blacpink

Question 1

who are Blackpink’s audience?

Answer 1

C - possibly lower - lower middle class, catchy, simple lyrics, aspirers
A - largely teenage girls and young women, also targets a male audience due to voyeurism with revealing costumes in the HYLT music video
G - female audience, all members of group women, empowering video
E - global, largely Korean
S - any, mainly heterosexual

Question 2

apply Blumler and Katz’s Uses and Gratifications theory to Blackpink’s ‘How You Like That’ music video.

Answer 2

1. Diversion: music video conventions - performance, fast pace, entertaining, different settings, clearly high-budget
2. Personal relationships: Fan interaction online through social media is a key element of K-pop’s global success. Fans feel like they ‘know’ the band members - eg. TikTok
3. Personal identity: K-pop fandom often involves copying the look of band members - learning music video choreography, seeing their own style reflected on screen (HYLT reflects different personalities of women)
4. Surveillance: Western audiences gain knowledge of Korean music and culture.

Question 3

how was ‘How You Like That’ marketed and promoted?

Answer 3

the video’s release was preceded by a series of teasers on the band’s social media accounts (including posters, photos focusing on individual band members and videos)
- also a reality show (24/365 with Blackpink) - offered audience the ability to become familiar with the group members and build a fan base

Question 4

outline the conventions of k-pop and how these relate to the ‘How You Like That’ music video.

Answer 4

• bright colours
• memorable choreography

Question 5

how has the k-pop genre changed in the past 20 years?

Answer 5

• over the last 20 years, K-pop has become a cultural sensation as groups like BTS and BLACKPINK reached global success
• this has led to Korean culture becoming more mainstream in the West

Question 6

how successful was the ‘How You Like That’ music video?

Answer 6

very successful
- the music video currently has 1.2 billion views on Youtube
- broke the record for ‘most views within 24 hours for a music video’ on Youtube

Question 7

how does the ‘How You Like That’ music video engage its audience?

Answer 7

• entertaining features - bright colours, memorable choreography

Question 8

how are women presented in the ‘How You Like That’ music video?

Answer 8

powerful female representation

• psychographics - each group member presented differently to appeal a broad audience - their individual personalities give the audience an opportunity to identify with whichever group member they feel their own personality aligns with eg. Lisa presented as more strong + aggressive, another member presented as more feminine and delicate
• unity - dance break where group members and other female backup dancers are synchronised - suggesting women should unite and embrace themselves, highlighted by the powerful choreography

Question 9

how does the ‘How You Like That’ music video target a global audience?

Answer 9

• various exotic settings, provide escapism, symbolic of various locations around the world, targets different cultures
• hybrid genre - use of k-pop and hip-hop genres appeals to a wider audience - hip-hop typically a Western genre
• lyrics sung in both Korean and English - English the most spoken language in the world, targets a wider audience
• simple choreography that anyone, regardless of the languages you can speak, could learn - separate dance routine video posted on Youtube that has more views than the actual music video (1.3 billion)
• collaborations with Western artists - Lady Gaga, Dua Lipa & have featured at the Grammy’s and on American chat shows

Question 10

what controversy was there around the ‘How You Like That’ music video?

Answer 10

• some audience members complained about the Hindu statue which featured in the original music video, saying it was disrespectful and cultural appropriation
• YG immediately edited the video and removed the statue - demonstrates the desire they have to please their audience - did this to control bad publicity; example of self-regulation
• YG has also been linked to some scandals around drugs and corruption

Question 11

apply Young and Rubicam’s theory to the ‘How You Like That’ music video.

Answer 11

Blackpink targets:
- mainstreamers - k-pop genre is a popular genre
- aspirers - younger audience who look up to Blackpink, teenage girls who feel empowered by them
- explorers - k-pop relatively new genre, Western audience members may be interested in it

Question 12

who are Blackpink’s record label?

Answer 12

YG Entertainment - SK record label that has diversified into other areas of the music industry - allows them to produce, market and distribute music (vertically and horizontally integrated) - have many subsidiaries which allows them to make more profit
- invested in by many wealthy tech companies, allows their music videos to have high-budgets
- want to appeal to a global audience to increase revenue

Question 13

how is the Asian music industry different to the Western music industry?

Answer 13

• creation of synthetic artists - aspiring musicians sign up to become YG trainees - k-pop music manufactured through a strict audition process, including 4-6 years training and reality competitions

Question 14

how is social media, particularly Youtube, important for Blackpink?

Answer 14

• the music video currently has 1.2 billion views on Youtube
• broke the record for ‘most views within 24 hours for a music video’ on Youtube
• live streamed a concert on Youtube
• Tiktok ‘How You Like That’ dance trend

Question 15

how are music videos consumed nowadays?

Answer 15

convergence - phones, tablets and YouTube are the primary ways audiences engage with music videos