World Association of Hallyu Studies Essay and Article Contest

World Association of Hallyu Studies
                   Essay and Article Contest

Name             : Xena Levina Atmadja
Essay Title      : K-Pop Ring A Ding-Dong In My Head
University       : Petra Christian University Surabaya
Department       : Communication Science Department
Major            : Print and Online Journalism
Mobile number : +6282131001991
Email            : xena.levina@ymail.com
Nationality      : Indonesian

Why Did I Become A Fan of Hallyu?

                      K-pop Ring A Ding-Dong In My Head
                                     by : Xena Levina Atmadja

“…Ring ding dong ring ding dong.. Ring diggi ding diggi ding ding ding… Fantastic, fantastic,
fantastic, fantastic, elastic, elastic, elastic, elastic..” – SHINee’s Ring Ding Dong

       It was that simple. Just a simple upbeat music and catchy lyrics caught my attention that
day. I will not forget it, a momentum that brought a big change in my life. It has been four years,
but it still feels like yesterday. It was bright and kind of damp. I just got ‘leveled up’ and became
a freshman student in Petra Christian University, one of the private universities in Surabaya,
Indonesia. After I got home, changed my clothes, washed my face, I sat in the living room, tried
to find something interesting to watch. Fortunately, I had pay TV service that was really helpful.
I just switched the channel randomly and stopped on Channel V, a television music channel.
       At that time, I did not know why I stopped and got bewitched at what was shown on the
television. I saw five boys dressed (quite) strangely in black and grey, they were singing and
dancing. They were handsome and attractive, but the lyrics and rhythm really caught my
attention that time. “Ah, this is new. I have never seen a music video like this before!” It was the
first time I saw Korean music video. When I was younger, I watched Korean drama; Autumn in
My Heart or Endless Love, which turned out were famous television series in Indonesia. But, I
had never seen a group of boys dancing attractively like that time. I amazed and kept watching
this music video till the next song showed up.
       I came back into my room and tried to search who that boys were, singing and dancing
flawlessly with catchy music. I still remember, I typed in “ring ding dong ring ding dong” and it
showed up as a Korean Pop song belongs to SHINee, a group consists of five handsome and
talented teenagers from SM Entertainment. I did not understand Korean language at all but I
really love that song. I downloaded both the song and the music video. I should have realized
that time, from SHINee’s Ring Ding Dong, my teenage life would be different. I would have
different path of coloring my youth. I would have different stories to tell my future children and

grandchildren. I would have my own taste of fashion and style because of Korean Pop culture. I
would have my own perspective of life, my future education, also my career. That’s exactly right
when I am already infected with another Korean Pop products.
       After SHINee, I just jumped on Super Junior, Dong Bang Shin Ki (DBSK), 2PM, 2AM,
Big Bang, 2NE1, B2ST, CN Blue, Infinite and many other Korean groups or solo singers. From
Super Junior that debuted in 2005 until the newcomer from SM Entertainment who debuted in
2011, EXO. Not only boybands, but I also like various girl groups with different concept, from
cute and girly Girls Generation until trendy and funky 2NE1. My interest increased when I met
my college friends who love Korean Pop since high school (until now and maybe forever). Well,
our relationship went well because we ended up becoming best friends now. We even affect
other college friends towards the K-Pop ‘fever’, we take Korean language course together, we
even visited Seoul, South Korea on June 2012 together. I realized that having a crush on Korean
Pop things will lead you to ‘snowball’ effect. My interest for Korean Pop culture is getting
bigger and bigger, just like snowball when you roll it downhill. It’s not only the music world, the
Korean dramas also invaded my daily life.
       Staying up late just to watch the next episode of Korean drama is a daily night activity
after I finish my assignments. I remember one day, around 2 AM, I still woke up in my parents
room, watched Korean drama (it was Snow Queen played by Hyun Bin and Sung Yu Ri). I cried
dramatically because one of the scenes was really touching. Suddenly my Father woke up and
asked “Who’s there?” I wiped my tears and answered, “It’s me, Xena.” My father looked relief
and said “I thought I heard a ghost was crying, just go to your bed! It’s already late.” I said yes,
but then I continued my Korean drama watching time. I watched Snow Queen a little bit late,
around late 2007 or early 2008. However, at that time, I did not see Snow Queen from my
current perspective because I have not fallen for any Korean Pop product. Moreover, Snow
Queen was not my first Korean product that I ‘tasted’, it was Autumn In My Heart. But still, I
did not feel anything like I am feeling now, when I realize that I have a massive crush for Korean
Pop culture.
       There are some reasons why I like Korean Pop culture. For me, Korean Pop culture came
into Indonesia (and some countries) like a freshener in the middle of monotonous Indonesian pop
industry. I admit, at that time, Indonesian consumed Melayu Pop, Dangdut, and Indonesian pop,
the collaboration of Melayu and Western pop culture. Almost all of the songs had similar beat,

