CAUSE OF THE RAPID SPREAD OF KPOP

IN THE PHILIPPINES

A Research Paper

As a partial fulfillment of the requirements in English 10

Cayetano Arellano Highschool

JOERIS O. SALINO
10-BOHR

February 2019
 CAUSE OF THE RAPID SPREAD OF KPOP

IN THE PHILIPPINES

INTRODUCTION
The Korean popular music, or the Korean pop or simply k pop is a musical
genre consisting of electronic hip hop, pop rock, and R&B music originating in
South Korea. Huynh (2011) defined k pop as for Korean pop music that covers
a wide variety of contemporary music including pop, hip hop, and R&B, dance-
pop. Bubblegum pop, house, electro pop, and techno. Due to the big wave of
success, k pop became so popular not only in South Korea but also to other
parts of the world especially here in the Philippines.

Background of the Study

In the advent of the Korean craze in the Philippines, the Filipino youth
was affected in a great extent. The rising popularity of Korean Culture
throughout the world is called Korean Wave. The Korean popular culture
which spread mainly through the mass media is now enjoying high popularity
outside Korea and this is how the Korean Wave occurs (Yu,2008). The
phenomenal Korean sensation is describe from another term called Hallyu, this
is a Korean pronunciation of Korean Wave which is defined by Korean Tourism
Organization (2004) as the recent cultural phenomenon of South Korean pop
culture sweeping throughout the world (Kim & Ryoo, 2007). Korean Wave
(Hallyu) mainly consists of television dramas, film, pop music, movie stars
animation and comics including mobile content like cell phones and iPods,
video or computer games, as well as the latest fashion, food, home appliances
and cosmetics, assertively expanding to things like dance, sculpture, painting,
cuisine, plastic surgery, tourism and language (http://jakartapost.com/). This
paper will not focus on the Korean Wave effect in Filipino Youth's preference in
music, television dramas but will only be limited in their taste of fashion.
 The new generation today is different and they are easily captured to the
things around them. The youth are exposed to the different kinds and genres of
music, television dramas and also in their taste of fashion. Now and then, the
taste of music, movies and fashion has been changed, improved and made more
exciting in the eyes of the Filipino youth. From schools, malls, stores, jeepneys
and even to recreational places such as parks and also to tourist places, the
effects of Korean Wave in the Filipino especially to the Filipino Youth are
widespread. You can notice that students are listening and singing songs in
different language, that is, the Korean language even though they don’t know
the meaning of it. They talk about their favorite Korean dramas then admire
the actors and actresses in the movie and sometimes impersonate their looks
which greatly affected the fashion statement of the Filipino youth.

In addition, more than two thousand Kpop fans gathered for the first
ever Philippine Kpop Convention held in the Philippines International
Convention Center on December 10, 2009.16 Various fan clubs and
organizations joined hands to establish the Philippine Kpop Committee, and
since its inception in late 2009, numerous projects and events have been held 3
like parties and charitable events. From observation, it is clear that Filipino
fans join social groups to mingle with people with the same interest, as proven
by the subculture of Kpop fans in the country flamed by activities of fan clubs
and organizations. However, it is very interesting to note that there have been
no studies attempting to understand the Kpop fandom among the Filipino
teens. What is the reason for their active consumption of Kpop media texts?
What aspects of Kpop media content contribute to the Filipino teens’ liking
and appreciation? Do Kpop media texts gratify the various needs of the
Filipino fans which contribute to their regular consumption? These questions
fueled the researcher’s interest in understanding the Filipino teens’
consumption of Korean popular music, videos and artists.

Research Problem
Why Kpop is popular in the Phillippines?
Objectives of the Study
1. To determine the Filipino Youth's preference for Korean Wave particularly
in the latest trends;

2. To know how Korean Wave affects the taste of Filipino Youth with regards
to their culture;

3. Aims to understand the bad effects of South Korean culture to the youths
through its cultural exports in the Philippines;

4. To determine the different ways Filipino teens’ reach Korean popular music
and videos;

5.To Know Why is the Kpop spread so fast in the Phillippines.

