1. There is no doubt, Korean Popular Music fever is all over the Philippines. With its
consistent sales of K-pop albums and concert tickets, Filipinos is definitely invaded by
Korean culture. From young to young-at heart, every Filipino was hooked by Korean
drama series and the heart pumping beat of K-pop music and they are proud of it.But,
some people are still puzzled and condemning this phenomenal genre. They will always
ask question such as “How can you love something you don‟t even comprehend?” or
“Aren‟t they weird?” or something like that.But the real question here is, why most
Filipinos love K-pop even they can‟t understand it?
KPOP often referred to as “Hallyu”, which means “Korean Wave” is a fresh-faced
phenomenon that most teenagers got addicted to. The KPOP idols are mostly made up
of good-looking teenagers and young adults, and there‟s an untamed, passionate spirit
evident in the way these artists gobble up and spit out unique sounds and awesome
lyrics which will bring you in a state of LSS-ness. Sometimes, the song could be really
annoying because it seems like the lyrics makes no sense at all but it is the unique
melody and the rhythm that characterized KPOP. It also delivers the kind of senses-
shattering, hands-in-the-air euphoria which is a defining marker of a great pop.
KPOP was indirectly born in the Philippines because of the popular
Koreanovelas like Endless Love, and Full House wherein Rain starred as the lead actor.
And because of Rain‟s popularity as a singer here in the Philippines, some Korean
groups gained popularity as well. KPOP in the Philippines officially started to gain
popularity when former teen star Sandara Park went global with her phenomenal group
2NE1. Her success paved the way for the entry of other popular KPOP acts in
Philippine mainstream music. Apart from Rain and Sandara, some of the Korean music
artists admired by many Pinoy K-Pop fans are U-KISS, Super Junior, 2NE1, Big Bang,
SHINee, SS501, Girls‟ Generation, CNBLUE, F(X), Beast, and F.T. Island.
But what makes KPOP so addicting? According to Prof. Wendell Capili of
University of the Philippines, that music is a universal language, and KPOP‟s first
appeal is its unique melody. It is catchy and quite easy to understand. In English, it‟s
what we call light and perky… and it appeals mostly to audience who are in the younger
demographic.”It does not matter if you‟re Korean or Filipino, even if you cannot
understand the lyrics, the first thing that would appeal to you is the melody. Second one
is the singers. Third is the production value of the music videos. Fourth is the fantasy
factor. Most of the Filipino fans belong to the lower income generating class, or they can
also be well-off but they want to travel in other countries. And Korea represents a
certain appeal that young Filipinos aspire. That is the main reason why most Filipino
youth are addicted to KPOP.” she also stated.
Despite the language barrier, the Filipinos embraced KPOP with open arms but
not everyone approves for the KPOP craze in the country. According to some Filipino

2. artist, KPOP invasion is a huge threat to OPM industry. Instead of patronizing what is
ours, we patronize foreign-made albums and artist. Up to this date, OPM is slowly
crumbling to pieces because of its big time competitors like KPOP, JPOP and American
and European artist. OPM basically revolves around artists that makes covers of hit
Western music and sometimes their own music compositions are not even that popular.
Music is a world within itself. A world with a language we all understand and can
relate to. Music is moonlight in the gloomy night of life. Whatever music we prefer,
KPOP, OPM, JPOP or Western Music what really matters is that we must recognize
and respect our differences because everyone is entitled for their own opinions and is
unique in their own right.
The saying „You cannot please everyone‟ is definitely true. Despite all the loves
Kpop have been receiving it also receives much hate from Anti-fans. The only goal of an
anti-fan is to hate on a specific group. They do this by trying to dig up all kinds of
information about the past of the idol singer in hopes of creating a scandal and making
the idols life. They‟ve also known to start rumors that have become full-blown scandals.
Anti-fans are usually created out of jealousy. When their favorite idol starts dating or is
even just to be rumored to be dating another idol, they automatically become anti-fans
of that othert idol. Some have even gone so far as to try and physically assault the Kpop
idols they hate.