Korean wave sweeps China

A wave of Korean culture has flooded the Chinese mainland.

Korean music has taken over the pop charts which used to be dominated by Cantonese pop songs from Hong Kong. It is now considered hip among Chinese youngsters to know the lyrics of a couple Korean songs.

Albums of popular singers such as H.O.T.¡¯s ¡°Happiness,¡± Goofy¡¯s ¡°Many Many¡± and Yoo Seung-Jun¡¯s ¡°na na na¡± can be found all over Beijing. Even songs like Clon¡¯s ¡°Kungtalishabala¡± that are considered passe in Korea blares out of taxis, reset to Chinese lyrics. Lee Jung-Hyun¡¯s ¡°Change¡± ranks number one at the Chinese karaoke.

The Beijing Traffic Broadcasting station has been airing a daily show called ¡°Night at the Han River¡± since last May. A segment of the program called ¡°Unlimited Pleasure¡± introduces Korean culture to the Chinese audience and plays Korean music every day. The Beijing Music Channel is also avidly airing Korean music.

Korean TV shows are widely popular as well.

Out-of-date soap operas like ¡°What is Love¡± and ¡°Stars in My Heart¡± show high ratings. An Jae-Wook from ¡°Good-bye My Love,¡± and Choi Jin-Sil starring in ¡°Jealousy¡± are rising stars in China.

Korean food is in fashion with the Chinese who are noted as gourmands. The Korean Bulgogi (barbecue) restaurant Soraksan has already established 21 outlets which are packed with Chinese customers.

Korean products are selling like hotcakes. Samsung¡¯s Anycall cellular phones which have been banned in the Garlic conflict between Korea and China, were in huge demand. LG air conditioners and microwaves dominate the market.

Korean mania is particularly prevalent among teenagers. Chinese fans have set up fan clubs to share news about their favorite Korean stars.

A 15-year old teenager using the pen name Jerry Lau raved on the Internet that ¡°Korean singers are of high energy,¡± declaring that he was ¡°wildly in love with NRG.¡± Student Hanmong said that ¡°Singers from the peninsula have brought pure romance and passion into the Chinese music scene¡± and wistfully added that he wanted to ¡°visit to Korea.¡±

It is two or three years ago that the so-called ¡®current of Korea¡¯ started sweeping the Chinese continent.

Korean singers are riding the wave of the ¡®Korea frenzy¡¯ in China, triggered by Korean soap operas. In the February concert of H.O.T in Beijing, their signature shirts sold like a hotcake, and cosmetics with H.O.T. brand were launched. In downtown Beijing, young Chinese are filling a music cafe dedicated to H.O.T. The fantastic five of Korea has sold out 0.1 million records in there.

Encouraged the favorable climate, more Korean singers are boosting their presence in China at full tilt. Last year, another Korean singing group, NRG made a debut on a Hunan Satellite TV¡®s show program, which made a big hit. Also, other Korean singing groups such as Koyote, TTMA and Goofy appeared on Chinese TV programs one after another.

Chinese state-run CCTV also joined the ¡®current of Korea,¡¯ as it introduced live concerts of NRG and Babyvox. Along with this, the CCTV has irregularly presented special programs on Korean music.

Music magazines are more enthusiastic in enticing a tidal wave of music fans, who are hooked by Korean pop singers. Scores of magazines published in China cover Korean singers in almost every issue.

This ¡®Korean fever¡¯ is likely to get hotter this summer. With Beijing as a start, NRG plans to have a large-scale concert tour in Shanghai this coming July 16 and Haerbin on the 19th. An Jae-Wook, a multi-talented Korean actor, will have a recital in Beijing July 14. 20 Chinese TV channels are scheduled to televise ¡®Stars in My Heart¡¯ starring An, beginning in coming August.

Leem Kyoung-Ok, a female actor who has been gaining popularity in China with a Korean soap opera, ¡®What Is Love,¡¯ was cast as the heroine of a Chinese soap opera and signed a contract with a TV production company headquartered in Beijing.

What draws the Chinese to Korean culture? Analysts point out that the dynamic combination of close attention to structural detail and neat, pretty images appeal to Chinese audiences with a refreshing outlook.