Significance of the Study

The primary reason for the researcher’s interest in undertaking a study
about Kpop was his own fascination for it. Although guided by her own reasons
for fast spreading of Kpop, he wanted to objectively look at the phenomenon.
The researcher was also surprised that no other studies have tackled the Kpop
fandom in the country considering the multitude of Filipino Kpop fans and its
overwhelming popularity since 2009.

This study will be helpful to analyze the occurrence of Korean Wave

throughout the world and its implications for cultural influence on neighboring
countries like the Philippines. In addition, this study examine how national
identity impacts framing processes related to media coverage and public
response (Lee,2011). This study will provide brief description on the various
significance of the study about the fast spread of Korean popular culture
throughout the world given three categories: dramatic television series, music
and the choice of fashion.

Lastly, the fast spread of Kpop may cultivate a better relationship

between Filipino and Korean nationals residing in the Philippines, fostering an
open society as it promotes intercultural relativism which opens the critical
minds of the Filipinos to foreign cultures.

Scope of the Study

This study focused primarily on How Kpop spread so fast in the Phillipines,
regardless of gender and socio-economic status. Using the methods of survey
and focus interviews, the study described the processes of the fans’ consumption
of Kpop media and how it spread. It also determined the cultural aspects
present in Kpop that Filipino teens could relate with, and how the content
gratified the needs of the fans.

This study will only be limited to the Korean wave effects to the culture
preferences of the Filipino youth. It will not focus the effects on the Philippine
music and television series but may be discuss in one way or another. The
respondents will be students who are fans which deemed a representative of the
Filipino youth nowadays.

METHODOLOGY
Research Design
This study made use of the descriptive research method because this
involves the description, recording, analysis and interpretation of conditions
that now exist. It is the aim of this research to determine How thus the Kpop
spread so fast in the Philippines. To be able to do so, a descriptive research was
used in analyzing the information gathered by using appropriate statistical
procedures in order to arrive at a meaningful information.

Definition of Terms
The following terms shall be understood in context with the study. The
researcher provided this section in order to inculcate the meaning of various
terms in relation with the current research endeavor.
Active Consumption – consuming Kpop texts repeatedly and in a regular basis.

Consumption – the act of using/utilizing Kpop media content.

Convention – a big scale gathering of fans with the same interest, most of the
time filled with activities relating to the object of fandom.

Cultural offerings – facets of the Cultural Proximity Theory used in this study
to describe the content of foreign media texts.

Entertainment company – the agency that manages the assets, schedules, and
production of materials of the Kpop artists (e.g.: YG Entertainment, SM
Entertainment, JYP Entertainment).

Fan – a person with an intense enthusiasm or attachment to Korean popular

music, videos and artists.

Fan Club – an organized fandom established by a group of Kpop fans who

share the same interest for a certain subject of their attention and enthusiasm.

Idol – a singer trained by an entertainment company marketed as an idol for

the general public (e.g.: Girls’ Generation, Super Junior, Shinee, SS501, U-
Kiss). 8

Korean Popular Music (Kpop) – a genre of pop music that originated from
South Korea and performed by Korean idol singers and groups.

Kpop Music Video (MV) – the official music video of a Kpop song originally
performed by a Kpop artist and produced by their official Korean
entertainment companies.

Kpop Video Clips – clips containing Kpop artists or their music; maybe videos
from television shows.

Media Content – other music, video clips, and music videos which contain or
are related in anyway to Kpop or Kpop artists.

Online Forums – Internet communities where fans can post, download, and
exchange comments, messages, pictures, videos with fellow fans.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………………………...

Background of the Study …………………………………………………………...

Objectives of the Study ……………………………………………………………...

Significance of the Study ……………………………………………………………

Scope of the Study…………………………………………………………………...

Definition of Terms …………………………………………………………………

Body………………………………………………………………………………….

Conclusion……………………………………………………………………….......

Glossary……………………………………………………………………………...

Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………
BODY:

CAUSE OF THE RAPID SPREAD OF KPOP

IN THE PHILIPPINES

Hallyu and its Origins

The term ‘Hallyu’ is a word that is Korean in origin. It is derived from two
words ‘Han’ (Kor. Meaning “Korean”) and ‘Ryu’ (Kor. Meaning “Wave”). A
present-day name, literally meaning, Korean Wave (Deen, 2012). It generally
describes both the flow and the popularity of Korean popular cultural products,
especially media contents, in other Asian countries and beyond, as well as
exported Korean popular cultural products themselves (Yang, 2012).
Originally, it was used to describe the popularity of Korean dramas in China
(Deen, 2012). Historically, K-pop had originated from a hybrid of American
rock and Korean traditional beat beginning from the late 1950s to the early
1960s. Talented Korean musicians like Shin Joong Hyun created such hybrid
music for Korean audience after he worked as an entertainer for the American
soldiers stationed in South Korea. In the 1960s and 1970s, his ‘new music’ was
popularized among the Korean audience. In the late 1990s, So Taeji and H.O.T,
those offspring of Shin JoongHyung, entered China where the market economy
achieved growth and prosperity. For the Chinese audience, the early K-pop
hybrid music of So Taeji, H.O.T and later TVXQ—was more palatable than the
original American rap music (Kim, 2012). Now it is the cultural tsunami
sweeping across the globe.

Hallyu in the Philippines: Then & Now

Recently, an influx of young Koreans to the Philippines to learn
English—ensuring that many malls now have instructions translated in Hangul
to go with Chinese. There is a rising popularity of Korean Culture throughout
the world (Mogtortor, 2013). Though that does not mean everything will begin
and end with Hallyu, in truth, it inspires great devotion (Perez, 2014). The fans
themselves see to it that with every bit of their power they are able to support
the idols they love and adore. All of this is as a result to Hallyu’s influence in
the Philippines, economic growth can be seen in the near future.

A powerful facilitator of the Hallyu in Particular—is K-pop (or Korean-

Popular) music and dance (Kim, 2012). The growth of K-pop in the Phiippines
can be described as unique (Hicap, 2009), since back in 2008, there has been no
K-pop group/idol to ever come to the Philippines—whether it is to have
promotions, endorse or to conduct shows/concerts. Since then, new idol groups
were created by the K-pop productions, such as SM Entertainment and JYP
Entertainment. The American pop music, however, was introduced much
earlier in the Philippines. The Filipino musicians, who entertained American
forces in Subic or Clark bases, were much more adept in American jazz, rock
and rap music (Kim, 2012). Perhaps it is due to the fact that the Filipinos were
exposed to American music early on that they somehow started to accept the
so-called ‘new music’-hybrid that the Koreans have made—and not only that,
but due to it being a cultural mix,is also perhaps another factor that adds up to
what makes it so enticing.

Even though there is a difference in regional backgrounds between the

Philippines and the origin country of K-pop (Yia, 2012), there is still a
surprising growth in its subculture in the country (Deen, 2012)—a factor which
makes the product so impressive. The fans of the Hallyu wave in the country
would naturally seek company from those who have the same passion as theirs.

K-pop events being launched in the Philippines is usually more or less a

grand success. Like the 2nd Philippine K-pop convention, which gathered five-
hundred-thousand pesos (PHP 500,000) for the GawadKalinga’sBayani
Challenge; successful fan gatherings and fan-meetings; concerts; and recently
the successful press conference held by 2NE1 in EDSA Shangri-la Plaza—
attracting thousands of fans to greet them before their concert the next day
(Pao, 2014).

The Internet: A Powerful Facilitator

The internet is understood as one of the most major factors that affected
the proliferation of K-pop in the Philippines. This tool is mostly used by the
younger generation, and in the survey conducted by the researcher, the average
age of the respondents is 16.82 (17). Ages varying from 12-21 years old(see
Figure 1). The younger generation would find out about the phenomenon in the
internet—mainly spread through social media (e.g twitter, facebook, tumblr,
etc.). They are mostly the ones who would find out about such a phenomenon
because they are the ones who are mostly exposed to it. Being the ones who are
mostly exposed to the phenomenon, they would then be more sensitive to the
things they find on the internet. This includes K-pop, which branched out its
popularity from the utilization of the internet.