rhythm, and melody. No wonder if the Indonesians tended to get bored with their domestic
products. When Korean Pop Culture came, it was like fresh air came into our country.
Indonesians got something new and had potential to become new trend in the society. It was true
and till this moment, Korean Pop Culture really spread all over Indonesia, even in the suburbs.
       Korean Pop culture products such as, Korean drama, Korean pop songs really present
what society have wanted for a long time. For instance, Korean pop song has a new color of
collaboration from east and western culture, where traditional meet modern. The music genre
also has a wide range, from dance, hip hop, RnB, ballad, indie, rock, and many more. This
simplify the audience to choose what they like. I realize that most Korean songs are about love
(사랑). Not only the music world, but most Korean dramas offer stories about love, either with
happy or sad ending. In my opinion, in the middle of this chaos world, South Korea sneaks in
with love messages through their dramas because drama is one of the medium that can mediate
the message.
       What I like about Korean dramas is because they provide so many genres and the Korean
values are reflected in them. My mother herself stated one time that she adores Korean dramas
because it teaches the audiences about the importance of respecting elders. We can find other
values and culture such as Korean food, ways of dating for youngster, also the work ethic which
really affect Indonesians’ daily life. If we see great numbers of Korean restaurant, Korean beauty
salon, Korean Mart, and many other things with ‘Korea’ label, that’s because the Korean Pop
culture penetrate well in Indonesia. South Korea utilizes drama as one of the best media to
transmit the culture and values of a country.
       The second reason is because some of Korean programs show me how hard and how long
the artists have trained and worked. We are familiar with the term ‘trainee’ now, thanks to
Korean television programs and variety shows that raise up the artists’ hard work issue. It is
really touching when I see the footages of their dance or vocal practices. They are just ordinary
human beings, sweating and panting. Some of them even break into tears because of the rigorous
training. We should notice that South Korea is famous with its hardworking people and the
competition among citizens is no joke. That condition applied to the artists too. This hard
working ethos and their tough training situation can arouse the sympathy from audience. This
method work very well because what I see based on my experience, when the Korean artists

made mistakes, the fans said, “Ah, it’s okay. They must be exhausted, they must be sick that
day.” Even some people said that they look cute when they forgot the lyrics.
       On the other side, when Indonesian entertainers made mistakes, they would say “They
are so stupid! How come they can be stars while they forget the lyrics?” This happens a lot in
Indonesia. Korean Pop Culture really knows well how to win audiences’ heart. One of the
audiences that has been touched is me. I really appreciate Korean entertainers because from
some television programs or variety shows, I know how hard and long the road they have been
through. Their path to the success is not easy. Not only sweat, but their tears even sacrificed
when they’re walking in the entertain world.
       The last reason why I like Korean Pop culture is because I like the packaging of each
product, either Korean drama or Korean pop song. I think the packaging is well presented for
young generation. It accentuates the concept of love and the spirit of young people. For example,
I have mentioned before that mostly the storyline in the song or drama is about love between two
people. Don’t forget the fashion and the make-up, South Korea is success in becoming the
trendsetter of the world when it comes to fashion and make up. For me, each season in South
Korea has its own fashion trend. For example, when summer comes, the colorful clothes and
accessories are famous. Bright and neon colors are frequently used. When it comes to autumn,
colors like brown, dark green, navy blue are often used. The dyed hair of the artists, the perm,
and cute hair accessories also can describe the hair trend in South Korea.
       In terms of make-up, the famous Korean make-up leads to economic growth because of
the increasing number of Korean make-up store in Indonesia. In the last few years, Korean
make-up brand is easily found in public places. That is because people are trying to imitate the
look of their favorite Korean artists. In my opinion, through this Korean Pop Culture, the new
standard of beauty is created for both men and women. The beauty of a woman is defined from
her face shape, eyes, nose, lips, jaw, chin, white skin, her size of bust, waist, and the length of
her legs. For man, I think the well build body with muscles and six packs. But for the face, there
are two types, one is the cute boy look and the other is manly look. This new perspective of
beauty penetrates through Korean pop song, with the music videos, also Korean dramas. For the
young generation, this is very helpful because they have role models to help them define
themselves through fashion and looks.

When I see the artists that I like, for instance, I like Girls Generation. I will try my best to
get the look of them. Long, dyed, and beautiful hair, straight eyebrows, winged eyeliner,
glamorous dresses, and high heels. Before, I never wore any make-up in my teenage daily life,
and I remembered I ever said before, I wouldn’t dye my hair, I love my black hair. Yet, after I
fell for Korean Pop Culture, I dyed my hair several times to get the hair look of the artist that I
like. I never thought that I would be this feminine enough in my life, but that has happened.
Honestly, I am the type of person that easily to get bored. However, I do not know why Korean
Pop culture has been attached in me for four years. From my perspective, that is because Korean
Pop Culture know how to manage the concept well, the movement of trend, and they have
strategies to face the ups and downs of culture dynamic in the world. So, after all, I think South
Korea has to prepare more and more strategies to win the heart of people not only in Asia, but all
over the world.