Call it a trend, call it a controversial act, but latest hits by fourth generation K-pop female figures underscore a unity of their voices in promoting women empowerment. These female K-pop groups that debuted in 2018 or later, boldly promote the big theme through music while still preserving their own unique identity.
(G)I-dle, for instance, returned to the stage with their comeback song, “Super Lady,” demonstrating a strong and edgy approach in advocating for the big theme. Joining this journey is LE SSERAFIM, who released their brandnew song “Easy,” which is said to picture their insecurities and concerns despite being one of the most successful groups in the industry. The same pattern can be seen with other big names like Aespa, EVERGLOW, and NMIXX throughout the past few months.
Syazwana Binti Mohd Joneidi, a Malaysian student from ELTEC College of Engineering, observed shifts in K-pop following its global rise.
“As someone who has been a K-pop fan for quite a long time, I noticed a significant increase in songs promoting woman empowerment,” she observed. “While there have been some attempts in the past, the message has become much more obvious recently.”
Professor Michael Timpson from the Division of Music, a composer with a jazz background who is also a K-pop fan himself, offered his perspective on the phenomenon.
According to Professor Timpson, music reflects changes in society and trends in younger audiences. The globalization of K-pop has brought people from all parts of the world, who often have more progressive perspectives or a specific target in writing for women in the industry. This contiributed to the songwriting process hence making it a refreshing genre for the generation of K-pop.
The evolution of music in general, in which visual stimuli becomes highly influential in attracting the audience, was also discussed.
“The evolution of music has become increasingly visual,” Professor Timpson explained. “Back in the day, we had this channel called MTV, and originally it produced music videos and occasional live performances. However, people began to realise that it is something we can make into so much more. such as mini movies.”
Professor Timpson also elaborated on the fact that the visual aspects in media tend to focus more on the artist’s appearance. This can be one of the factors why K-pop music stands out, because the visual stimuli became a foundation in attracting listeners.
Charlotte Wilson, a multi-Platinum songwriter who had the experience working with sensational figures like Aespa, ITZY, NMIXX, and ATEEZ, was thrilled to share her inspiration behind one of her favorite tracks that she has ever written, “Drama” by Aespa, with over 100 million streams on Spotify.
“It is a very empowering song,” she replied. “The song is saying, no matter their past trauma or hardships, these women can overcome everything.”
Wilson continued to emphasize the deeper drive for drama. It was because of a fact that everyone in the world must have been through a situation where they feel like they could not overcome it but at the end of the day, they do.
Wilson also highlighted the unique attributes of K-pop in contributing to the message.
“The message stands out more clearly in K-pop,” Wilson said. “You can mix the message with the melody, video, and choreography, and it creates a wicked impact.”
For instance, in “Not Shy” by ITZY, a song Wilson crafted as an anthem for outspoken individuals, she infused Caribbean elements reminiscent of Missy Elliot in the verse, creating a catchy rhythm to amplify the message.
Wilson took the time to share a glimpse of her journey in making her name in the K-pop industry which inspires most of her songwriting process. She revealed that she was working a full-time job while writing “Not Shy.” Wilson recalled thinking the song might not be selected among thousands of other songs hence the success of it was truly a motivation for her to never give up on her dreams.
Meanwhile, Alina Smith, a member of LYRE, a group of songwriters who has not only produced music of her own but has also co-written some of the biggest hits in K-pop, including “Mafia in the Morning” by ITZY and “Giddy” by Kep1er, also took part in explaining how the writing process is like for her group.
“Ninety percent of songs that we write are with this theme,” she said, referring to the woman empowerment theme. “Most of the time, we do not sit down and go ‘okay, how can we empower women today?’ It has just happened with who we are.”
When asked about her opinion on this trend, Smith uncovered the importance behind it in a bigger picture. She believes that the message is crucial especially for young girls. She emphasized how it is very common for young girls to not be encouraged to be confident and not recognizing their own strength, hence why songwriters use songs as a medium to pour out their perspective.
“As songwriters, we put our perspective into our songs, whether it is through the lyrics, music, or sometimes something just gives you the feeling of empowerment just by the tracks,” she explained.