Following on from BTS and Coldplay’s huge success with their collaboration track ‘My Universe’, the topic of crossovers between East-Asian artists and western artists is brought into the light once again.

These types of collaborations, seeing artists around the globe now working together to pump out hit songs, have increased in number recently but why is this the case?

In the past couple of years, we have seen a plethora of big western names featuring in K-Pop albums, such as Lady Gaga (with Blackpink), French Montana (with Monsta X), and Alesso (with Stray Kids). However, these collaborations are not something that is a recent trend, as the likes of Korean artists PSY, G-Dragon and 2NE1 have all been seen joining forces with major western artists as far back as the early 2010s.

The K-Pop industry is argued to be at the forefront of musical innovation, having been so right since its early days; from Seo Taiji and Boys’ captivating debut back in 1992, to PSY’s viral Gangnam Style, to BTS’ domination of the West’s music charts, the industry has not stopped breaking records. It is clear to see that the uniqueness of K-Pop is its main factor in captivating audiences worldwide. 

The King of K-Pop

Argued to be one of the most innovative K-Pop artists, Kwon Ji-yong (better known by his stage name G-Dragon) has worked and released music with the likes of Flo Rida, Skrillex, and Missy Elliott. It is cited that G-Dragon was heavily inspired by Wu-Tang Clan, which is where his predominantly hip-hop based music comes from. 

Using G-Dragon as an example, the already wide-ranging success of the western music industry has clearly inspired him to produce his music in a certain way, which has led to huge popularity and success as a solo artist, despite already seeing success as a member of the iconic K-Pop group BIGBANG. The work of the western music industry still inspires artists in the Korean music industry today, and perhaps this inspiration could hold part of the key to the success of K-Pop artists within western music circles.

BTS – The phenomenon

The success of crossover music however, did not arguably find major success until the rise of BTS. As the septet rose to fame in America, more and more artists started to notice them and it was not long until a huge name was featured in their music. Already a massive hit globally, ‘Idol’ featured Nicki Minaj, who slotted right in with her animated rap towards the end of the song.

However, the following year, BTS ramped things up to another level in 2018 with ‘Boy With Luv’, which featured the American pop star Halsey. The release of ‘Boy With Luv’ smashed records, in particular achieving the most views on YouTube within 24 hours of release (78 million). Following this, BTS almost became a brand for western audiences, and this has both its pros and cons. 

The group have effectively been used as ‘clout’, on several occasions – seemingly being mentioned by celebrities on Twitter for no reason other than to garner a large number of likes. Multiple television shows across the western world have also expressed their want to feature BTS on their programmes, perhaps as they know that the group would significantly increase their viewership, but BTS are very selective regarding the shows on which they feature – favouring ‘Papa Mochi’ himself, James Cordon’s ‘Late Late Show’ and other big names such as The Graham Norton Show and The Ellen Show. 

The septet also regularly feature in adverts in South Korea – a country known for its flashy adverts where celebrities adorn the pages to sell the products with their glitz and glamour. 

The success of BTS is one of the key examples of the positive effects of worlds combining, which links heavily with globalisation, in particular a theory called Cultural Hybridisation; a creative process allows new cultural realities to emerge, due to the integration of global processes with various local realities. 

BTS’ successes have led to bounds of recognition, including that of the Prime Minister of Korea, who awarded the group with the Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit — this is an award given to those who promote national culture and national development in the fields of culture and art – and they continue to be used as a tool for ‘soft power’, as described in a previous CHERRY CHU Magazine article.

Metal meets metal

K-Pop isn’t the only East-Asian music genre which has seen crossovers with western artists, however. One of the biggest collaborations in 2020 saw Sheffield-based rock band Bring Me The Horizon (BMTH) joining forces with the queens of metal, BABYMETAL, with the release of the ‘Kingslayer’ track. 

Oli Sykes, lead singer of BMTH, stated: “We’ve got a really special connection with them [BABYMETAL] even though we don’t speak the same language,” further proving that music breaks down barriers and is its own language. The song features familiar sounds from both artists, with BMTH going back to their heavier roots, but with BABYMETAL’s vocals making it reminiscent of an anime theme song. The song is total chaos, but in the best way.

The collaboration was well received and was quite spectacular live (from personal experience). I was lucky enough to see BMTH at The O2 Arena and then at an intimate show at the Liverpool Guild of Students, and the crowd were incredibly energetic and hyped for the song, singing (and screaming) to every lyric, including the Japanese ones! Visually, there were anime-style animations on the backdrop screens, which really gave off the boss battle anime vibe.

When East-Asian artists work with Western artists, it may seem like a disaster on paper due to the differences in culture, in particular with the language barriers which exist. However, the successes of the G-Dragon, BTS, and BABYMETAL have shown the opposite, that, in fact, music truly is a universal language that is not exclusive to any nation or culture. Perhaps collaborations between East-Asian artists and western artists could be the future of breaking down walls and driving diversity, especially in the music industry.

Edited by Gabii Rayner & Chelsea Cheetham.