U-KISS And AJ - Is The Attention from US Media Unexpected?

Up until a few days ago, Korean idol group U-KISS was relatively unknown in the US aside from the niche group of diehard K-Pop fans. But with the group's launch of their first-ever US tour on Thursday with a concert at the Best Buy Theater in New York City, U-KISS has found themselves at the center of attention for several American media outlets.

Comprised of six members, U-KISS boasts their multilingualism compared to other pop groups in the overly saturated Korean music industry. Able to speak a combination of Korean, Chinese, Japanese, and English with fluency, the group has already become a fan-favorite across the globe, living up to the acronym for their name meaning 'Ubiquitous Korean International Idol Super Star.'

Including two Korean-American members, Eli and Kevin, and one of the group's rappers, AJ, enrolled as a student at Columbia University, being able to speak English helps U-KISS connect to their fans across the United States.

With the guys now on the west coast for two more shows in their first US tour sponsored by YesStyle and YesAsia and organized by Mnet, the recent US media interest in the group, specifically AJ's dual life as an ivy league student and international pop star, is likely far from over.

Featured by the New York Post and in a special spot on NBC's Today Show, AJ has been referred to as "Korea's Justin Bieber" and noted as a rising pop star to keep an eye on.

A quick Google search of 'U-KISS' in the past couple of days has also seen mention of the K-Pop idols in such outlets as Business Insider and the Wall Street Journal's MarketWatch.

Since the international breakthrough of Psy with the hit song "Gangnam Style" in 2012, interest in K-Pop has been steadily rising with some of Korea's biggest stars, like Big Bang leader and fashion icon G-Dragon and nine-member girl group Girls' Generation, routinely being featured by entertainment media abroad.

But what really sets U-KISS apart from such big name acts is the fact that their popularity in South Korea is grossly understated.

Although they debuted in 2008 under record label NH Media and have an impressive number of album releases under their belts, including several that ranked number one on various albums charts, U-KISS's sixteen Korean singles have barely made a splash.

Going on 2,000 days since their debut, U-KISS is one of the longest running pop groups to never win first place on any of South Korea's televised music programs.

Not that any of that will stop them. With new wind in their sails from what is sure to be a huge tour success in the US and this newly found international media attention, U-KISS intends on continuing their musical pursuits in 2014 with a new sub-unit scheduled to debut and plenty of fans around the world anxiously waiting for their big break.

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