K-pop Star Popularity Goes Local? Certain Regions Or Countries Have Their Own Favorites, Who Are The Stars?

The spread of K-Pop is impacting other countries; and with rise of popularity as well exposure globally, each country has a certain idol that is a fan favorite. While there are numerous idols, a person cannot love all of them; one to two groups is the maximum. Not unless, you really are a die-hard K-Pop lover and likes all the singers in the Korean music industry no matter what.

Survey Conducted

CJ E&M which is the largest company in Seoul, South Korea, conducted a survey regarding what stars are popular in "different countries;" the most favorite K-Pop idol amongst everyone else. So, which idols are popular in different countries that they cannot stop listening to their songs?

The Results

The survey was "released" on January 25, 2013. Most popular group is none other than female group f(x) due to their enormous fan base in China, as well as in other parts of the globe. Percentage popularity was 16.4. With their great songs, such as "Rum Pum Pum Pum" and "Hot Summer," it is no surprise why f(x) is such a fan favorite.

f(x) Performance of "Rum Pum Pum Pum" in China

f(x) "Hot Summer" Performance

For the male groups, Shinhwa came in second place with 15.1%.

Shinhwa "Venus" MV

SS501 leader Kim Hyun Joong is third with 9.3% by having a huge fan base in the country of Japan.

North America and South Korea has got EXO's back.  They now trail Shinhwa due to the votes they received in the United States, Canada, and South Korea. While SHINee is popular in Argentina, Mexico, and Europe, EXO has been popular lately due to their song, "Growl" which also won at the "2013 Mnet Asian Music Awards."

SHINee is just a fantastic group; especially, with their latest track, "Everybody."

With such great choreography and always making fantastic comebacks for both SHINee as well as EXO, it is no wonder why these two are tailing Shinhwa.

How and Where The Votes Are Gathered

CJ E&M gathered this information by researching as well as analyzing roughly five million people from over one hundred seventy-eight nations. People participated on an "online poll" for the months of January thru December 2013. The poll was located on the website of "M Wave" where millions submitted who their favorite Korean music artist is. "M Wave" wants people from other countries to enjoy Korean music. Before, "M Wave" was not open to reaching other viewers globally; it was only limited in South Korea. With the huge fascination of K-Pop now in other countries, the website is now viewed by other people in other Asian regions, across Europe, and the United States. People are now able to read current events, watch videos such as M Countdown, and participate on online polls such as this one. The focus now is not only in South Korea; reaching a more wider audience is what K-Pop wants to achieve; which it is as millions are now into the K-Pop culture. The survey was "diversified" for the other Asian countries. While in others, there were a combination of similarities as well differences from each country in-terms of results.

Favorite K-Pop idols in Asia were f(x) as they are extremely popular in China. FT Island is the top K-pop idol in Taiwan.  

Kim Hyun Joong shines in Japan. 2NE1's Sandara Park is huge in the Philippines, because she was previously an actress and entertainer there before she got famous for her unique hair styles and being part of the awesome group that is 2NE1!

Super Junior's Henry has a huge fan base in Saudi Arabia and EXO is also popular in India.

Seo Jeong Min, who is the Global Operation Senior Official at CJ E&M, said his remarks regarding how people choose their favorite idols. Seo said, "Foreign fans have different preferences for K-pop stars according to the national characteristics and the K-pop artists' activities in their countries." Finally, he further added by saying "that such an analysis can be helpful in the future promotion strategies of K-pop stars."

Who is the most popular K-pop artist in your country?

Photo Credit: Ningin, Jovenaheart, and Wookiepasion

Tags
K-Pop
CJ E&M
f(x)
SHINee
EXO
Shinhwa
SS501
Kim Hyun Joong
Super Junior
Henry
ft island
2NE1
Sandara Park
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