Other than the Samsung phone or the Hyundai vehicle I drive, I must say that I was largely ignorant about Korean culture. But during the height of the coronavirus-imposed lockdown, when bingeing on Netflix streamed movies was the norm, the top-rated K-Drama series "Crash Landing on You" and "Squid Game" proved to be valuable diversions for forgetting the deadly drudgery of the virus. Do you wonder how Korea evolved into an international powerhouse cultural trendsetter?
With a bit of Internet research and chats with some Gen Zers and Millennials, I'd like to share with you how I think the Hallyu phenomenon of Korea evolved.
It is a fact that not only K-Dramas but even the mainstream Western social media music entertainment world has been taken by storm by the Hallyu phenomenon, which is aptly exemplified by the youthful tunes, fancy dance steps, and rumored plastic surgery-altered looks of BTS and Twice, the hottest boy and girl bands in the world, and the bouncy tempo of Psy's Gangnam Style hit music video, the first ever to hit a billion views on YouTube.
What is Hallyu all about anyway? Hallyu in Korean literally means "Flow or Wave," which stands for the phenomenal popularity of Korean Pop Culture, recognized as a form of soft power, defined by a 2009 Harvard Belfer Center study as a non-coercive form of influence driven by an attraction to a country's culture, political ideals, and policies, which is reaping significant economic gains for Korea through entertainment export and tourism.
In a 2021 study by Jimmyn Parc, a visiting researcher at Sciences Po Park in France and the Research Institute of Communication Research, Seoul National University, it was estimated that Korean exports of cultural content doubled from $5.1 billion in 2016 to $10.3B in 2019, excluding the indirect export of cultural content value contribution of $6.384B.
In 2021, at the height of Covid, amazingly, direct cultural exports reached $12.45B, prompting Korea's current President, Yoon Suk Yeol, to declare "K-content as Relief Pitcher on the Export Front" in a February 2023 Export Strategy confab.
Hallyu started spreading in the late 1990s, first to China, then gradually to the rest of South East Asia, as cable TV and streaming of cheaply produced Korean telenovelas, dubbed correctly in the local language, gained ground. The similarities of the Asian cultures, which center on family above all, schmaltzy love stories, good guys of humble means winning over filthy rich bad guys in the end, and loads of good-looking actors and actresses, spiced up with the occasional steamy love scenes, was a common thread that appealed to all Asians. With the advent of the internet and the ascendancy of social media, the likes of BTS and Twice successfully bridged inter-generational gaps by deftly combining the traditional respect for Asian culture uniquely blended with the modern spunkiness of Gen Z and Millennials. Korea's Hallyu splashy, feel-good, themed music videos of young, good-looking artists with fancy dance steps appealing to all ages gained worldwide acceptance.
But beyond the likes of BTS and Psy, Korea's Hallyu also encompasses animation, video games, fashion, cosmetics, technology, literature, and, of course, food. Who doesn't love a Korean crunchy, spicy, sweet fried chicken barbecue, bulgogi, bibimbap, chapchae, or kimchi?
My trip to Korea was quite an eye-opener, as I explained in my parts 1 and 2 articles in so far as the country's miraculous economic transformation. But on a personal note, my three weeks of immersion in Korea's culture were the more interesting. My daughter Anne and son-in-law Virgile graciously and patiently allowed me to experience Korea's sights, sounds, and people. A gastronomic delight awaited me at every meal stop, such as barbecued top-grade beef, crispy soy chicken, spicy and not-too-spicy kimchi, ice cold and steaming hot noodles, Tobaki dumpling soup, shrimp and kimchi dumplings, omelets, delicious sweet pancakes, squid, sashimi, and street hawker food of every variety from sweets to lobsters.
Popular tourist destinations were, of course, on the agenda, such as the DMZ, Korean War Memorial, Bukchon Village, Seoul Forest, Gwangjang Market, Haedong Temple, Namsan Tower, a nice bullet train trip to Busan and trendy Gangnam, Ikseon-Dong, Itaewon for some shopping.
I can't end this article, however, without acknowledging the gracious hospitality of the Rotary Club of Seoul Ye Jang, hopefully, the future Sister Club of RC Makati, my home club.
Until next week… OBF!
For comments, email bing_matoto@yahoo.com.