This episode we're talking about music for the first time on the show! We invited Tamar Herman to chat about kpop and the culture surrounding it.
Guest Intro: Tamar Herman (00:00:36)
Billboard contributer and freelance writer, specializing in East Asian music and pop culture and how it relates to the US and social media.
What we've been up to (00:01:39)
Tamar

Ragnarok
West Wing
Wonder Woman
Sara J Mass - Court of Wings and Ruin

Riley

Riverdale
Master of None
Dream High
Youtube Channel "Jolly" (note: Riley says they're brothers, but they're actually friends!)
Toronto KPOP Con and KARD concert

Pam

Steamworld Heist
Syberia
QUBE
American Gods
Guardians of the Galaxy 2

Main Topic - Hallyu! (00:24:32)

What is "Hallyu"? (00:24:50)
How popular is kpop in North America (00:29:51)
How did you get into Korean culture/music? (00:25:20)
BTS was at the BBMAs - how popular are they? (note, they didn't perform but we clarify later) (00:37:50)
Has BTS really been blacklisted by the media? (00:41:20)
Video game and kpop audiences (00:56:20)

Listener Questions ( Thanks @rainworlds!!) (00:59:10)

How are kpop groups formed? (00:59:10)

Why are k-pop artists so often framed through the lens of their respective corporations (similar to record labels) (01:03:00)

Is there space for creative expressions of the artist or corp? (01:10:50)

What are local interpretations on Hallyu era, its ties to capital and its tendency to appropriate (black artistic expression, specifically)? (01:23:40)

What does a k-pop idol have to go through to ‘make it’ up the career ladder? (01:32:10)

For people who are new to kpop, or interested in getting into it, what would you recommend? (01:33:00)

Why have 9-12 people in a group? Spectacle? (01:38:18)


If you're interested, here's the playlist Riley made for Pam to check out: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9_YjMkW8Wm0LOyQZFi2OcIoN94kkH4hV (There've been a few additions since recording!!)
You can find Tamar's writing at Billboard and her other activities at tamarherman.com.
If you’ve got any feedback, questions, people or topics you’d like to hear on future episodes of the show, you can reach out at MediaMavensCast@gmail.com or on Twitter @_MediaMavens. We've also got a forum to discuss episode at CartridgeClub.org. If you like the show, please give us a review on iTunes or Stitcher.
Music: Vivacity by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/