Hip-Hop, America to Korea

Hip-hop  culture has become a mainstream fashion, music, and a way of life in many parts of the united states. Many songs on the radio are either some genre of hip hop or has a hip hop artist feature. Such culture that is so distinctly american, actually resides outside of the united states whether you have heard about them or not. It’s interesting to see how hip hop was introduced to other parts of the world and how they took made it their own by integrating their own culture into it.

According to Hip hop music  or rap music is a music genre form in the United States in the 1970s that consists of stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted. Although when people discuss hip-hop, most talk think of the music or rap, hip-hop actually initially developed as a culture and rap is just a subculture. Hip-hop culture in America started booming in the mid-late eighties and really blew up in the 90’s which had some of the most influential OG rappers such as Snoop Dogg, 2Pac, Notorious B.I.G and the list goes on.

Around this era Hip-hop crossed the pacific and found its way to a South Korea where the society is built on the idea of conformity fueled by deeply rooted Confucian beliefs. Therefore, initially Hip-hop in Korea in the 90’s were looked down up by many, similar to how it was portrayed in the US initially. First generation hip-hop artists were following the american hip hop: Baggy clothes, strange hairstyles, and wanting freedom from a very judgmental society. These artists were seen as thugs, delinquents, outcasts.  

Fueled by hunger for freedom and fighting against conformity, Hip-hop culture boomed in Korea, albeit it was entirely an underground culture until the 2010’s, Korea took it and made something of their own. Two of the most significant sub cultures of Hip-hop in Korea are break dancing, more commonly known as B-boying in Korea, and rap music. Korean B-boys have conquered the world titles many times and many of them were and are considered the best in the world, namely Hong10 and physicx (Physicx highlights).

Rap music in Korea started a little differently as in the United States where gang affiliated hip hop was the mainstream hip hop. In Korea, it was more of an outlet for them from a very strict society that doesn’t like differences from the norm. Most rap music was underground and they focused on the melody with soft instrumental whereas in the united states, a lot of rap music was aggressive and involved violent lyrics.

In my next post, I will discuss how Korean hip hop, especially Korean rap, music has grown from the 90s until today. Spoiler alert, some have followed straight up american trendy style, currently trap and mumble, riches to rags and big chains.