Text | Maureena
Li Xiuman, an old friend of Chinese min and the founder of SM, was full of confidence when he mentioned the development of the Hallyu last year. He believes that with the changes in Sino-South Korean relations and the loosening of the "Korean restriction order", the Korean Wave will usher in a second revival in China. At that time, many people shook their heads, including hard candy Jun - 14 years ushered in the returnees, 18 years ushered in the draft faction, coupled with the two countries' folk sentiments antagonistic, try to ask today's internal entertainment, where is the korean room?
But now under the "clear" black and red are gone, the draft is suspended, the stars are in unison, the melon-eating masses can only archaeologize "sheep placenta" and haiqing, and the Korean Wave can be described as "taking advantage of the void". The second-generation boy band BIGBANG released new songs, the second-generation girl group 2NE1 reunited in Coachella, the tenth anniversary of the founding of EXO and other Hallyu news frequently searched on Weibo, trance, simply dream back to 2015.
Not only the old group has a strong sense of existence, but the topicality of the K-pop newcomers is not weak. Last year's debut of the girl group IVE strong return, even passers-by can not avoid brushing to "Zhang Yuanying's beautiful stage" and "golden autumn cool short hair" and other Amway videos; has released a full hard photo of the new girl group LE SSERAFIM because of the former Ikenone popular member Miyazaki Misaki, in the Xiaohongshu, Weibo, Douban and other platforms are quite discussed.
Not to mention that on the QQ Music best-selling digital album list, Korean artists and K-pop groups almost slaughtered the chart and won the top three. It should be noted that the top three albums were not released for a long time, and after the release of the "Notice on Further Strengthening the Governance of the Chaos in the "Rice Circle"", the digital album lost its chart function, which can be regarded as a "real achievement".
The "Korean Wave revival" predicted by Lee So-man may really become a reality.
The return of the second generation
In 2016, Korean movies and Korean dramas were taken offline, and Korean artists' activities in the mainland were blocked, and the term "Korean Wave" gradually faded from the public's vision and turned into a small circle of development. Coupled with the vigorous development of internal entertainment in recent years, young love beans emerge in an endless stream, and most people, including hard candy Jun, believe that even if internal entertainment is temporarily restricted, it is difficult to reproduce the K-pop boom.
But this view ignores one variable — the second generation.
The so-called "several generations of groups" is that fans divide the Korean groups that debuted in different periods according to the chronology in order to facilitate memory, and name them "first generation groups" and "second generation groups". However, there are certain differences in the standards of fans in China and South Korea, and the era division of men and women's groups is also different.
At present, the so-called second-generation group in China refers to a series of male and female group groups that debuted in 2000-2010, including bigbang, sj, wondergirls, girls' generation and so on. EXO, which debuted in 2012, is sometimes packed into this sequence as well.
Unlike the first generation of Korean groups that were active before the millennium, the emergence of the second generation of groups is accompanied by the development of social networks, they attack the city faster, and many people in China have a clear understanding of "aid beans" for the first time, that is, through the second generation of groups. It was also this group of people who opened the golden age of the Korean Wave in the mainland.
At present, the mainstream entertainment audience's feelings for the second-generation group are different from those of other generations of Korean groups. On the one hand, the second-generation group can be said to be the enlightenment of many people's popular culture, the so-called first love complex, reading Qianfan's heart always has a TA place;
On the other hand, the fan composition of the second-generation group at that time was mainly college and middle school students and young white-collar workers, that is, the group of people born in 1985-1995. Now they have the power to consume, willing to spend money to make up for the shortcomings of the pockets of the year; at the same time, they have grown into the backbone of society, have more right to speak, and have a certain influence on younger groups.
The revival of the Korean Wave in domestic social networks was triggered by the second generation of the group.
"Sister Riding the Wind and Waves 3" is about to start broadcasting, and people with hearts have decided the list of participating sisters this season early according to the reuters photos and flights that flowed out, and former Girls' Generation member Jessica immediately became the topic center, and related discussions rushed to Weibo hot search;
BIGBANG, a second-generation boy band that experienced negative news and was once rumored to be disbanded, released the digital single "Still Life" on April 5. This single not only became the number one in the major music source charts in South Korea, but also ranked first in the Q-tone best-seller list, and the news of BIGBANG's return also won a place in Weibo hot search;
There is also the second-generation girl group 2NE1, which reunites after seven years, and the captain CL said that three teammates will recreate the classic single "My Reddest" stage at the Coachella Music Festival. Stage-related videos, group photos after the 2NE1 performance, and news of how CL revealed how members gathered, all became popular content on social platforms in the past few days.
