K-Pop Industry Insiders Discuss Whether K-Pop Groups Without Korean Members Are Still Considered ‘K-Pop’

The emergence of K-Pop has impacted the music industry in general, with more aspiring artists from different countries auditioning for a chance to debut in South Korea. Though the Big Four entertainment agencies in the country have also promoted such diversity, some industry officials are questioning whether it is still considered K-Pop.

Over the past years, music agencies have ventured into debuting foreign members under different K-Pop groups, forming units with nationalities such as Chinese, Japanese and Thai. These instances were evident in EXO, GOT7, TWICE, (G)I-DLE, NCT, and BLACKPINK.

But a new experiment has also emerged in K-Pop — debuting groups without Korean members at all. Most recently, JYP Entertainment launched an American reality competition called “A2K” in collaboration with Republic Records. J.Y. Park flew to the U.S. to find members who would debut under the company and undergo the K-Pop training system.

In the finale, it formed the group VCHA, which recently made its debut in late September.

HYBE also collaborated with Geffen Records — an American company under the Universal Music Group — for the joint venture, “The Debut: Dream Academy,” to debut the “biggest girl group in the world” with diverse members. Trainees selected hailed from countries such as the Philippines, Argentina, Australia, Japan and Thailand, among others.

Speaking of such industry moves, the Vice President of Columbia Records Nicole Kim told Maeil Business Newspaper, “The collaboration between JYP and HYBE in the U.S. is still in the experimental stage, so there is an atmosphere of skepticism.” She also mentioned that “world-class” artists like BTS and BLACKPINK were formed via the K-Pop system, which was why more record companies were interested.

Interestingly, there is currently an all-female global group actively promoting in South Korea: Blackswan. Formed under DR Music, all four members came from countries, including Belgium, India, Brazil and the U.S.

The global girl group XG — which stands for Xtraordinary Girls — also debuted in the country, though it promotes the music genre “X-Pop.” Its music styles and fashion also have similar influences with K-Pop.

“As K-pop is consumed in markets around the world beyond Asia, the industry is sensing that there is a demand for ‘local members who resemble me (consumers),’ K-pop is characterized by systems and human composition rather than musical characteristics,” music critic Lim Hee-yon said of the recent trend.

She added that this is an attempt for industries to go global. Despite the attempt for diversity, it is still being enclosed in the K-Pop system. She said, “K-pop’s content and brand identity is not clear and relies on the imperial system of each agency.”

Another unnamed industry official, however, thought the North American joint projects emphasized the company and the producer instead of the participants.

Music critic Kim Yun-ha also gave her candid thoughts on whether these could still be considered K-Pop, saying, “If you look at the aspects of K-Pop’s music, performance, production, and marketing people, it is now meaningless to discuss ‘K’ in terms of whether it is Korea or Korean.”

Meanwhile, Cha Woo-Jin seemed to think it was leaning towards an “industrial profit” to create a bigger fandom and increase sales for albums, tours and merchandise.