BTS and Parasite, or How Korea is Going Far
by Mariia Minaeva
Korean popular culture has always been very distinct from what can be seen in the US or Europe. Korean music and TV shows were considered childish, and not taken seriously by Western viewers as they were too different. So why are Korean songs now topping the international charts? And how is it that American TV shows are desperate to have Korean groups as guests? Why do their clips on YouTube get millions of views in less than a day? What is this emerging Korean phenomenon? And more significantly, why is it so important for humanity?