All business can be done again with new people and new forms, and the Hallyu also operates in this way.
Relying on the return of the elderly to reunite the hot topic of speculation, it happened once in 2017. More than ten years after his debut, he can almost start preparing for a reunion. At that time, the original Hallyu group H.O.T. was on the same stage again because of the variety show "Six Six Songs", and many ancient Korean meals were fried, including many well-known writers, writers, bloggers, etc. Relying on this wave of nostalgia, the old Obas not only gained the old fans of the pit, but also gained a group of young new fans.
But after all, the original group is too long, although those big players in the circle have become the backbone of various industries, but the activity on social networks is insufficient, and the attraction is still limited.
The second generation of the group in the mainland, whether it is the public awareness or the Internet voice of fans, far exceeds the first generation of the group. This time the story is clearly more exciting.
The rise of new groups
If Weibo and Douban are the happy land of the old people in the K-pop and the new, then the B station and the little red book are the stage for the new K-pop newcomers to go to the internal entertainment.
Probably the miracle effect of the algorithm recommendation, a number of friends told the hard candy Jun, in the past one or two years, their way to understand the new Korean group is no longer the Douban group or Weibo, but the home page recommendation of the B station, and the makeup of the Korean girl group on the Little Red Book.
Hard Candy Jun has previously discussed "why Korean new songs are difficult to hear" ("Want to return to China, Hallyu must first adjust the product line"), arguing that with the change of communication media, hearing gives way to vision, and Hallyu chooses to sacrifice part of the auditory experience to serve the overall effect. The "whole" here includes dance choreography, songs, makeup and costumes, and the concept of combination, and the medium video community such as Station B is the best platform to show the "overall effect".
Fans integrate the singing stage, MV, dance version, practice room version and direct shooting of different members of a song together, and watch several videos in a row, which is easy to be captured by the "sense of wholeness". Coupled with the dazzling stage effects, the singing seems to be so important. IVE's comment area has a large number of messages similar to "Help, I really got on the stage after watching the stage a few times, and this song doesn't seem to be ugly".
In addition to the packaged stage Amway, there are many UP masters who have in-depth interpretation of the Korean group MV. Although I don't know whether the UP master's analysis is the company's true intentions, these interpretation videos can justify themselves, and there are many dry goods, with the young and fresh faces of the love beans, it is a weapon to kill time. Several MVs look down at the members' surnames and names, and combine several representative songs, which remain in the mind unconsciously.
The Little Red Book naturally fits with Han Yu's plastic surgery grade makeup. After the completion of "Qingyou II" and "Chuang III" in 2020, many sisters who originally debuted in South Korea returned to South Korea to work. Compared with recording a program in the mainland, makeup shows the difference between heaven and earth. Little Red Book bloggers often use this as a template to analyze what kind of makeup to add points. While learning the experience of becoming beautiful, I also memorized several K-pop combinations.
Of course, in recent years, the increase in the importance of Chinese members in the Korean group is also a curved way to save the country when the new Korean group cannot go to the mainland through normal channels.
As early as the era of the second-generation regiment, it can be seen that the complex effect of "Chinese help Chinese". Among them, the most typical one is that Han Geng's SJ, Song Qian's f(x) as the captain, and the groundbreaking 1/3 of the members are all EXO Chinese. The combination of these three groups with Chinese members laid the foundation for SM's huge market in China.
After the activity was blocked, the life of Chinese trainees in South Korea was once difficult, and there were also groups of original Chinese members who were temporarily replaced before their debut. But soon Koreans found that the purchasing power of lunch was not affected by the inability to meet, and the longevity of lunch was far better than that of Korean migratory bird rice, so a large number of Chinese faces appeared in the five generations of the regiment.
And unlike the second-generation regiment period Chinese were mostly "fringed", the Chinese members of the fifth-generation regiment held more important positions in the regiment and revealed more. For example, Ning Ning of Aespa is the first Chinese lead singer in SM history.
