Why Do You Love K-Pop? These 11 Malaysian Fans Share Their Stories
Is it just the music they love or is there more to it?
Published for ACUVUE® , 15 Jul 2019, 11:32 AM
1. “Why I love K-pop is because of its own unique flavour that it carries together with the artists"
"Within K-pop itself, different idol groups carries a different identity with them (2PM and Monsta X are beast-dols, BlackPink are girl-crush idols, etc.) and that’s what makes K-pop interesting. Every group and songs distinguish from each other and there’s a variety of concepts that fans can choose from.
Besides, the fandoms in K-pop is one of the foundations of why K-pop exist. K-pop idols always share their appreciation towards their fans and they always make sure that they can find ways to interact with fans and show their thankfulness towards fans who’ve been supporting them since the beginning.”
- Vanessa Lim, 27
2. "Seeing how hard K-pop idols work for their success has inspired me to work just as hard to achieve my goals"
"I've been a fan of BTS since December 2017 when a colleague of mine showed me a glimpse of their 'Mic Drop' music video. Verdict you may ask? Life changing!
It's amazing seeing a bunch of hard workers leaving everything behind just to fight for their dreams and as an ARMY, I could not have felt more proud. How far they've come, all the places they've been to, and what they've accomplished is just amazing.
They've shown me that all things are achievable if you just work for it, and have truly inspired me be to be a better person and do better in life.
P.S: As you can see from the photo above, I even ended up purposely going to places that my bias, Kim Taehyung has been to before lol. Who else is a Tae bias here? :P"
- Doreen Tay, 28
3. "I don’t have any explanation on why I like K-pop but I got hooked ever since 2017 and right now it’s really hard for me to shake the obsession off lol"
Farouq recently met GFRIEND at their pre-concert press conference here in KL.
Image via Farouq Johari"Started layaning K-pop when ‘Gee’ came out in 2008 but that was it at that time. I just love looking at their passion and dedication towards giving the best in anything that they do. But I only layan girl groups lah kahkahkah.
And now after few years of layaning K-pop, my like towards it just keeps growing. Last year I met AOA and the other day I met GFriend pulak. I can confirm that I am a Buddy now lol."
- Farouq Johari, 29
4. "It's all about the music for me!"
Selena at the 2018 ASTRO Global Fan Meeting in Canada. She's the 4th from the right, in a grey top, sitting between Cha Eunwoo and Yoon Sanha.
Image via Media One"K-pop songs are super catchy and the dances are quite easy to learn so it makes you want to dance along to the music. I also really like how they change their concepts each comeback so you get to see a new side of the group every time."
- Selena Chua, 23
5. "I like how K-pop sounds even though I don’t understand the language"
"Music will always be music even if it’s in a different language. If the music sounds good, then listen to it. That is why I listen to K-pop. I just love the way Korean sounds, especially in song lyrics, it just fits so well with the music. Language was never and will never be a barrier for me to appreciate and love music.
K-pop music videos are so perfectly made, and I always look forward to them. They are all high production and amazing. It doesn’t matter if they come from a big company or a smaller one, there is always a lot of thought put into the creative and fun music videos.
I also love how K-pop groups do dance choreography. The K-pop industry strives for perfection hence that is why their dance choreography is always so intense and perfect. It shows the amount of all the nights they’ve spent on practicing it. To sum up, K-pop is fun, energetic, and relatively unique."
- Nikki Mie Victor, 22
6.. "The reason I fell in love with K-pop was mainly because of the choreography and also the rhythm of the songs"
"I first discovered K-pop when I was around 16 or 17 in 2009. That was the time when TVXQ was dominating globally with 'Rising Sun' and 'Mirotic'. I used to learn all the dances by myself and dance it with my fellow K-pop friends for fun.
Besides, K-pop ballads are the best because you can feel the emotions even though you do not understand a single word they are singing lol.
Other than that, I really feel that the way the agencies market their idols really attracted me. From their own reality show to entertainment shows, they just know how to make us fall in love with them more!"
- Arthur "Bacon" Lim, 27
7. "The reason I love K-pop aside from the obvious catchy music and attractive idols is the creative concepts!"
"I love how every group is not particularly tied down to having one image. They can experiment with their looks and music to showcase different creative sides to them (like going from a tough guy hip hop look to then trying out a cutesy vibe) and it can still suit them.
This helps keeps us fans entertained and it's probably one of the main reasons I'm still a big fan of K-pop even after 10 years."
- Iylia Aziz, 27
8. "I used to despise K-pop because I was brought up thinking it was a bad influence"
"Flash forward to today. I now spend hours watching dance practices and comeback stages and listen to K-pop on a daily basis. My perception on K-pop was forever changed the very moment I watched BTS’ Dope MV back in 2015.
This has opened doors to new music, entertainment, and opportunities to connect with so many people who have become my best friends today! K-pop has grown so much ever since I became a fan and I wouldn’t be able to imagine a world without it.
Also if you couldn’t tell, Kim Namjoon has been my ultimate bias ever since I laid my eyes on him in Dope hehehe!"
- Natasha Lee, 21
9. "K-pop started out as my guilty pleasure during my high school years"
"Back then, I would watch K-pop frequently. It was my guilty pleasure as it was very new to Malaysians during that time. I liked that it was something fresh and new that I discovered. Other than Western music, K-pop offered a very different form of entertainment.
I used to spend hours and hours watching 2PM’s music video 'Again and Again', trying to get the moves exactly right. I have never seen any group dance like that before, it was so exciting!
Watching many K-pop groups do so well internationally over the years has also been very empowering to me, as it showed that Asian people have so much more to offer."
- Wei-Shen Khor, 26
10. "At first, I started liking K-pop because the songs are super catchy but as I continued to delve into the genre, I fell in love with so much more"
Gowri in front of the History of Super Junior display at the SMTOWN Coex Artium in Seoul.
Image via Gowri Chitra"I loved how the idols aren't all mysterious and secretive. They are so open and unafraid to show who they really are on variety shows. Seeing them acting all silly, sharing heartfelt stories, and showing the bond between members truly made me care for them as people, not just as celebs.
I also love how K-pop is able to bring people together. I've met so many wonderful people just through our mutual love for K-pop, once you discover that you have that in common, it's so easy to talk and bond like you've known each other for years!"
- Gowri Chitra, 27
11. "Personally, the way I view K-pop is that it’s pretty different compared to the other music genres I listen to"
"For some reason, it has an edgy vibe that appeals to me. It does have a kind of positive vibe too, kinda lightens up my mood whenever I listen to it. Another bonus is that their music videos are super nice and they are one-of-a-kind! It stands out from the crowd."
- Damien Chung, 22
If you're a K-pop fan, you'll know how amazing getting to attend a concert is!
Only fans understand the excitement of finally seeing your beloved idols in front of your eyes. There's nothing quite like the hype from listening to all your favourite songs live, or the joy of pulling off a successful fan project for them.
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