K-Pop, the Next Trend in Event Music?

A few weeks ago you probably had never heard of South Korean singer/rapper ‘PSY’ and his song “Gangnam Style”, but now EVERYONE is talking about this viral video and doing that goofy, infectiously-fun dance. For five weeks it’s been #1 on the Billboard’s Social music chart and it’s played at every bar and bat mitzvah, wedding, company party and school dance. College campuses are filled with students singing the lyrics and breaking into the dance as they pass one another on their way to class. YouTube has exploded with parodies and just people doing the dance. Its amazing to see how quickly this song has taken off and more importantly how quickly we’ve accepted something so… well, goofy! Why is that and what’s next?

“Gangnam Style” is just the latest of a string of K-Pop (short for Korean Pop) charts toppers that have taken over the South Korean music scene and it’s the first to really take hold here in the USA. South Korean rapper PSY (born Park Jae-sang), the 35 year old who recorded “Gangnam Style”, is riding the popularity train and enjoying his success. With two appearances on “The Ellen Degeneres Show” (including her highest rated show ever), “SNL”, the iHeart Radio Festival in Las Vegas, “Chelsea Lately”, “Extra”, “The Today Show” and more requests for appearances than are humanely possible coming in daily, PSY is preparing the USA for a new trend in music: K-POP!

As a DJ, I know I love this tune. I enjoy any song that people want to dance to. It doesn’t matter how they want to dance, just as long as the dance floor is full. I enjoy it most when it’s multigenerational and “Gangnam Style” appeals to guests both young and old. When the dance floor fills up with guests of all ages trying to do a dance that really requires no rhythm and that anyone can do, that’s a HIT and I’m loving it. I’m looking forward to the forthcoming K-Pop invasion for a fresh new musical direction.

I can’t help feel that I know this music all too well. A few years ago my friend Joe lived in South Korea, working for a multi-national hotel chain, and when he was transferred back to the states he told me about K-Pop. I brushed it off  thinking it was a one hit wonder. Around that time a new group was just starting to get noticed in the USA. That group, LMFAO, has a style that is similar to K-Pop. From the brightly colored hues to the goofy dances, LMFAO has a style that is fun, and K-Pop is just that – FUN! The lyrics are not too deep and certainly not profane, derogitory or laced with racial undertones. Our biggest music consumers, teens, are in desperate NEED of a change in music storytelling. A change in the force fed, formulaic world that the US music industry is. Formulas are good, and K-Pop is a formula too, but every once in a while the ingedients need to change and I’m happy and hopeful to see if K-Pop can help us change.

Music, in its simplest form, is meant to entertain an audience and dance music is meant to entertain and engage an audience. K-Pop is just that, entertaining and engaging and it will make every event, party, wedding or social gathering so much more fun to be at. Anyone who’s planned an event can tell you that the more fun you have at a celebration, the more memories that will be created and the longer your guests will talk about your event. 84 West Studios is always engaging our guests on the dance floor with the latest and greatest hits that keep every generation in attendance in the mix. The fun we create and capture with our photography and videography is priceless and it’ll be cherished for generations to come. Let 84 West Studios get you on the dance floor and we’ll show you how to “Gannam Style” too. Opa Gangnam Style!