K-pop acts are incorporating harder electronic sounds into their recordings and concerts, bringing techno, hardstyle and other dance genres to audiences through choreography and international tours.
KATSEYE demonstrated that shift at London’s O2 on September 4, performing techno-driven material during a world tour that has visited the UK and Europe and is now crossing America.
KATSEYE brings techno to the arena
With two members absent for health reasons, Daniela, Lara, Megan and Yoonchae performed in support of the group’s recently released EP (extended play), WILD.
The set included “PINKY UP” and a reworked version of the viral track “Gnarly”, which closed the concert. As of late September, “PINKY UP” led the EP with 235.7 million Spotify streams.
Publicist David Lim, who works with LE SSERAFIM and aespa at The Outside Organisation in the UK, sees the sound developing alongside K-pop’s emphasis on performance.
“K-pop is beginning to gravitate towards a different flavour of dance music, something grittier and glitchier rather than cold, expansive and industrial.”
Lim says harder rhythms give performers opportunities for sharper, more intensive choreography. He describes the shift as another phase in K-pop’s changing relationship with electronic music.
The recordings behind the shift
Lim identifies 2024 as a turning point, suggesting that Charli xcx’s Brat, alongside artists such as Shygirl and PinkPantheress, helped influence the direction.
Several releases illustrate the range of electronic styles entering K-pop:
- aespa’s “Supernova” and “Whiplash” draw on hyperpop, industrial house and techno.
- LE SSERAFIM’s “Crazy” incorporates house and bounce, while “CELEBRATION” introduces hardstyle and gabber near its conclusion.
- BLACKPINK’s “JUMP” preceded KATSEYE’s “PINKY UP” in taking a club-oriented direction.
ILLIT’s “It’s Me”, from MAMIHLAPINATAPAI, has accumulated 162 million Spotify streams, more than 10 times the totals of other tracks on the EP.
Touring and potential collaborations
Lim also attributes the shift partly to the growing number of K-pop artists touring internationally after the pandemic, including appearances at festivals and stadiums.
He says high-energy dance tracks can create shared moments of release at concerts, particularly for younger audiences, while introducing listeners to techno and rave music.
He also connects faster tracks with the demands of social media: “a harder and faster BPM catches your attention quickly while you’re scrolling!” BPM means beats per minute.
Lim sees scope for further collaborations between electronic artists, DJs (disc jockeys) and K-pop performers, provided the partnerships fit the musicians involved.
“Fans can smell a corporate collab from a mile off, so as long as the collaboration feels authentic to the artists involved, it can only benefit everyone by expanding their audiences.”
