K-pop Gaining American Fans [VIDEO]

Gangnam Style's Psy with Simon Cowell and Britney Spears

The popularity of K-pop music is steadily increasing in the United States, with Psy's 'Gangnam Style" leading the way. With over 734 million views on YouTube, the comical dance moves and memorable lyrics have become the subject of dozens of parodies and remakes. Since the release of 'Gangnam Style' this past July, interest in the K-pop genre has increased tremendously, especially in those in their teens and early 20s. Other K-pop groups, such as Girls' Generation, are also gaining a larger fan base. Their synchronized dance moves and charm are getting them a lot of attention from young people around the world. 

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But K-pop music isn't the only thing grabbing Americans' attention. Korean dramas are also becoming increasingly popular overseas. Rosally Sapla, the vice president of communications of DramaFever, one of the most popular online providers of Korean dramas, says that each month over 3 million people tune in to watch Korea's most popular dramas, 85% of which aren't Asian. Sapla also reports that their website's audience has doubled every six months since 2009. 

Often featuring actors in their twenties and K-pop stars, these television shows have become very attractive to teens and college students. The Korean dramas are quite similar to American shows with their universal themes of love, friendship, heartache, and growing pains. Viewers have reported they love the shows so much because Korean dramas often end their shows at the moment of greatest conflict, leaving the audience in suspense. This nature of the show can lead it to become very addicting, from the viewers desire to see the conflict be resolved. 

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Despite the similar themes, watching Korean dramas and listening to K-pop music has proven to be more than just great entertainment, but also an eye-opening cultural experience that is linking people around the world together. 

Psy's 'Gangnam Style' takes over Glee [VIDEO]

K-Pop continues to rise in popularity, with Psy's 'Gangnam Style' leading the way. Just four months after its release, the music video has acquired over 605 million hits on YouTube. 

To learn more about Psy, Gangnam Style and pop culture, visit ONCEKids Publishing on Twitter, Facebook and our website

On September 17, the catchy beat and easy-to-learn dance moves, got 'Gangnam Style" nominated for Best Video at the upcoming 2012 MTV Europe Music Awards. Just days later,  "Gangnam Style" continued to make headlines with Guinness World Records recognition as the most liked video in YouTube history. 

Since its creation, countless parodies of the music video have been created. Even Fox's hit musical comedy "GLEE" is jumping on the 'Gangnam Style' train. The November 8th episode will be featuring a performance of the hit song and even a special teaser has been released for eager fans. 

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With one hit single, the Korean pop star has quickly become one of the most recognized faces around the world. Since the release of the music video on July 15, 2012 Psy has watched all his dreams come true, from dancing with Britney Spears on the Ellen Degeneres Show to being featured on Saturday Night Live. 

During his recent concert in Toronto, before he began his performance of the wild, electro dance moves that captured the attention of the world, he stood still, looking out at the crowd and in one of his most revealing moments, announced "This is my first time in Canada, in Toronto. This a really touching moment of me."

In Canada, "Gangnam Style" has reached the number one spot on the Canadian Billboard charts, even beating out big-selling artists like Taylor Swift and Rihanna.

The atmosphere of Psy's concerts are exactly what one would expect at the usual K-Pop concert. On stage, Psy loves to make his wildest on-stage fantasies come true, everything from flying around wire to having a enormous inflatable caricature of himself. His hilarious dance moves and high-energy atmosphere create an unforgettable night for concert-goers.