The Perfect Music Industry Part 1

What makes a good music industry? Why do some industries fall behind others? Why do some advance so quickly?

We will use two examples. Today, we will be analyzing the Korean music industry (KMI).

For those unfamiliar with the KMI, I have two songs that you should watch to get a feel of what I want to discuss. The first is Big Bang's "Bang Bang Bang." The second is Shinee's "Hello." You may want to have a look at Psy's "Gangnam Style" or "Gentleman" for extra reference.

Part of what makes Korean music so appealing is the amount of effort they put into making the MV's flashy and the music closer to a Western type style. The MV's use a lot of capital to do the things they do. For instance, in Bang Bang Bang, imagine how much money was spent producing the MV. Definitely not cheap. Furthermore, the KMI have transformed their stars into amazing dancers. In Hello, do you see the harmony and sharp movements of the five members? These sharp movements and amazing MV features make the MV feel like a high quality.

We must also consider culture and politics. The KMI is using the internet, and especially YouTube, to push their music into foreign markets. The high accessibility of their videos makes it easier for different audiences to see the videos. The government also seems to like the idea. They don't seem to put any restrictions on the what MV's they can make. In fact, they may in fact encourage and pour money into the KMI.

If you have been following Korean music for a while, you may notice that singers tend to sing in other languages as well, especially English, Chinese, and Japanese. If you think about it, Japan and China house a lot of people. If you can penetrate into their markets, you have access to more consumers, and thus more money. Sometimes, Korean groups add Chinese or Japanese members so that they can connect with foreign listeners. Other times, two groups of the same name are created, but each will include members from different countries. For instance, Exo-K (Korean) and Exo-M (Mandarin Chinese).

Next week, we will analyze a music industry that has not been so successful.