K-pop Fans' Views of Perceived Racism, Anti-Blackness, and Cultural Appropriation in Korean Popular Culture and the Industry

• In Event: Asia and Asian American Section Roundtables Session
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): Table 10: Asia and Asian America Section Roundtable - Race and Racism

Abstract

Korean popular culture has achieved global popularity, including in the United States, a particularly challenging market for non-English language media to penetrate. Despite the stigma associated with consuming foreign cultural products, a racially diverse fanbase has formed, devoting themselves to K-pop and Korean popular culture while also expanding their interests to learning the Korean language, pursuing academic studies in Korean Studies, traveling to Korea, trying Korean cuisine, and purchasing Korean cosmetics, among other pursuits. However, with the growing success and globalization of Korean pop culture, fans also had to reconcile with the negative impacts of K-pop, including anti-Blackness, racism, and cultural appropriation. In this paper, we draw on data from an online survey and in-depth interviews to examine fans’ views of racism, anti-Black attitudes, and cultural appropriation in K-pop. We find that fans' perspectives on racism and cultural appropriation vary according to the racial frames they adopt. Specifically, Black American fans find themselves in a tenuous position, torn between their enthusiasm for Korean popular culture and concerns about betraying their own cultural identity.

Authors

• Dae Young Kim, George Mason University

• Byunghwan Son, George Mason University