[pann] THIS IS THE REALITY OF K-POP IN NORTH AMERICA

BTS > top-tier mainstream local artists

BLACKPINK > fairly well-known to the general public

TWICE, Stray Kids > less mainstream appeal, but very popular with strong core fandoms

ATEEZ > much less mainstream than TWICE/Stray Kids, but has a strong core fandom

There’s a huge gap between BTS and BLACKPINK, and also a noticeable gap between BLACKPINK and TWICE/Stray Kids.
The rest of the Korean artists who are popular domestically and promote themselves as doing arena tours in North America are all pretty similar.

The only K-pop groups that feel like they have a meaningful, tangible presence are BTS, BLACKPINK, TWICE, and Stray Kids. These four have actually done stadium shows in the US
ATEEZ is a bit of a unique case, their North American core fandom is much stronger than most other K-pop groups.

Groups like RIIZE or NCT get mocked for not being popular in North America, but honestly, other K-pop groups are about the same… it’s all pretty similar

post response:

[+34][-22]

1. [+15, -1]

I live in North America, and in reality, aside from BTS, nobody knows those groups. And even for BTS, they’re only known by name, but I wouldn’t say that BTS had any hit songs that everyone knows of. The K-pop recognition overseas is actually around the same as in Japan and Korea. The people who are interested in K-pop are really hardcore about it, but people who aren’t into it only knows a song or two. For example, something like Howl’s Moving Castle. Even then, the general public hasn’t actually seen it all; they’ve just heard the name or seen a bit of it in Shorts. Living in North America, the K-pop I experience is that kind of niche taste. Everyone hears BTS at least once somewhere and knows the name, but unless the average person is a die-hard K-pop fan, they won’t know the rest

2. [+14, -3]

BTS is kinda considered a top mainstream artist, BLACKPINK isn’t that known to the general public, but they’re unrivaled in the high fashion space and people who are interested in luxury goods. In fact, having high recognition among trendsetters ultimately leads to influence in the entertainment industry. You can see BLACKPINK on large billboards on luxury shopping streets or on fashion magazine covers in the magazine sections next to checkout counters in drugstores. TWICE wasn’t originally at the level to be called one of the “Big3”; they were just doing better than expected. However, thanks to the full trickle-down effect of KDH, their recognition among the general public (different from the luxury consumer base) has skyrocketed. It has reached the stage where even parents of elementary school kids who don’t know BLACKPINK know TWICE because of their kids. Ever since KDH’s popularity skyrocketed, my elementary school daughter has taken an interest in K-pop and started taking dance lessons. When colleagues at work ask me to recommend other girl groups, most of the time, I would say TWICE. Since they are young, they found BLACKPINK a bit overwhelming because the target audience is completely different. However, I remember feeling sorry for JYP, saying they were really incompetent, because that English single they released at that god-given, perfect timing was a total flop. The rest of the idols are just focused on their core fandom and live in their own world

3. [+13, -3]

BLACKPINK… They’re getting even less streams than Stray Kids in the US for their recent song. Things are changing 

4. [+12, -1]

This is reality