(Top photo from left) BTS, BLACKPINK, Psy, TWICE and EXO, and (bottom photo from left) Lee Min Ho, Hyun Bin, Gong Yoo, Song Hye-kyo and Lee Jong-suk (Instagram, Facebook, tvN)
K-pop superstars BTS, actor Lee Min Ho, “Crash Landing on You” and “Parasite” were voted as the top choices in a survey
BTS Jungkook, BLACKPINK Lisa, and More are the Most Searched K-Pop Idols Worldwide for the First Half of 2021 kpopstarz.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kpopstarz.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
By Park Han-sol
Thanks to the global streaming platforms Netflix, YouTube and Viu ― a Hong Kong-based over-the-top (OTT) provider serviced in Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa ― the popularity of Korean entertainment, especially K-dramas, continues to soar in Thailand.
K-dramas have become trendy, everyday conversation starters for many people in the Southeast Asian country. And recently, they have also begun to move in on the local podcast scene, according to a recent report by Bang Ji-hyun, a correspondent in Thailand for the Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange (KOFICE).
One such podcast is Korseries Podcast launched in December last year by Thailand s popular Korean entertainment news website Korseries.com.
By Park Han-sol
As K-pop continues to cultivate its worldwide appeal among diverse racial, cultural and age groups, the genre s artistic expressions have frequently clashed with local cultural values, especially in socially conservative Islamic nations.
Although K-pop has its own conservative elements, there s certainly a more explicit side to it as well: lyrics laced with sexual innuendos, performers provocative stage outfits and culturally insensitive use of religious imagery in performances and music videos.
Last year, the all-female quartet BLACKPINK and Selena Gomez s single Ice Cream came under fire for its line Play the part like Moses as it made light of a significant figure in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The boy band NCT U met criticism in the same year after exploiting the Imam Husayn Shrine in Iraq, a scared site for Shia Muslims, as a mere stage prop, and later as an official piece of merchandise.