K-pop drives entertainment in Tokyo Olympics

K-pop fills the air instead of spectators at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where no crowds are allowed at the games. The music is clearer than ever, perhaps because there is no crowd. At first, some K-pop fans began to upload postings online after witnessing songs of their favorite singers being played at the games. Now K-pop songs are quite frequently played so that they can be put together as a quite long list of “Olympic K-pop playlists.”

The women’s volleyball quarterfinal match between Korea and Turkey gained the spotlight, not only for game performance but also the medley of K-pop songs played throughout the match. Each time Korea scored a goal that placed the team closer to its opponent in the fifth set, the familiar melodies of Twice’s “Alchol-free” and Seventeen’s “Very Nice” appeared to boost the energy of the Korean team.

The volleyball court was filled with songs by K-pop singers including Black Pink, Ateez, StayC, Stray Kids. Ohmygirl’s “Dun Dun Dance” at the Korea-Japan match. Fans uploaded postings on social networking sites commenting that Japan was playing K-pop songs at the Korea- Japan match, such as Taeyeon’s “Weekend” and Enhyphen’s “Given-Taken.”

BTS’ top-billboard songs such as Dynamite and Butter were aired in various sports events such as synchronized swimming and boxing. BTS’ latest song “Permission to Dance” played in the background when Ansan won her third gold medal at the women’s individual archery.

Particularly among ARMY, BTS fan base, Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka who also lighted the Olympic torch, Is known for playing BTS’ “Dream Glow” during her practice, as the number is relatively less known compared to more popular BTS songs. Army fans tracked social networking postings to confirm‎ that Osaka was a real fan of BTS.

Osaka streamed BTS’ “Make It Right” on Twitter back in 2019, praising the song as the best song off “Map of the Soul 7” album. She used to have a Instagram fan account called “Free Hobi’s forehead.” The name alludes to J-Hope of BTS and she confessed her love for his hairstyle of pushing back to reveal his forehead.

The Sports Presentation Party of the International Olympic Committee assigns music based on game entertainment and players’ morale. Some players request for certain music to be played.


Bo-Mi Im bom@donga.com