K-pop took centre stage on SEA. Can it hold on?

Southeast Asia is a lucrative stage for K-pop, but the industry’s precise manoeuvres deployed for economic and diplomatic gains is a ball and chain around its legs

South Korea’s ‘Hallyu’ exports amount to a massive US$12 billion, with cultural content export—K-pop, K-drama among others—amounting to half of that

Southeast Asia is one of the biggest markets for K-pop and Hallyu, especially now after Korea’s multiple diplomatic run-ins with China and Japan

The mania is fuelled by a heady mix of fan service, corporate power, and a push from the government

But there are cracks in the shiny veneer of K-pop, with the trend lines for most top K-pop consuming SE Asian cities flattening or falling

This is a story of ‘girl-meets-boys’. More specifically, Zhafira Athifah meets the ‘Avengers of K-pop’. For over 10 years, the 23-year-old Indonesian had stubbornly stayed at the fringes of South Korean pop music as it erupted among her friends. But resistance was futile, especially with the launch of SuperM, a boy band that has been likened to an assembly of blockbuster superheroes.

SuperM comprises seven ace idols idols Entertainers working either solo or in a group, marketed for popular appeal and are usually trained in singing, dancing, modelling and even acting.

AUTHOR

Li Mei Foong

Li Mei Foong is based in Kuala Lumpur, where she seeks to connect the dots between culture and technology in Southeast Asia while keeping an eye on interesting development in its digital creative space. She was previously a freelance features journalist and has reported for regional publications including Channel News Asia (CNA), Southeast Asia Globe, and New Naratif.

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