Despite the United States, Japan, and the United Kingdom traditionally being viewed as the dominant markets in the global music industry due to their size and influence, the emergence of digital platforms such as TikTok and Instagram is challenging this perception. As a result, Southeast Asian countries, specifically Thailand, are now playing a major role in shaping the K-pop industry.
Last July, Alice Ratchadawan, a well-known TikTok personality from Thailand, played a major role in bringing global attention to the lesser-known Korean indie group Wave to Earth. Alice’s use of their song “Bad”as the background music in her proposal video resulted in the track becoming a viral sensation worldwide, reaching the top of Thailand’s Spotify Viral 50 chart. As a result, Wave to Earth’s monthly listeners on Spotify skyrocketed, surpassing even some of Korea’s most popular artists, including IU.
According to Hong Jong Hee, Communications Director at TikTok Korea, Southeast Asia is taking the lead in both creating and consuming Korean content on the platform. Currently, Indonesia holds the top spot, with Thailand following closely behind. Despite Indonesia having a larger music market, Thailand holds a significant influence over K-pop, thanks to the success of artists such as NCT’s Ten, GOT7’s Bam Bam, and BLACKPINK’s Lisa.
According to Suwat Wuthichairattana, a veteran producer with 20 years of experience in the Thai entertainment industry, the recruitment of Thai members by Korean music labels is a clever tactic to not only gain fans in Thailand, but also in neighboring countries such as Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam. This strategic move allows them to expand their reach in Southeast Asia, a thriving and rapidly developing region in the global music scene.
Moreover, Thailand’s distinctive cultural, architectural, and infrastructural attributes make it an ideal environment for creating short content that has the potential to become viral on social media platforms.
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