From BoA of the 1st generation to LE SSERAFIM of the 4th generation, Japan’s love for Kpop female artists has never ceased.
From the 1st generation idol BoA, who is called “the originator of the Korean Wave”, to the 2nd generation representative KARA, the 3rd generation representative TWICE, and the 4th generation girl group LE SSERAFIM, Korean female idols are taking over Japan regardless of generation.
Until the 1990s, Japan, which was leading in various genres of music such as pop, ballad, rock, idol, and anime music, as well as coined the term Jpop, is ranked second in the global music market after the United States. A January report released by IBK Investment & Securities also stated that the size of the global recording music market in 2021 was formed in the order of the United States, Japan, United Kingdom, Germany, France, China, and Korea.
In particular, the Japanese idol market continued to be dominated by the agency “Johnny & Associates”, which discovered boy groups such as SMAP, Arashi, KAT-TUN, and Hey! Say! JUMP. However, with the rapid growth of the Korean Wave in the 2000s, Kpop gradually began to receive attention. In addition, idol groups such as BTS and BLACKPINK have recently been causing a craze in the global market, leading to an accelerated Kpop fever in Japan.
According to the Korea Customs Service’s import and export trade statistics on January 16th, Korea’s record exports in 2022 amounted to 233,113,000 USD (approximately 289.5 billion won). The country that imported the most Korean albums was Japan, with a record of 85.749 million USD (approximately 106.5 billion won).
As such, Japan, the world’s second-largest music market, is playing a major role in proving the popularity of Kpop, especially with the title of “No.1 importer of Korean record”. However, unlike the United States, where Kpop spread widely starting with BTS, Japan has consistently loved female Kpop idols, from the 1st to the 4th generation.
From BoA to LE SSERAFIM, Korean female idols who earn great love in Japan
It was Boa, the star of Asia, that opened the door for Kpop artists to enter the Japanese market. At the end of the 1990s, SM Entertainment, which benchmarked Johnny’s management system, adopted a method of training trainees for years before making their final debut. The investment in BoA alone was 3 billion won, and after her domestic debut, BoA traveled to Japan in 2001. The female idol launched her career with the studio album “ID; Piece B”. However, entry barriers were high in the Japanese market at the time, so BoA did not gain much popularity from her first album.
However, in 2002, BoA’s full-length album, “Listen to My Heart” became the first Korean singer to reach the top of the Oricon daily and weekly album charts. The album sold 1 million copies and became a million seller. In addition, BoA appeared for a total of six consecutive years at NHK’s “Red and White Song Battle” (2002-2007), which only featured the best Japanese singers. In an instant, Japan was colored with the “BoA craze.”
KARA, a representative among second-generation Kpop girl groups, began to rise to popularity in Japan from the release of “Mister” in 2009. Making their debut in 2007, Kara swept the Oricon charts with “Mister” and drew attention with their “butt-dance” choreography. In 2013, Kara became the first Korean girl group to enter the Tokyo Dome. Last year, the veteran girl group made a comeback as a full group with “Move Again” for the first time in seven years to mark the 15th anniversary of the group’s debut. Their popularity in Japan was undeniable with tickets to all five fan meetings sold out.
The third-generation girl group TWICE boasted “top tier popularity” especially in Japan. In the popular Japanese cartoon “Crayon Shin-chan”, the main character Shin-chan copied the posture of TWICE’s hit song “TT”. A game titled “Go! Go! Fighting”, which was modeled on TWICE, was also created. Musically, the girl group became the first overseas female artist to have the “five consecutive platinum albums” (tributes given when selling more than 250,000 copies)” and went on dome tours.
After TWICE, LE SSERAFIM began to emerge as a rookie group with prominent influence in Japan. Their debut “FEARLESS” recorded 222,286 initial sales (one week of album sales based on the release date), setting a new record for the K-pop girl group’s debut album in Japan and topping the Oricon chart in three categories.
Analysts say that the popularity of Korean female idols is thanks to their well-roundedness and unique concepts that are not found in the region. In fact, the title of Japan’s national girl group AKB48 is “Idols Who Can Watch Growth,” with cute and lovely images and still immature girls as the main concept.
“There is no female idol like [Korean idols] in Japan,” said Lim Jin Mo, a pop culture music critic, elaborating, “Korea is capable of powerful performances. Japan only adheres to cute concepts, [but] Korean female artists seem to impress Japanese consumers with strong concepts and stages.” At the same time, Jin Mo added, “I think [Korean girl groups have] fully established themselves, especially for Japanese female fans.”
Source: Naver