K-pop has a committed approach to raising customer accessibility over

attaining short term profits (Seo, 2012). This is where the internet would come
in, playing a big role—the fans would use this tool to look for [1] information
regarding their favorite idols, [2] to socialize by joining communities and social
networking sites (SNS) and [3] to purchase Hallyu products in online stores
(Deen, 2012). These are opportunities and abilities that they would not be able
to attain if not for the internet. The Internet, being a part of mass media, is a
vital factor in the spread of Hallyu, its attributes contributing to the
proliferation of the Hallyu. It can be understood that it is mostly the youth
who use the internet—therefore they would be the ones who are assumed to be
affected by the influence of Hallyu (Magtortor, 2012). Not only does the
internet serve as a communication tool, it now serves as the bridge between the
idols and their international fans—making the internet play a important role in
the K-pop world.Though it is not a direct cause for the wave, no one can deny
that it has a role in its expansion.
 17; 21%

21

16; 7% 20
19
18; 36%
18
15; 4%
17
14; 2% 16
15
12; 2%
14
21; 4%
12

20; 9%
19; 15%

Figure 1.The ages of the respondents of the survey that was conducted for this
research. This figure illustrates the percentage and ratio of the ages of the
respondents.

Mass Media and Big Business

A total of 60% of the respondents answered that they heard about K-pop
from the social media platforms (such as twitter, facebook, tumblr, etc.). Where
social media can be considered as part of mass media and at the same time
considered as point or minimal media because it focuses on the person using it.
Social media can be considered effective in promoting awareness than choosing
to do so with the use of television. 12 out of 55 answered that they found out
about K-pop through the news, comprising a total of 21.82% of the total
respondents. This is given that K-pop stars are already coming into the
Philippines. It could be possible that K-pop already has existing popularity in
the Philippines or that their popularity around the globe could be strong
enough to reach into the news media. 5 out of 55 answered that they found out
about K-pop trough the television, which comprises about 9.1% of the total
respondents. News media could be included in this category, however, it’s not
news, but promotions and tv shows are included as well. K-pop could be
featured in the commercials, for example in promoting concerts. Or they could
be guests in some tv shows and variety shows in the Philippines. There were 2
out of 55 who answered other—which comprises 3.6% of the total respondents,
the answers consist of (1) them finding out about it by themselves without the
influence of peers, and (2) advertisements on print ads and the like. The
respondents who answered finding out about K-pop from the Philippines could
be pertaining to the fact that these respondents could have the advantage of
having access to the Philippines. Those who see it from print ads, means that
K-pop already has an existing popularity in the Philippines for the companies
to invest in having print ads and the like. (See Figure 2)

Television Other
6% 2%
Social Media
Family (Facebook, Twitter,
10% Youtube, Tumblr, etc.)
35%

Friends
33%
News
14%

Figure 2. Venues where the respondents found out about K-pop. This figure
illustrates the percentage of where the respondents usually heard or found out
about K-pop first. Other, refers to the advertisements and the like.
Piracy, Accessibility and Availability
Given the internet, there is a major concern that may cause K-pop’s
downfall—piracy. Since the products are readily available on the
Internet(Deen, 2012). However, the availability of the products on the Internet
can be viewed as a positive factor—since it would help further develop the
popularity of K-pop, in terms of marketing but not so much in profit. It gives
the audience an opportunity to try the songs they have in the album, without
having to make a purchase. Fan-made items that are in the shadow of the
original items the idols promote will also become common. However, because of
this—the price/value of the original item is said to boost. This is in addition to
highly well-received international tours, K-pop has experienced explosive online
popularity.

K-pop has entrenched itself as a bona fide phenomenon in Asia, being

greatly defined by the good looks of its stars, the catchiness of their music, their
hard-to-memorize killer dance moves, their group presentation and style — and
their avid fan base (Macapendeng, 2012). And is rapidly extending its reach to
new markets. Companies in other industries can benefit from its success by
deploying K-pop based products and tourism packages, using K-pop stars as
spokesmen, and piggybacking on K-pop’s transnational appeal. Other than
that, companies can also learn from K-pop’s system of rigorous training and
long-term planning (Seo, 2012). Now, K-pop is the basis for successful business
planning and marketing, as well as a route for products to ride on—for a good
market reach, given its popularity. Given that companies are getting K-pop
idols as models for various clothing brands, restaurants and etc.

Peer

29 out of 55 answered that they found out about K-pop though the
influence of their friends, comprising a total of 52.72% of the respondents.9 out
of 55 answered that they found out about K-pop through their own family,
comprising a total of 16.26% of the total respondents. 55 out of 55 respondents,
know someone who listens to K-pop--having a total of 100% reach ratio.

