Why doesn't Taeyang tell GD earlier about Min Young being really sick? -It seems as if all the other members know of Min Young having, I''m taking a shot in the dark, cancer, except GD. What doesn't make sense is the fact that they knew it and strung him along on this break up idea... worst friends ever. Why are all the other members of BIGBANG cut up too? -To my knowledge there is no exact explanation to why they're all cut up. If I had to take a guess, they were caught in the crossfire of the fight in the beginning of the MV.  What do an armchair and old, deserted hallway have to do with the MV? - The armchair looks like the one from the empty apartment that GD is watching the TV in. At least I think it is. Also, the deserted hallway looks like one from the hospital, but for it to look that way it would have had to be deserted for awhile.  ENGLISH The English in this song is not bad, but its not great, there was definitely some effort put forward by GD to make the English sound as correct as possible. Out of 10 I'd give the English a 8/10 for a few minor things like pronunciation and skipping over words that are in the written lyrics and aren't very emphasized in the actual song.