"2011 Melon Music Awards" Announce This Year’s Top Three Trends in K-Pop

On November 17, the “2011 Melon Music Awards” announced the top three trends they noticed in K-Pop this year. They listed the biggest trends in the industry as: the growth of idol groups, the global craze in Hallyu, and the diversity in musical style.

The most noticeable trend this year is, of course, the strength of idol groups. More than 80 percent of this year’s nominees for the “Melon Awards” are idol groups. But the latest idol bands, unlike most old school idols that put more emphasis on their appearance and styles, are much more musically talented and prepared. With their long trainee period, the more recent idol bands have great vocal and dancing skills, which is appealing to all age groups.

Hallyu has stepped up its game this year by expanding its target market to non-Asian countries. We saw Korean artists perform in Paris, New York City, London, as well as some Latin American cities this year. The Hallyu phenomenon that first began with the popularity of TV dramas and movies in few Asian countries has now blossomed into a major industry spanning music, food, and fashion.

The industry has seen a lot more diversity in musical styles as well. With the creation of TV programs such as MBC “I Am a Singer,” KBS “Immortal Song 2,” and Mnet “Superstar K3,” fans have been able to experience music by non-idols artists, including the more veteran singers or up-and-coming singers trying out for audition programs.

“We feel very proud of the fact that the 2011 Melon Music Awards is a show that perfectly reflects the latest trends in the K-Pop industry. In particular, as the year 2011 comes to an end, we’re doing our best to make this show the best festival that fits the ‘Music of Energy’ theme and gives joy and happiness to our fans,” an official from Melon said.

The “2011 Melon Music Awards” will be held in Seoul on November 24 at 7PM KST. It will be broadcast live on MBC and its official YouTube channel. You can find more information here!

Thunderstix is the Editor-in-chief for soompi.com. You can email him at eugene@soompi.com, or follow his twitter.com feed at @eugenekim222.