Oppa Gang… enough already!

I have seen a lot of news recently about Gangnam Style being “over” and that people are getting sick of it. While I am definitely sick of hearing the song, the hype over Psy and his horsey dance has come with its benefits and hindrances.

On the bright side – people all over the world are LOVING K-Pop! It’s amazing that people are enjoying listening to a Korean song so much! Hopefully this will encourage people to listen to music in different languages and in turn, learn a bit about other cultures.

exactly!

Psy has also put Korea on the MAP! I mean, two months ago when I told people I live in Gangnam they’d be like “Gang-what?” but now everybody knows what I’m talking about (sorta)!

… my Gangnam.

On the other hand… all the fame and attention towards Psy definitely has its drawbacks. A lot of Korean artists feel frustrated that their music isn’t being taken seriously. I read this yesterday and I can kind of see where he’s coming from.

According to Tiger JK (a Korean rapper), hecklers in the audience insisted that he perform the “horse dance” from the choreography of Psy‘s “Gangnam Style“, and he was unable to hold back his frustration. He tweeted, “Creators project event other night. I went crazy on all them white folks in the crowd, Cussing them out. During my set, these dudes kept telling me to horse dance , F*** rapping just dance. I had to cut all my song short. Without self control. My F*** you turned into F*** everybody To F*** all the white people to F*** CNN To F *** Hollywood. To Fu** all yall who think Asians are here to make you laugh by dancing my ass off. F*** Hollywood thinkin Asians are just a comic relief.”

Tiger JK at the Creator Project

Tiger JK has since apologized, but I can’t really see who’s in the wrong. Is it wrong to make racist comments to people who are acting racist towards you?

If you want to read more along these lines, Ranier “The Falco” attempts to explain the Psy hype on his blog here.

A lot of really hardcore K-pop fans get very haughty when people talk about Gangnam Style. They think people don’t really know K-pop… they just act like they do because they know one song. Personally, I’ve never heard anyone claiming to be a K-pop expert after listening to Gangnam Style.

Um, a little extreme?

To summarize, I don’t think that Gangnam Style is a true representation of K-pop. While it’s a good introduction to K-pop, I don’t think many North Americans realize that there is a huge, creative and diverse music scene in Korea (and all of Asia). So if you loved Gangnam Style (how could you not?), keep in mind that there’s lots more where that came from, but it won’t all be SO ridiculous. 🙂

If you have been living under a rock, here is the original video:

I was going to post another song from Psy’s most recent album but it’s impossible to find a song other than Gangnam Style on youtube! Instead, here is another song that’s very ‘typical’ K-pop.

Hey, I never said it was great K-pop, just typical ;)! That was Gee by Girls Generation (SNSD).

There is soooo much good K-pop out there that I just want to post video after video. For now, I’ll just post ONE more video – super popular at the moment! A beautiful song and really creative video. G-Dragon, That XX:

obsessions

So I have recently caught on to pinterest… I know, a little late to jump on the bandwagon. I thought it would be too time-consuming and addictive and turns out I was right! I could spend forever on that site but I find that 90% of my pins are about either K-pop or Harry Potter. So today, I bring to you a combination of my two favourite obsessions: K-pop songs that remind me of Harry Potter. Can life get better?  

Ok, I’ll start with the two most obvious ones. These two are songs named after actual Harry Potter spells. Tarantallegra is the spell for making people’s feet dance and Wingardium Leviosa well… if you don’t know that one then you shouldn’t read this blog cause you won’t get any of the references.

Xia Junsu- Tarantallegra

Jo Kwon – Wingardium Leviosa

Jay Park – New breed aka. Dementor face

This is probably what a dementor looks like under the cloak. I didn’t post the video because the whole thing is just his face… looking like this. :S

Fiestar – Vista aka. witch wannabes

OK so the song doesn’t talk about anything magical but these girls are definitely witches… what with all their apparating and shape shifting. I don’t completely understand the video, but after all, I am just a muggle.

ZE:A – Pheonix

Whenever I hear this I sing “Fawkes the PHEONIX”. Also, when I hear this song (which is surprisingly a lot cause it’s pretty popular atm), it brings me back to Dumbledore’s office when Harry sees Fawkes burst into flames. Ah, the memories.

Hopefully over the next few months I will come across some more HP K-pop crossovers for everyone’s (ok, probably just my) enjoyment. ^^

The dos and don’ts of Korean BBQ

Korean BBQ, or more commonly known as Galbi is a one-of-a-kind meal and it has become our Friday after-school tradition. The meal consists of a kind of meat (beef, pork, chicken, different cuts and marinades etc.) that you grill in the middle of the table. While your meat is grilling you can enjoy a variety of sides, from kimchi to potato salad. Then when your meat is cooked, you can wrap it in a lettuce leaf with your choice of sauces and sides. This is a very “anything goes” kind of meal, but there are a few things you should keep in mind…

mmmm…

Don’t: 

Take more than 2 pieces of meat at a time. Because the grill is quite small, you can only cook a small portion of meat at a time. If there are several people eating off one grill it can go very quickly… so don’t be a meat hog!

Do not leave your chopsticks standing vertically in your rice. This goes for everywhere in Korea, not just galbi restaurants. It’s just a superstition… like writing your name in red but it is definitely a no-no!

Do not ask for a fork. If I learned how to use chopsticks, so can you!

Do not pour your own drink. Again, this is a Korean custom. If you are the youngest at the table, you should be pouring drinks for your elders and wait for your drink to be poured as well.

Two hands if you’re younger.

Do: 

Ask for more sides. Most Korean meals come with a variety of side dishes. These are free, and unlimited. Many restaurants have a ‘sides buffet’ where you can just refill your own kimchi, radish, lettuce, whatevs.

Seriously, sides are the way to go!

Try the sauces! Every foregeigner I know is obsessed with samjeong. This is a magical sauce consisting of garlic and other things mixed in with the standard red hot sauce.

Become a regular. My co-workers and I searched high and low for the best galbi restaurant. We weighed pros and cons of each restaurant and found that the restaurant we liked best was the one closest to our house. Lucky us! They had the best sides, best tasting kimchi, huge quantities of meat, quick service, and they know not to let our samjeong get empty!!

Drink. Hey, you want to participate in the culture, right?

At first I’m like…

… but eventually end up like

Take a toothpick afterwards. Trust me, meat in your teeth for the rest of the night is not enjoyable.

Bring your Mom. ^^ See you in 10 days Mumma!!