K-pop’s NCT 127, Mamamoo, Seventeen and more pivot international releases to Japanese audiences

The K-pop industry’s lack of options for overseas activities has resulted in a new focus on Japan, a market close to home for South Korean artists
This week sees the release of NCT 127’s Japanese EP, ‘Loveholic’, while artists like Treasure and Seventeen are also planning on releasing Japanese music

K-pop, Mandopop and other Asian pop

Tamar Hermanin United States

Published: 10:15pm, 9 Feb 2021

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It was around this time last year that the final international K-pop tours started winding down because of the coronavirus outbreak. As 2021 starts, the industry is again looking overseas and to one country in particular: Japan.

Japan has always been an important market for the South Korean music industry, with many K-pop artists spending significant parts of their careers in the country, often releasing original songs in Japanese. But the first quarter of 2021 is not like any period that has come before, and the industry’s lack of options for overseas activities has resulted in a new focus on this market so close to home for South Korean artists.

If travel bubbles throughout Asia had been set up as hoped, transit between Japan and South Korea would likely have been possible at this stage, allowing the K-pop industry to stage concerts or promotional events in Japan. As things obviously didn’t quite end up that way, the industry is targeting the lucrative market in the neighbouring country with an increasing number of Japanese releases instead.

The year also marks a thawing of relations between South Korea and Japan, which started 2020 off with trade restrictions and heightened tensions because of long-term sociopolitical controversies. Beginning late last year, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and South Korean President Moon Jae-in began publicly discussing a warming of relations between the two countries.

But maybe K-pop will get the job done first. This week sees the high-profile release of NCT 127’s “Loveholic” album, their second Japanese EP. Preceded by the release of the single First Love on January 27, “Loveholic” is the NCT team’s first Japanese album since April 2019 – a veritable lifetime ago in the K-pop world.

But the act has since been focusing on other regions, and members had been focusing on alternative projects such as NCT 2020 and SuperM. But the slowdown in international touring makes this a perfect time to target the second-largest music market in the world with a new album.

NCT 127’s album comes after girl group Mamamoo released their 2020 album “Travel” in a Japanese edition earlier this month, and January Japanese releases from the likes of Baekhyun, Tomorrow X Together and Super Junior.

Other artists, including boy bands Treasure and Seventeen, are also planning on releasing Japanese music in the next few months.

Online concerts aimed at the Japanese market are also starting to gain momentum. Though last year witnessed many K-pop artists hosting globally oriented events, Twice recently announced they would be holding a concert targeted at Japan on March 6, and it is expected that other artists will follow suit.

Treasure are on planning on releasing Japanese music in the next few months. Photo: YG Entertainment

K-pop companies are also increasingly focusing on developing artists focused on the Japanese market, such as JYP Entertainment, home of Twice, launching girl group NiziU last year and Big Hit Entertainment, home of BTS, being involved in the launch of a new boy band, set to debut this year.

Last week, Twitter revealed that the market with the most number of unique users tweeting about K-pop in 2020 was Japan, followed by the US, another region of major interest for K-pop acts. Indonesia was in third place.

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