A Newbie’s Guide to K-pop

 

Hello! So, I’ve been into k-pop for a couple of years now, and when I was first starting out, I found it really difficult to find resources that would help me. So, I’ve decided to compile a list of pretty much every link that would help people get more into k-pop, whether they are just starting out or they just need a jumping off point. So, here it is! If you found this at all helpful, please share it with people who you think would need it!

News Websites

• Soompi The longest running k-pop website, open since 1998, covering k-pop news, gossip, music, fashion, videos, photos, and k-drama. Has somewhat fallen to clickbait.
• Koreaboo A website focused on reporting the latest gossip and news related to K-Pop, including celebrities, music, movies, and drama. Also hosts the annual Kcon along with mnet. Has severely fallen to clickbait.
• Netizenbuzz A website dedicated to translating netizen comments on Nate and Naver (two of Korea’s largest news aggregates) over issues related to Korean entertainment.
• koreaBANG A website that translates news articles and netizen comments about issues in Korea that are not related to entertainment. Has a sister website for China.
• KPOP KFANS A website that translates netizen comments over issues related to Korean entertainment. Similar to Netizenbuzz, but it tends to translate more fan comments and articles from Pann (which tends to have more “random” articles than Nate or Naver).
• Kpop Subreddit The Kpop subreddit community is dedicated to news, music video releases, and discussion about Kpop. I use this mainly for music video releases and album discussions of groups that I do not follow by myself.

Blogs

• Asian Junkie A blog made to “mock, analyze, and satirize the comings and goings of the Asian entertainment world.” A very accurate blog that remains up to date with blog posts.
• Anti Kpop Fangirl Not afraid to bash your idols. Very realistic look at Korean entertainment.
• Kpopalypse Very snarky and also has a lot to say about vocal technique, stage presence, and other things. Not afraid to bash your idols.
• Kpop Vocal Analysis A critical analysis of main vocals’ singing techniques, written by members of the OneHallyu Vocal Thread.
• Critical Kpop Looking at kpop through a critical lens.
• The Grand Narrative Looking at kpop through a feminist lens.
• OneHallyu Blog Because how could I not put myself on this list.

Music

• Kpoppy A great resource for beginners. Includes basic info about the Hallyu wave, an overview of the major artists, and info on the media.
• Pandora Kpop The Pandora station for k-pop
• Seoul.fm Radio that plays exclusively k-pop
• Girls’ Generation Pandora The Girls’ Generation Pandora, plays mainly girl groups. Would recommend, even if you don’t like SNSD.
• 8tracks Kpop List of 8tracks Kpop mixes
• Youtube to mp3 Converts any youtube video to mp3; I use this when the song isn’t on itunes and I’m too broke to buy the physical album
• Seoul System A radio station that plays Korean hip-hop and R&B
• Kings My favorite 8tracks Kpop mix: hot boyband music
• Songs from 2012-2015 Pretty comprehensive playlist of songs from 2012-present.
• OneHallyu RadiOH OneHallyu’s very own k-pop radio, run by OneHallyu members!

Dance

• Dance Version HD Youtube channel that has most dance and dance practice versions of songs
• SM Cloud Room Comprehensive playlist of SM dance practices
• Let’s Dance Playlist of dance tutorials by 1theK or LOEN for a variety of artists

Music Videos

• SMTOWN Official Youtube Channel
• SMTOWN Old Youtube Channel sment; it still has a lot of their old stuff
• YG Official Youtube Channel
• JYP Official Youtube Channel
• CJ E&M Official Youtube Channel
• 1theK or LOEN Official Youtube Channel You can find most music videos of groups not in the Big 3 here
• The 22 Most Viewed Kpop Music Videos of All Time
• 2014 Music Videos Comprehensive playlist of music videos released in 2014, ranked by views

Music Shows/Charts

• Gaon Chart One of the more relevant charts in Korea.
• Melon Chart The other relevant chart in Korea. I know other ones exist, but these two provide an accurate reflection of the charts in my opinion.
• MBC Official Kpop Youtube Channel Includes playlists for episodes of Music Core and radio shows
• KBS Official English Language Youtube Channel Not only does it have clips from Music Bank, Yoo Hee Yeol’s Sketchbook, and Immortal Song 2, it also has full subbed episodes of some KBS dramas and variety shows
• SBS Music Official Youtube Channel Has playlists for episodes of Inkigayo
• How to Support Idols on Music Shows A tutorial on how to support idols in music shows. It’s specific to BAP, but honestly just replace BAP with your idol and it’s exactly the same.
• How to Vote for Artists on MBC Show Champion
• How to Vote on Mnet M!Countdown
• How to Vote on MBC Music Core
• How to Vote on SBS Inkigayo
• Streaming Links for All Music Shows

