Allow me to introduce...

BIG BANG 빅뱅

Credit to: 지디갤 nan

These are the boys of BIG BANG. They debuted in 2006, under YG Entertainment and have been going strong ever since. With strong vocals and incredible dance moves, this band 'dominates' Asia's fan base. Here are their names and a brief description:


Leader: G-Dragon
(Real name Kwon Ji Yong, 'Yong' means 'dragon' in Korean and 'Ji' sounds like the letter 'G' hence, 'G-Dragon.' )
-He is one of the rappers of BIG BANG and released a solo album in August 2009, which won 'Best Album' at the MAMA Awards.

TOP
-The other rapper in the group. He recently starred in the Korean Drama Iris, where he played a ruthless assassin. He can also be seen in the upcoming film Into the Gunfire. Expect a solo album from him this year.

TAEYANG
-Vocals. He released his 1st solo album titled HOT in 2008. In 2009, he released two hit singles, "Where U At?" and "Wedding Dress." This year he will release his 2nd solo album.

DAE SUNG
-Vocals. In 2008, he released his 1st solo single in a trot style titled "Look at Me, Gwisoon." In 2009, he released another trot song "Big Hit," and last month he released "Cotton Candy," which is very different from his previous singles. He will also release a solo album this year.

Seung Ri
-Vocals. The maknae (youngest) of the group. In 2008, his solo song "Strong Baby," which gained a lot of attention, was used to promote BIG BANG's upcoming album Remember.






These guys are an amazing group, but are incredibly talented individuals as well...Enough talk. See for yourself...

BIG BANG -- 하루 하루 (Day By Day)


Credit to: TheAsianMission

And here is G-Dragon's popular song "Heartbreaker" from his 2009 solo album... Enjoy!

G-Dragon -- Heartbreaker MV


Credit to: YG Entertainment Youtube Channel


Stay tuned for more artists!

Introduction:

Through this blog I hope to introduce South Korea's musical artists and their contributions. Many people are unaware of the various musical genres in the South Korean industry. There is a range from Classical to Hip Hop and even a musical style called 'Trot,' but most popular are the male and female groups.

In the 1990s, boy and girl bands dominated the music industry in the USA. Well they had their run. Now it's Asia's turn and frankly, they put bands such as N'SYNC and The Backstreet Boys to shame.

With help from the internet, people from all over the world have started to take notice and become devoted fans of Korean musicians. Hip Hop in South Korea started in the early 1990s, and has been progressing ever since. From this, many entertainment agencies began to branch out into other styles of music, including Pop. Thanks to Hip Hop artists such as 3534, Seo Taiji and Boys, Deux, and DJ DOC, South Korea's music industry has become a phenomenon.

Today, some of Korea's most popular artists are RAIN, TVXQ, BIG BANG, Wonder Girls, SNSD Girl's Generation, and Epik High (to name only a few). These bands are from some of the most successful agencies: YG Entertainment, SM Entertainment, JYP Entertainment, and Map the Soul, Inc./Woolim Entertainment.

A number of Korean artists have expanded to American shores. In 2009, the female group Wonder Girls, toured the US with Jordyn Sparks and the Jonas Brothers and also performed on various TV shows. Perhaps Asia's most famous solo artist, RAIN, branched out in the entertainment industry and recently starred in the Hollywood film Ninja Assassin, directed by James McTeigue and produced by Joel Silver and the Wachowski brothers (The Matrix).

South Korea's music industry is growing and hoping to expand beyond Asia. Unfortunately, this is a commonly overlooked country by the rest of the world. I hope to make a small contribution in changing that. So without further ado, let's begin...