This is not the conscience of Koreans to find that the Korean group's activities in China are still limited, and the MV, stage and related variety shows are the main materials for the Korean Wave to absorb Lunch. Chinese have more parties and more faces, which is naturally easier to attract fellow villagers. Some simple fans will also be more willing to spend money for the combination and the company they belong to because "the company loves beans well for me".
A Chinese showman who turned to Korean entertainment
Of course, it must be admitted that whether it is the return of the old group or the rise of the new group, the impact is mostly the original Hallyu audience. However, South Koreans are obviously reluctant to give up the vast mainland market, and those who are not interested in Korean entertainment may turn to the Korean Wave because Xiuren goes abroad to work.
The mainland draft was stopped, and there was no way to practice and make a debut. Some people give up their illusions, they should go to school, they should work part-time. Others went to South Korea and once again joined the draft.
Here, Chinese show people go to South Korea to seek opportunities, and South Korean shows over there have also reached a bottleneck period that urgently needs to change. The storm that domestic people can set off for self-amusement is still limited, and if the proportion of foreign players is high, then the influence can easily radiate to other countries.
In 2021, South Korea's Ment Television hosted the China-Japan-South Korea Trilateral Talent Show "Girls Planet 999", with 33 contestants from each country participating. Unlike previous shows, the show proposes the concept of "China, Japan and South Korea together is a cell". Under its role, the camera weight and stage parts of the Chinese contestants in the early stage of the program are sufficient. Even if the Koreans make their debut night again, they force the number of Korean players to debut through the rules. But the Chinese girls who participated in this show have more or less received a wave of solid attention.
Su Ruiqi, who did not have the opportunity to debut, and Fu Yaning, the "evil girl" who was viciously cut in the first period and turned over by public opinion in the follow-up, are typical. Both players have participated in the show in China, but they are not impressed and have not made their debut.
Although they are still one step away from their debut in 999, due to the unfair treatment they suffered in the show, both contestants have gained a lot of fans. Now that Su Ruiqi has signed a contract with a Japanese company and released works, Fu Yaning has also released new songs after returning to China, and has received many performance invitations from music festivals.
As the only Chinese player to debut in 999, Shen Xiaoting's treatment in the combination kep1er is currently good. Some fans said that when they saw Xiaoting's card debut, they were ready to check whether this person was there, but they did not expect the debut song and the first stage, and Xiaoting was standing C and killing part, but it gave people a feeling of "getting the royal family".
As mentioned earlier, the K-pop group cannot operate in China normally, and the more Chinese members there are, the more conducive it is to absorb Lunch. For South Korea, it can rely on the "Chinese royal family" to reverse the operation of a wave of abuse fans.
For the trainees, there is no work left and right, it is better to go to South Korea to break through. It is best to debut, but if you can stay a few more periods, you can also solidly absorb powder and enhance your popularity.
At present, the 999 boy band version called "Boys Planet 2022" has been launched, and the Chinese trainees who folded on the night of their debut are of course interested in going overseas to fight. More insiders revealed that popular players such as Oscar, Gan Wangxing, Yu Jingtian and other popular players will participate.
Although the gossip has not been recognized by the owner, it is certain that sending trainees to overseas to return to the pot will become the choice of some domestic entertainment brokerage companies. Show people who go to Korea to work will bring the attention of fans from home to overseas.
People who have watched the show know that even if there is already a one pick before the start of the show, as the show airs, you and I who are led by the nose and fall into the reality show story line will always unconsciously push it. In addition, Koreans are originally good at the overall stage and concept packaging, so you can't help but say the real incense.
Kep1er member Jin Duojuan, during the broadcast of the show, the camera was so many that she was even jokingly called "the only empress dowager of ment", and she was even suspected of squeezing out Chinese girls by rules. However, as soon as he made his debut, as soon as his hair was dyed on the stage, many people shouted "My Juan, Xiang is dead." It is foreseeable that similar scripts will be staged again in the male version of 999, and this batch of pure entertainment meals that were not originally affected by the K-pop may also fall into the sweet trap of the K-pop.
The negative rice circle culture should indeed be cleaned up and rectified, but if the market that is not easily occupied by internal entertainment is given to Koreans in vain, is it not a pity?