5 K-Pop Artists You Should Know About Now
With the increase in popularity of South Korean music, collectively known as K-Pop, it’s only a matter of time before Korean singers completely take over worldwide music charts and win awards against Hollywood A-list singers (some of them have already achieved such success).
So before the rest of the world discovers these talented Korean musicians, check out these Kpop artists whose music you should be listening to right now.
Zion. T
In a hiphop and EDM-dominated industry, Zion. T’s brand of music is a breath of fresh air. His unique style and soulful voice combined with beautifully written lyrics and melody will make you feel all the right kind of emotions.
Famous for songs like Yang hwa Bridge and Eat, Zion. T is probably the singer most Korean musicians want to collaborate with. He has worked with some of the biggest names in K-Pop such as G-Dragon, Psy, Simon D, Infinite H, and Jonghyun.
Since his debut in 2011, Zion. T has been winning awards and scoring hit singles with his style of sincere story-telling while mixing the musical styles of hip-hop and R&B. If you like Frank Ocean, then you’ll probably love Zion. T as well.
Check him out:
Hyukoh
If you haven’t heard of Hyukoh, you’re missing a whole lot in the Korean music scene.
ICYMI, this indie rock band has recently taken Korea’s music hit charts by storm by beating songs from ultra popular mainstream idol groups such as Bigbang and Girls’ Generation.
Featuring unique chill rock sounds in contrast with an ethereal-like vocal, Hyukoh has brought renewed edge and a rare kind of music to K-Pop. Their songs have an experimental and dreamy tone that encapsulating them in a specific genre seems impossible.
Just try listening to their songs and get yourself hypnotized:
Bigbang
Undeniably one of the biggest and most successful act Sin the Korean music industry, the five-member idol group, Bigbang, has built their name as a staple in the music charts, achieving all-kill success with almost every single they release—whether as a group or as individual artists.
Known for their impressive stage performances and super catchy and powerful songs that easily turn into anthem songs in Korea and even in various parts of Asia such as Japan and China, Bigbang, composed of leader G-Dragon, lead vocals Taeyang, rapper T.O.P, power singer Daesung, and the maknae (youngest) Seungri, despite debuting 10 years ago, has managed to maintain their K-Pop reign as one of the most unforgettable beacons of K-Pop.
They are YouTube’s most watched K-pop group, with almost 3 billion combined views and over 6 million subscribers, their social media accounts are the most followed amongst Hallyu stars (with leader G-Dragon topping the list with more than 11 million instagram followers), and their concerts from anywhere in the world get sold out in mere minutes. Their influence as one of the biggest Hallyu wave frontrunners is such that people have started calling them the “Idols of Idols” and “Kings of K-pop”.
Watch one of Bigbang’s recent hit songs:
Crush
If you combine Craig David, Bryson Tiller, Jeremih, and Drake into one, you’ll probably get Crush.
Bringing sexiness and sultry tunes in K-Pop to a whole new level, Crush’s smooth vocals and amazing falsetto shows his undeniable talent and finesse in singing—even In live versions.
Recently dubbed as “Korea’s R&B-soul-pop phenomenon”, Crush was first known as a skilled song writer and producer before he officially launched a solo career, collaborating with equally talented Korean singers such as Dean, Zico, Zion. T., and Gaeko.
His music gives off so much international vibe that it wouldn’t be a surprise if his work makes it big globally.
Listen to his collaboration with rapper Zico:
Davichi
You’ve heard them belt out the sweetest or the most heartbreaking soundtrack from your favorite Korean dramas.
The pop-ballad duo, Davichi, has been consistently making good music since 2008 and they have never disappointed ever since. Consisting of vocalists Lee Hae-ri and Kang Min-kyung, the duo’s vocal prowess differentiates them from the usual K-Pop girl bands.
Davichi best proves that music is indeed universal as you don’t need to speak and understand Hangul to feel the emotions they want to convey in their songs.
Here’s Davichi singing a track for Descendants of the Sun:
