Korean Alphabet Day

With October 9th being “Korean Alphabet Day,” representatives of the Korean music industry have brought to attention the increasing usage of English in songs.

Some examples of songs saturated with English include 2PM’s “Heartbeat”,”Again & Again”, and “Without U” 2NE1’s “Go Away” and “Can’t Nobody”; BoA’s “Hurricane Venus” and “Copy & Paste”; lastly, miss A’s “Bad Girl Good Girl” and “Breathe.”

English has almost become a lyrical necessity as well, with most choruses being penned entirely in English. Groups such as Super Junior, Brown Eyed Girls, Wonder Girls, SHINee, Big Bang, 2AM, KARA, U-KISS, T-ara, f(x), 4minute, B2ST, MBLAQ, Secret, SISTAR, RAINBOW, and others also use English names for their unit names. In comparison, there are fewer bands utilizing Korean names, such as SNSD, Daeguk Namah (The Boss), and Choshinsung (Supernova).

Representatives look at the situation as something that’s unavoidable given the globalized era that we’re in. The use of English also allows groups to leave a stronger impression on international fans.

One representative stated, “Society no longer cares about whether Korean is being used or not. English is used often in their day-to-day lives so there’s no feeling of unfamiliarity. It’s also a great way to reach out to international fans as well.”