Lyrics

• Kpop Lyrics Has both romanized and english translations of lyrics
• Hangul Conversion Converts Hangul (the Korean alphabet) to the Latin alphabet to help pronunciation. I recommend learning Hangul for yourself though, it’s one of the easiest alphabets to learn.
• Lyrics Playlist (A playlist of songs with lyrics, most are just romanized, but some have hangul and english translations)

Learn Korean

• Korean Language Subreddit
• The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide A beginners list of resources; I will link ones I particularly recommend
• Talk To Me In Korean The most widely used website for beginners
• Sogang University Korean
• Integrated Korean The most popular Korean textbook, used in college classrooms
• Monash University Korean A series of free textbooks published by Monash University. This series is awesome, and it’s what I used to begin.
• Korean Alphabet A playlist of videos that I used to learn Hangul, the Korean alphabet
• Naver Dictionary Has basically every word you’ll ever need, including Hanja and example sentences. Somewhat hard to use as a beginner
• Anki Anki is a flashcard software that adjusts so you have the maximum absorption. My German teacher forces us to use it, so I have a good grasp on vocabulary. Haven’t used it with Korean yet, but many people swear by it.
• Lang-8 Lang-8 is a great website to use after you have a good grasp of vocab and grammar. You write a journal in Korean and native Koreans will correct it. You can also correct other’s writing in English.
• 1000 Korean Words You Must Know
• Korean Grammar for International Students A textbook for just learning grammar. Good to use if you are good at vocab but bad at grammar, like me
• Korean Grammar A comprehensive list of grammar rules
• The Best Method for Learning a New Language Not a real resource, but it gave me a huge kick in the pants and gave me a different perspective on learning language. Would recommend the read for sure
• Kpop to Ktalk A resource for learning Korean through kpop lyrics.

Social Networking/Fan Club Stuff

• Kpop Lists Literally everything you need to know about your favorite artists, going to link some important ones
• Twitters Comprehensive list of idol’s official and personal twitters
• Instagrams Comprehensive list of idol instagrams
• Fanclubs Comprehensive list of fanclubs/fan colors
• Pimp Posts!

Korean Television

• Drama Fever Watch your favorite K-dramas and K-varieties, free* (not actually totally free, so not recommended).
• Drama Fever Official Youtube Channel Drama Fever official youtube page, usually works but there can be problems which is definitely frustrating.
• kshowonline Actually free, this is the site I use to watch Running Man when the Drama Fever youtube is not working.
• viki Watch Kdrama; I’ve never used this website, but it looks promising.
• KPOPSTAR Official Youtube Channel Kpop Star official youtube channel, has clips from episodes of the show.

Audition Information

• SMTOWN Official Audition Website
• YG Official Audition Website
• JYP Official Audition Website
• Audition Advice and Thoughts A guide to auditioning with SM entertainment specifically; helpful advice
• SM Audition Tumblr Answers questions about the audition process specific to SM **NOT OFFICIAL**
• Audition Experiences A playlist of different people’s audition experiences, as well as what some companies are looking for
• Soompi Thread The soompi thread that troubleshoots the SM audition

Shops

• Yesasia Probably most popular option? It may be a tad overpriced.
• Dvdheaven The prices are really cheap but shipping makes up for that.
• Kpoptown Don’t know much about the prices here.
• Kpopmart Shipping is expensive, but has the cheapest prices, from what I’ve heard.
• Hanbooks A store to buy books in Korean.

Concerts

• Gmarket Pretty much the go-to place to buy concert tickets in Korea, but only has a Korean page to buy concert tickets.
• Interpark Easier to use site because there is an English version.
• Kpop Concerts in Seoul A good blog post that outlines how to buy concert tickets for a concert in Seoul.

Going to and Living in Korea

• When Should I Buy Flight Tickets?
• Flights to Korea
• Eat Your Kimchi The infamous blog/vlog that shows what daily life is in Korea, and does kpop reviews. I tend to stay away from k-pop music mondays, because I think their taste in music is bad, but to each his own. I think the comparisons between Korea and the West are interesting. Definitely a controversial pick though.

Communities

• onehallyu Forums
• Omona They Didn’t! A livejournal community dedicated to Korean pop culture news.
• Kpop on Tumblr

And that’s it! Sometimes k-pop can be a very confusing thing to take in, but the Internet is full of great resources to help you discover what k-pop has to offer.