When girl group Blackpink took to the stage in Hyde Park in London last month, they made history as the first ever Korean pop (or K-pop) group to headline a UK festival. Yet, despite the quartet clinching eight official Top 40 UK hits, their appearance at such a big UK event was still viewed with surprise by some. British music snobbery is not short of jibes towards the K-pop industry’s overtly manufactured nature.
Now doubters will have to concede that the juggernaut of K-pop music is not showing any signs of slowing. And this year it’s all about the girls.