Everything You’ve Ever Wanted to Know About K-Pop, All in One Place 케이팝에 대한 모든 것, 이 한 권에 담았다 Whether you’re a seasoned fan or just curious about the hype, this guide opens the door to the vibrant world of K-pop, offering insights for both longtime fans and total newcomers. It answers the questions beginners are most curious about: What makes fan culture in K-pop so unique? What defines K-pop musically as a genre? What’s the secret behind idol choreography that fuels viral TikTok challenges and random play dances? And how do entertainment agencies train and shape idols through Korea’s rigorous trainee system? From the excitement of fan sign events where you can meet your favorite idols one-on-one, to the unforgettable energy of fan chants at concerts, this book breaks it all down. And for those curious about the business side, it takes a critical look at the industry’s marketing strategies―like random photocards and multi-version albums that drive massive sales.

01 Fans 팬ㆍ9 Find Your Ultimate Bias and That Is the Beginning of Everything Keywords: Deokjil│Bias│Fandom Name│FanTube│Fan Fiction│Weverse│Son Min-soo│The Revolving Door│Photo Booth Frames │Character Merchandise Music On: Private Messaging Services: Personal Connection with Your Idol 02 Genre 장르ㆍ18 What Exactly Is K-Pop as a Genre? Keywords: Line Distribution│Killing Part│Color-Coded Lyrics │Innocent│Girl Crush│Refreshing│Comeback│Dyeing Music On: The Authentic “K” in K-Pop 03 Position 포지션ㆍ28 Just Like in a Sports Team, Members of an Idol Group Have Their Own Roles Keywords: Visual Role│Visual Main Vocal│Aegyo Role│Maknae-on-Top│Matnae (Eldest + Maknae)│Variety Show Role│Self-Producing Idols Music On: How Age Shapes the Chemistry in Idol Groups: “Eldest and Youngest” 04 Choreography 안무ㆍ37 All the Moments that Shaped the Creation of K-Pop Dance Keywords: Practice Room│Choreographers│Cupid Challenge │Challenge Collaboration│Double-Speed Dance│Choreography Copyright Music On: You Can Do It Too: Random Play Dance 05 Trainee 연습생ㆍ46 Becoming a Star: A Trainee’s Long Journey Keywords: Audition│Overseas Tour Auditions│Casting│Dieting │ Trainee Costs│Character Evaluation│Monthly Evaluations│Debut Team│Agency Survival Audition Programs│What Happens to Those Not Chosen for the Debut Team? Music On: Trainees Are Forbidden to Date! 06 Music Show 음악방송ㆍ56 An Idol’s Day on a Music Show Keywords: Ending Fairy│Music Show Rankings│MC│Fancams │ Encore Stages│Lip-Syncing│Live Streaming│Award Shows │Inkigayo Sandwich│Year-End Festivals Music On: Game On: Idols Compete in Sports 07 Dorm 숙소ㆍ66 Chasing Big Dreams in a Small Dorm Keywords: Dormitory│Manager│Fan Manager│Housekeeper │Student Yet an Idol Music On: K-Pop Is Now World-Pop? 08 Album 앨범ㆍ75 What Drives K-Pop Fans to Buy Albums in Bulk? Keywords: First-Week Sales│Streaming│Title Track│Photocard Trading│Season’s Greetings│Etiquette Shot Music On: Are K-Pop Albums an Environmental Villain? 09 Fansign 팬사인회ㆍ82 Heading to See You: The World of Idol Fansigns Keywords: Fansign Cutoff│Sticky Note Questions│Looking Your Best│Fansign Props│“Oh, Really?”│Proxy Questions │Toxic Solo Stan│Kneeling for Signatures Music On: You Can Meet Your Idol Over Zoom 10 Concert 콘서트ㆍ91 K-Pop’s Biggest Celebration: Fans and Idols Unite Keywords: Ticketing│Light Sticks│Fan Chants│Fan Songs │ Concert Movies│University Festivals│Overseas Tours│Fan Meeting Concerts│Entertainment Agency Concerts Music On: Do K-Pop idols perform Even in the Military? 11 Fan Support Gift 조공ㆍ101 From Love to Excess: The Bright and Dark Sides of K-Pop Fandom’s Tribute Culture Keywords: Food Trucks│Reverse Fan Support│Gun-Bearer │Idol Forests│Rice Wreaths│Reaching for the Stars│Luxury Brand Ambassadors│Birthday Ads│The Expanded Birthday Caf? Music On: Creating the Best Birthday Ever 12 Sasaeng 사생ㆍ111 Sasaeng Behavior That Borders on Criminal Activity Keywords: Sasaeng Taxi│Sasaeng Sponsor│Homma│Airport Fashion│Security Guards Music On: The Dark Side of Glamorous Airport Departures 13 Idol Survival Audition Program 아이돌 서바이벌 프로그램ㆍ119 We’re the Ones Creating Idol Groups Keywords: Rankings│Trainers│Second-Chance Idols│Theme Songs│Battle for Roles│Role Displacement│“Vote and Win Gold”│Producer’s Picks│Evil Editing Music On: A Love with an Expiration Date: Project Groups

Another significant position is the “center,” the face of the group. As the member who best represents the group’s concept and identity, the center stands in the middle during performances and public appearances. As the center creates the group’s first impression, they are held to the highest standards in terms of appearance, talent, star quality, and personality. Being chosen as the center means becoming the face of the group and often leads to becoming its most popular member.

-Position (포지션): Just Like in a Sports Team, Members of an Idol Group Have Their Own Roles

In Korean rural communities, there’s a tradition called pumasi (품앗이), which refers to neighbors exchanging labor to help one another. In K-pop, a modern version of this concept has emerged through TikTok challenges, which is called “challenge pumasi (챌린지 품앗이).” Idols no longer just film their own challenges─they guest in other idols’ TikTok videos to dance together. On days with music show recordings, the back stage hallways are bustling with idols requesting each other to join challenges. Since everyone’s schedules are packed, they take advantage of music show days when many idols are gathered in the same place. Fans are delighted to see idols helping each other in these collaborative efforts. Such interactions often lead to amusing moments, such as male idols performing cute girl group dances, offering fans a fresh source of entertainment.

-Choreography (안무): All the Moments That Shaped the Creation of K-Pop Dance

When fans grow fond of an idol, they may want to emulate everything about them. Imitating an idol’s outfits, hairstyle, makeup, or overall style is known as “doing Son Min-soo” (손민수하다) in K-pop fandom. The term originates from a comic character who admired a protagonist so much that she copied her fashion and hair. To do Son Min-soo of your favorite idol, follow Twitter accounts that quickly share details of what idols wore on any given day. Some accounts even analyze photos to identify the exact makeup products used, helping fans replicate their idol’s look.

-Fans (팬): Find Your Ultimate Bias and That Is the Beginning of Everything

First-week sales (chodong, 초동), refer to the album sales recorded during the first seven days after release. This metric is critical in K-pop, as fans heavily purchase albums within this period, making it a key indicator of an idol’s popularity and the size of their fanbase. As such, first-week sales rankings are often equated with popularity rankings. To avoid the humiliation of having lower first-week sales than rival groups, fans sometimes pool their money to buy tens of thousands─or even hundreds of thousands─of albums. The interplay between fan pride, fan sign events, and marketing tactics like random photocards has driven first-week sales figures to skyrocket.

?Album (앨범): What Drives K-Pop Fans to Buy Albums in Bulk?