WHEN you hear the word ‘Korea’, what springs to your mind? Korean War? Korean food? Many of you may not know much of Korea or may be never heard of the East Asian nation. However, “Korean Wave” also known as “Hallyu” is a well-known phenomenon in Asia, promoting and branding the Korean culture, including music, cinema, taekwondo, and so on. It is also spreading in Europe, U.S and many parts of the world.One of the most popular Korean phenomenon is Korean Pop music or K-Pop. K-pop refers to not only types of music but to a musical movement that swept across South Korea in the early 1990s and continues to take the world by storm. Much of the music is similar to what you’d hear on American pop radio stations, though more often sung or rapped in Korean. British newspaper, The Guardian, summed up K-pop as follows: “K-pop is mad. Not only in UK but also in the whole Europe, K-pop will be taking over. Also 100 percent sure that K-pop will achieve a big success.”Besides, when a famous Hollywood actress, Jessica Alba visited Korea, she said, “All the sophisticated people especially in art or fashion business in US listen to K-pop and at the after-party of Fashion Week in New York, there were many people who were so into K-pop”.As K-Pop gets bigger, naturally, there are many Korean singers and groups that have gained fame around the world. ‘Rain’, ‘Boa’, ‘Girls’ Generation’, and ‘Wonder Girls’ are representative of K-Pop stars and their music is recognised all over the world.If you are wondering about how to access K-Pop, the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Rwanda has a cultural centre that welcomes guests every Friday afternoon.A cultural centre at the Embassy in Kigali showcases K-Pop music videos and a wide range of Korean movies weekly.
