Exploring K-pop Phenomenon: Indonesian Youth Netizens’ Voices and Trending Topics
When it comes to discussing the most talked-about themes in the realm of social media, it’s impossible to overlook the prominence of K-pop. Originally referring to the popular music genre from South Korea, K-pop encompasses a diverse range of styles but is often associated with what are known as K-pop idols.
These idols typically are young individuals, renowned for their attractiveness, fashion sense, exceptional singing and dancing abilities, and nearly flawless image.
They often debut in boy or girl groups, promoting their songs through music videos featuring intricate choreography. The most successful groups are usually under South Korea’s largest agencies, where they undergo rigorous training before debuting.
While the majority of Western countries hadn’t heard of K-pop until PSY’s “Gangnam Style” in 2012, Korean pop idols began gaining fame in Asian countries as early as 2003. Singers like BoA and boy groups like TVXQ were the first K-pop idols to successfully penetrate the Japanese market.
With support from the South Korean government, which recognized the economic potential of the industry, the so-called Korean Wave (hallyu) began to spread further, and K-pop garnered a global audience.
Girl group BLACKPINK made history as the first K-pop band to headline the renowned US music festival Coachella in 2019. However, amidst both national and global success, the seven-member boy band BTS stands as the biggest active boy band in South Korea today.
As of December 2018, it was estimated that the band contributed approximately four trillion South Korean won to the country’s economy annually
Indonesia is no exception to the K-pop phenomenon. We conducted research on K-pop virality across Indonesia’s social media landscape, and the findings were truly surprising. As depicted in the chart below, Indonesia ranks first in searches for K-pop (keyword search: K-pop / kpop / K pop) on the global social media stage.
This indicates that Indonesian netizens are the most engaged, surpassing other countries like Mexico, Italy, and Malaysia, with a total mention reaching 10,725, a total reach of 116,635,100, and a total interaction of 8,046,462. The data was collected over the last 30 days as of March 21, 2024.