‘People are exhausted by Blackpink and BTS’: the DIY Chinese bands redefining corporate ‘idol’ pop
📖 Full Retelling
<p>Since the regime quashed China’s version of the K-pop industry in 2021, an underground ‘alt-idol’ culture has emerged, championing freedom and experimentation</p><p>Over the past decade, “idol” culture has turned east Asia into a pop music powerhouse as global audiences have flocked to Japanese and especially South Korean groups. Formed and exactingly trained by big entertainment conglomerates, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2026/jan/29/bts-best-songs-ranked
Entity Intersection Graph
No entity connections available yet for this article.
Original Source
<p>Since the regime quashed China’s version of the K-pop industry in 2021, an underground ‘alt-idol’ culture has emerged, championing freedom and experimentation</p><p>Over the past decade, “idol” culture has turned east Asia into a pop music powerhouse as global audiences have flocked to Japanese and especially South Korean groups. Formed and exactingly trained by big entertainment conglomerates, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2026/jan/29/bts-best-songs-ranked
Read full article at source