For South Koreans, K-pop is more than pleasure. It鈥檚 about power, too.
| Seoul, South Korea
Crowds gather in Seoul to watch teams from around the world duke it out in a first-of-its kind showcase of agility, strength, and style.
This isn鈥檛 the Summer Olympics. It鈥檚 a dance-off.
The 2025 Seoul Hunters Festival, held at Seoul Plaza, attracted artists from the United States, Bulgaria, Indonesia, and beyond to celebrate the hit animated film 鈥淜Pop Demon Hunters.鈥� Dance troupes performed high-energy choreography to the movie鈥檚 original synthy soundtrack, interspersed with singing and tae kwon do showcases. Between each act, participants discussed their favorite aspects of Korean culture, such as the spicy instant noodles available at 24-hour convenience stores (and featured prominently in the movie).
Why We Wrote This
Soft power can鈥檛 replace military force, but it can go a long way toward bolstering a country鈥檚 international status. Look no further than South Korea鈥檚 K-pop reach.
It was a dazzling display not just of this film鈥檚 success, but of the immense soft power that South Korea has accumulated over the past few decades 鈥� and which President Lee Jae Myung now hopes to harness. He launched a new presidential advisory body this month to help promote Korea鈥檚 cultural exports, and has made K-pop culture a central theme of this week鈥檚 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, South Korea.
Leaders believe Koreans鈥� deep well of creativity 鈥� developed in part from a history of hardship and colonialism 鈥� is now helping safeguard the country. 鈥淲hen it comes to Korean arms exports or defense industry cooperation,鈥� says Seok Jong-gun, minister of South Korea鈥檚 Defense Acquisition Program Administration, many countries 鈥減lace high trust or credibility in Korea because of the soft power.鈥� By fostering affection for the country as a whole, 鈥淜-culture can ultimately contribute to national security, which means that we can make Korea a safer place,鈥� he adds.
The Korean Wave
South Korea has traditionally lacked 鈥渉ard power.鈥� For much of its history, it was a poor country, frequently invaded by surrounding powers. Even today, it faces a declining population and a nuclear armed rival directly to its north. Yet the international success of its music, films, TV, and video games has helped raise its global standing.
The world鈥檚 obsession with all things K-culture began after the 1997 Asian financial crisis brought the Korean economy to a halt. Leaders knew that South Korea needed to diversify its economy. At the same time, new South Korean music and television programs were finding popularity in China, where journalists coined the term Hallyu, or Korean Wave.
So in 1998, South Korea鈥檚 president launched the 鈥淗allyu Industry Support Development Plan,鈥� a sort of soft power playbook that laid the groundwork for its art and culture to flourish, particularly overseas. And it worked.
The Korean Wave first swept through Asia, then reached the Middle East and parts of Europe, helping reboot South Korea鈥檚 economy and its global reputation. In 2012, it galloped into the United States with singer Psy鈥檚 viral 鈥淕angnam Style鈥� music video.
The satirical track dominated the internet for weeks, symbolizing 鈥渢hat an outward-looking, cool South Korea had arrived on the global stage,鈥� write Victor D. Cha and Ramon Pacheco Pardo in their book 鈥淜orea: A New History of South & North.鈥� 鈥淪outh Koreans rejoiced. Their country was now known for bringing joy and laughter to people everywhere. And yet, Hallyu was only starting.鈥�
In the years since, K-pop idol groups BTS and Blackpink have headlined major music festivals and broken streaming records around the world. Bong Joon-ho鈥檚 鈥淧arasite鈥� became the first non-English-language film to win an Academy Award for best picture.
During pandemic lockdowns, the romantic North-South epic 鈥淐rash Landing on You鈥� set ratings records and persuaded Americans with Netflix that reading 16 hours of captions not only wasn鈥檛 homework; it was key to accessing star-crossed love stories of a depth and complexity not found on the Hallmark Channel.
Since then, popular K-dramas 鈥� from the bleak 鈥淪quid Game鈥� to the charming 鈥淓xtraordinary Attorney Woo鈥� 鈥� have introduced millions of people to South Korean culture.
Seoul 鈥渨ants to foster soft power, with the principles of cooperation like openness, inclusiveness, and solidarity,鈥� says Jeonghun Min, a professor at the Korea National Diplomatic Academy. 鈥淔or South Korea, the soft power, the Hallyu, the universal value of cooperation are very important to mobilize the other middle-power countries to survive against the very strong and aggressive world powers.鈥�
Now 鈥淜Pop Demon Hunters鈥� 鈥� which follows members of the fictional girl group HUNTR/X as they fight to save fans鈥� souls from a scheming demon boy band 鈥� is raking in the accolades. Since its release in June, the action musical has surpassed 鈥淪quid Game鈥� as Netflix鈥檚 most-watched title, and its top track, 鈥淕olden,鈥� was nominated for MTV鈥檚 Song of the Summer.
Ho-sung Kang, a former entertainment lawyer who recently launched his own talent agency, KHS Agency, notes that it鈥檚 not the government support that makes Korean art resonate around the world, but a creativity born from resilience. 鈥淕eographically, Korea is surrounded by big powers like China and Japan ... and we鈥檝e gone through multiple invasions throughout our history,鈥� he explains. This history of colonialism, some Koreans argue, has created a culture of han 鈥� a complex emotion that has been described as a sort of nationwide longing, and as a sense of hope amid grief.
鈥淜orea has a lot of joy, and when this joy is oppressed, this turns into han, which is a mix of sorrow, angst, and frustration,鈥� says the KHS Agency founder. 鈥淎nd this [depth of emotion] has led to creativity. 鈥� It鈥檚 in Koreans鈥� DNA.鈥�
Soft power and the Koreas
The Lowy Institute鈥檚 Asia Power Index, which compares how well different Asian countries convert their resources into global influence, ranks South Korea as one of the region鈥檚 highest 鈥渙verachievers鈥� 鈥� meaning that it鈥檚 punching well above its weight on soft power. North Korea, meanwhile, is the Lowy Institute鈥檚 single worst 鈥渦nderachiever.鈥� The authoritarian regime has developed a vast military and nuclear arsenal, but its diplomatic and economic isolation prevents it from reaching its full potential, says the report.
South Korea still imposes two years of mandatory military service on its young men, and nobody sees soft power as a replacement for a strong national defense. Yet South Korea鈥檚 cultural exports have been a key tool in fostering goodwill abroad, and foreign policy experts and defense officials say that goodwill makes a real difference.
When DAPA鈥檚 Maj. Gen. Seok travels around the world, people he meets are already familiar with Korean culture thanks to Hallyu, and they are more willing to develop business and security ties as a result.
鈥淜-culture is like a sort of a seasoning,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t can add flavor to the partnership.鈥�
This cultural footing is likely to become more important as Washington embraces an increasingly isolationist foreign policy, and Beijing deepens ties with Moscow and Pyongyang. The two-day APEC meeting this week 鈥� which President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are both set to attend 鈥� will be the next test of President Lee鈥檚 ability to navigate these new regional dynamics.
He might find that a little K-pop goes a long way.
This reporting was supported by the East-West Center.
