Listening to Korea: On Authenticity, Identity and the Nation in Music

Session Submission Type: Organized Panel

Abstract

In Audiotopia: Music, Race and America, Josh Kun (2005) writes that “music can be of a nation, but it is never exclusively national; it always overflows, spills out, sneaks through, reaches an ear on the other side of the border line, on the other side of the sea” (p. 20). Echoing Kun, this panel attempts to grapple with how music is situated and understood in relation to authenticity, identity and the nation. Originating from the United States and Korea, the panelists and discussant will integrate methodological approaches from music, ethnomusicology, communication, cultural and Korean studies. The first presenter will address how modern and traditional Korean culture and identity is embraced using distant genres as exemplified in rap/p’ansori battles. The second presenter will provide a case study of Jambinai and culturally specific reasons to its success to demonstrate how Korean music has reached global music markets. The third presenter will examine how hip hop has been localized, appropriated and commercialized within the larger K-pop industry and the consequent debates on its authenticity. The final presenter will look at how Hanguk [Korean] hip hop is understood and defined within Korean society by looking at its sound, language, lyrical content, music scene and culture. By doing so, this panel looks at multiple clashes and collaborations manifested in music, including those between modernity/tradition, authenticity/fakeness, national/transnational, etc. Furthermore, the panel extends conversations on how Korea or Koreanness is negotiated in music and its many overflows, spill outs and sneaking through.

Area of Study

• Korea

Session Organizer

• Heather Willoughby, Ewha Womans University

Chair

• Chan Park, Ohio State University

Individual Presentations

• Rapping on Tradition’s Door: The Battle between Korean Hip Hop and P’ansori Performers - Heather Willoughby, Ewha Womans University

• Feeling at Home in the World: Korean (Traditional) Musicians in a Transnational Circuit - Hyunjin Yeo, University of Maryland

• Show Me the Money: Cultural Appropriation and Authenticity in Korean “Idol” Hip-Hop - Youngdae Kim, University of Washington

• What is the Hanguk in Hanguk Hip Hop? Locating Hip Hop in South Korea - Myoung-Sun Song, University of Southern California

Discussant

• Chan Park, Ohio State University