Ok, unpopular opinion perhaps: Saw this twitter that started “even though 2ne1 didn’t crack the western market” but like ???? Why should have they done that? Why is it a prerequisition suddenly for korean acts to be successful in west? And only when they are, netizens amount that to success and popularity? 2nd gen groups attracted large amount of foreign fans trough their power when sns wasn’t so huge, but “the west” probably doesn’t really know them (esp younger west fans), but their impact was/is huge.
this weird obsession with “make it big in the west” needs to stop. Who tf cares??? Majority of the musical acts in the west have no flavor, the visuals are mediocre, music is mediocre - Kpop was/is fun and interesting not just because of the sound, but the visuals: the editing, camera work, fashion, the choreos! The fact that each comeback had a concept visually vastly different from the previous one and from the concepts of other groups.
What kpop becomes when they try to market it to the western audiences is a watered down version of its true potential. Because for it to be popular in the west, it needs to be marketed to the masses - and the way to achieve mass popularity (for anything really) is to strip it to its basics so that there isn’t that many unique characteristics that would turn people away.
I guess what I’m trying to say is this: we already suffer the consequences of globalization that adheres to the trends of the “western tastes” in so many aspects of our cultures; don’t force on kpop groups the idea that they are only successful if they are “cracking down the charts in the west”.