This means that most of the respondents are influence by their friends
and family. And all of the respondents, regardless of whether they are directly
or indirectly involved by K-pop, they know someone who listen to K-pop. The
awareness ratio of the respondents, hence, was influenced by the people or those
who surround them in their life. One way or another, the respondents would
still find out about K-pop.

Kpop in Free TV

Since Kpop has already penetrated mainstream media, it’s not any more
surprising to hear Korean songs playing in UHF channels like ABS-CBN, GMA,
and TV5. In fact, Korean 73 music can be frequently heard in popular shows
like ABS-CBN’s Showtime, GMA’s Party Pilipinas and TV5’s POV. Korean
artists have given exclusive interviews and performances in these channels. TV5
promoted Korean male singer Rain during his Intensity concert last September
11, 2010 and even provided the audience with an exclusive coverage of the
event.141 In addition, GMA has constantly been the media partner for U-Kiss’
three consecutive visits in Manila.142

However, it is still a fact that Kpop content only gets limited airtime in
free television. UHF channels provide Kpop content once or twice a week, or on
special occasions, especially when certain Kpop acts visit the country. In fact,
only one interviewee cited television as a medium that contributed to her
consumption. The rest of the interviewees said they did not get any Kpop
content from UHF channels at all. Winnie, on the other hand, mentioned that
channels like ABS-CBN provided her with good Korean content such as Korean
dramas with Kpop artists, and more specifically, the coverage of SS501’s arrival
and stay in Manila.143 Bryan mentioned using these free channels as venue for
news updates on events, conventions and concerts, as these happenings usually
get advertisements on free channels.
 While free television provides the Filipino audience its limited share of
Kpop airtime, the interviewees’ opinion on Kpop’s exposure on Philippine TV
was mixed. For instance, Ayesha didn’t like the fact that the big networks allot
broadcast time for Kpop artists, especially since producers were prone to errors
on presenting information about Kpop. According to her, “…mali iyong
information na nilalagay nila… supposed to be, magtanong sila sa mga Kpop
fan kasi alam na alam nila yun.[…they broadcast the wrong information…
They should ask Kpop fans because they would know.]

The incident that pissed off Ayesha, and many other Filipino Kpop fans,
referred to the June 13, 2010 episode of GMA-7’s Showbiz Central.145 The said
show aired a U-Kiss special, but mistakenly showed a wrong picture of one U-
Kiss member. This enraged many Filipino fans because of the apparent lack of
research by the segment producers. But while Ayesha was against the
mainstream broadcast of Korean music and artists, the male interviewees had
positive things to say about this. Double X said, “Sign lang iyon ng pagkasikat
nila, ganoon talaga kapag sikat ang artist.”146 [It’s just a sign of their
popularity. It’s really like that if the artist is popular.] In the same note, Bryan
said it made him happy because mainstream broadcast meant he could see more
of his favorite Kpop stars. But amidst their pride in the occasional mass
exposure of their favorite Kpop stars, free television remains to be the lesser
generous medium when it comes to delivering Kpop content.

Kpop in Cable TV
While UHF-channels did not provide the interviewees with enough Kpop
content, Cable TV delivers Kpop music and videos on scheduled airtimes. Most
of the interviewees have watched a lot of Kpop music videos and songs on cable
channels such as MYX, Arirang and KBS World. Almost all of them, with the
exception of Margaret, regularly watched MYX music channel to see if Kpop
music videos have entered the MYX Daily Top 10 and MYX International Top
20. MYX also has a weekly show (Pop Myx Kpop Edition) which airs five to six
Korean music videos per episode. Both Ayesha and Bryan said they tuned in to
KBS World, an all-Korean channel with English subtitles. The said channel has
a weekly music program called Music Bank which airs on Friday nights, and is
a staple in the viewing consumption of many Kpop fans including the
interviewees. In addition, Bryan also regularly 75 surfed channel V for Korean
music videos. Arirang TV was of big help for Ayesha and Winnie as the said
channel provided them Korean content with English subtitles, and has a music
program (Pops in Seoul) and an entertainment news program (Showbiz Extra!).