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The Korea Times

By Dong Sun-hwa
Grace Kao’s fascination with K-pop began in 2019 when she became captivated by the boy band BTS.
A sociology professor at Yale University, Kao was enchanted by the septet’s performance on Saturday Night Live (SNL) in the United States, the first appearance of an Asian act on the show as a musical guest.
“[Growing up,] I never had the opportunity to enjoy Asian or Asian-American musicians in the US,” Kao said during a recent interview.

“Since I became a teenager in the MTV era of the 1980s, my favourite groups were Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran and so forth. They are all English groups who are primarily white … So, it was a big deal when BTS performed on SNL.
“It was a memorable moment not just for me, but for anyone my age. When I first saw BTS, I did not know who they were, but I was just mesmerised by their dancing and the way they gaze at the audience.”
Hong Kong hosts Proof, show about the first 10 years of K-pop giants BTS
Kao believes that BTS has made being Asian “cool”.
“The stereotypes about Asian men were that they are like martial artists or geeky guys. BTS, however, were so striking. BTS are desirable and women would want to date its members.
“This is a big shift in terms of images of Asian-American men in the US. ‘The BTS benefit’ has spread to all Asians and even minorities.”
Like many Americans, she began her K-pop journey with BTS, but now she supports numerous other groups, including Seventeen, Super Junior, Enhypen, NewJeans, Verivery and Trendz.
K-pop has brought a breath of fresh air into her life, she says.

“My family members and close friends have also seen many BTS music videos and many of them can name the members. I have also met other people my age at Yale and elsewhere who enjoy K-pop.”
Currently, Kao is working on papers exploring the representation of different genres in K-pop.
“I am also cooperating with two data scientists to examine Twitter data before and after BTS’ tweet about #StopAsianHate and #StopAAPIHate,” she said.
In 2021, the Grammy-nominated septet released a statement about racial discrimination and violence in the wake of a deadly shooting in Atlanta, which killed eight people including four women of Korean descent and two of Chinese descent. The incident prompted the Stop Asian Hate movement in the US and beyond.
Music videos meant that group members had to be good-looking. Their styles became important, and their musicianship arguably became less important
Grace Kao, Yale professor and K-pop fan, compares the genre to the British New Wave
“What our voice must convey is clear,” BTS wrote on Twitter. “We stand against racial discrimination. We condemn violence.”
Kao’s research focuses primarily on race, ethnicity and migration. However, since 2020, she has also been teaching an undergraduate course at Yale titled Race and Place in British New Wave, K-pop and Beyond.
“The British New Wave is music from the late 1970s to the mid-’80s, during a time when British bands dominated US charts. It is also when MTV and music videos began.

“MTV actively promoted white artists and kept black artists from the channel, hence it looked outside the US for groups.
“Music videos meant that group members had to be good-looking. Their styles became important, and their musicianship arguably became less important. It was also an era where androgyny was hip.”
Kao draws a connection between the British New Wave and K-pop and the hallyu (Korean wave) phenomenon, highlighting that both are reliant on music videos and the presence of attractive performers.
“Concepts and styles are as important as the music to each song and album,” she said.
Read the full story at The Korea Times.


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How a Yale professor, raised on MTV, saw BTS and fell in love with K-pop. Now she teaches a comparative course in the music genre

Seeing BTS on “Saturday Night Live” (above) kicked off a love affair with the K-pop boy band for Yale professor Grace Kao. Photo: Getty Images

Grace Kao (above) likes the way K-pop has changed people’s perceptions of Asians. Photo: Yale University

Kao says K-pop bands, with their good-looking members, are changing people’s perceptions of Asian men. Above: K-pop band Seventeen at the 8th Gaon Chart K-pop Awards in January 2019. Photo: Getty Images

Kao is also a fan of K-pop band Super Junior (above). Photo: Getty Images

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K-pop boy band CIX debuted in 2019. Photo: C9 Entertainment

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Grace Kao, who grew up watching MTV, saw BTS perform on Saturday Night Live and heard their message against racism and violence
She saw the power of K-pop and how it is changing many people’s perception of Asians, and now teaches a course on musical genres and race


Seeing BTS on Saturday Night Live kicked off a love affair with the K-pop boy band for Yale professor Grace Kao, who grew up watching English groups on MTV and compares K-pop with the British New Wave.


Asian diaspora