K-pop on iTunes: the 10 most addictive songs in Mexico

Despite cultural differences, K-pop is conquering the international music industry. (Infobae/Jovani Pérez)

The success that K-pop has achieved in recent years is indisputable: words in Hangul (Korean alphabet) are seen daily dominating global trends on Twitter, its exponents add millions of views every time they release a music video on YouTube, they are nominated to prominent awards such as the Grammys and lead the most important charts such as those of Billboard or iTunes.

With their perfectly coordinated choreographies, their catchy songs, and the mix of genres and styles that make them up, it is to be expected that many streaming platforms will show interest in measuring the impact of K-pop and make lists like Top K-pop Songs. from iTunes.

Based on the number of downloads or digital purchases made through the Apple system, the iTunes K-pop ranking is available to be consulted daily in at least 39 countries, including Mexico, so it is a worthwhile count. It’s worth checking out to get to know the favorite singles of the moment and not be left behind in the trends.

Here are the 10 best K-pop songs from iTunes Mexico:

1. Ay-Yo
Artist: NCT 127

2. Sugar Rush Ride
Artista: TOMORROW X TOGETHER

3. OMG
Artist: NewJeans

4. VIBE (feat. Jimin of BTS)
Artist: TAEYANG

5. THE SOUND
Artista: Stray Kids

6. Skyscraper
Artist: NCT 127

7. DJ
Artist: NCT 127

8. The Astronaut
Artist: JIN

9. Tinnitus (Wanna be a rock)
Artista: TOMORROW X TOGETHER

10.Gangnam Style

South Korean girl group AESPA during a performance in Central Park as part of the Good Morning America program festival in New York on July 8, 2022. (REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz)

Modern K-pop (from the English “Korean pop”) has its origins in the 1990s with the debut of the popular group Seo Taiji and Boys in 1992, known for incorporating Western music styles such as rap, hip-hop, and music into their songs. hop, rock, jazz, electronics and techno.

This trio, made up of Seo Taiji, Yang Hyun-suk and Lee Juno, made their debut on an MBC talent show with the song Nan Arayo, perplexing the jury, which gave them the lowest ratings. However, the success that this single took hold on radio and television was resounding, which gave way to the release of more songs of that style and more artists who opted for it.

It was not until 1995 when the producer Lee Soo Man created one of the companies that to date remain a “heavyweight” in the music industry, SMEntertainment; while former Seo Taiji & Boys member Yang Hyun Suk created YG Entertainment (1996); followed by JYP Entertainment (1997), established by singer Park Jin Young.

These three companies were long called the “Big 3” ‒until the success achieved by BTS at the hands of BigHit Entertainment (today known as Hybe Labels)‒ and were dedicated to teaching the first generations of idols, in order to to satisfy the demand of the Korean public to want to see younger artists.

In this way, the group HOT was one of the first to debut in the industry, followed by others that made up the well-known “first generation of K-pop” such as Sechs Kies, SES, Fin.KL, NRG, Baby VOX, Diva, shinhwa and god

At the beginning of the new millennium, some of the idol groups that had debuted were inactive while others like Baby Vox were successful in various regions of Asia, an example of which was their song Coincidence, which was promoted at the 2003 Soccer World Cup and which ranked first on the Chinese music charts.

At the same time, other idols who went solo also marked a milestone: BoA, the first Korean singer to lead the Oricon chart in Japan, an equivalent to the Billboard chart but Asian and in which artists from other countries rarely manage to enter and Rain, an actor and singer who gave a concert for 40,000 people in Beijing.

way to the top

Later, the so-called “second generation of K-pop” would start, again at the hands of groups that were made up of young figures such as TVXQ (debuting in 2003), SS501 (2005), Super Junior (2005), BIGBANG (2006), as well as girl groups such as Wonder Girls (2007), Girls Generation (2007) and KARA (2007).

By 2008, South Korea was already dominating the entertainment market in Asia with an annual growth rate of more than 10% in exports of its music and television products with K-dramas even accounting for 68% of the music market. in Japan, ahead of China (11.2%) and the United States (2.1%).

Later, more groups such as SHINee or INFINITE would emerge, the latter who managed to secure the record of being the first to top the Billboard emerging artists list in 2014 with their song Last Romeo; 2PM, EXO, 2IN1, until reaching the third generation of K-pop, which includes new groups such as BTS, Seventeen, GOT7, Twice, Red Velvet, BLACKPINK, MAMAMOO, among others, up to the current fourth generation, which is all of them. those who debuted between 2017 and 2018 like Stray Kids, ITZY, Ateez, Astro, and more.

It is worth mentioning that a watershed that should be considered is Gangnam Style by rapper PSY, a song that not only managed to break unimaginable records on music platforms like YouTube, but also went around the world and showed that language was not a barrier to achieve success in highly competitive countries such as the US industry.

To date, the baton as the greatest exponents of K-pop is held by the BTS group ‒made up of Suga, RM, Jin, Jimin, J-Hope, V and Jungkook‒, who in addition to having dominated the music industry in Korea South and consolidate their fame in the rest of the world, they have been named as “Asia’s trend leader” by The Economist and “Artists of the Year” by TIME magazine, going through their Grammy Award nominations and their 10 Billboard Awards. .

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