Billboard K-Town

Billboard K-Town

Screenshot of Billboard K-Town column launch.
Type Music column
Format Graphics, text, videos
Owner(s) Billboard
Editor Tony Gervino
Staff writers Jeff Benjamin
Founded January 29, 2013
Language English
Headquarters New York City, New York, U.S.
Circulation Online
Website billboard.com

Billboard K-Town is an online magazine column presented weekly, on various days, by Billboard on its Billboard.com site. The column, launched on January 29, 2013, reports on K-pop music; artists, concerts, chart information and news events.[1][2]

History

Web presence

In January 2013, Billboard relaunched its websites with new features, including "enhanced content for fans" on its consumer site Billboard.com, which would provide more on-site reporting of festivals, award shows, and other major music events.[3] This relaunch included a new column, "K-Town," in a move to bring K-pop news, songs and music videos to its readers each week.[1] Billboard's website is one of the most popular music publications online, and in 2013, the site received an average of 3.3 million visitors a month in the United States, according to comScore, putting it slightly behind Rolling Stone but ahead of music outlets like Pitchfork and Spin.[4] Billboard, also, has business operations in South Korea,[5] home of K-pop.[6][7]

Beginnings, 2009 - 2012

In 2009, according to statistics from Google Trends, online searches for K-pop began their steady increase, after the release of two smash hit singles, Super Junior's "Sorry, Sorry" and Girls’ Generation’s "Gee".[8] In the fall of 2009, some of Billboard's earliest K-pop coverage included articles of the first K-pop artists to chart on Billboard Hot 100, the Wonder Girls, who debuted at No. 76 with "Nobody", a feature of their stay in the U.S., including their tour opening for Jonas Brothers, and their inclusion as the 1st K-pop artists on Billboard's annual showcase "21 under 21" in 2010.[9][10]

In November 2010, Billboard invited the first K-pop artists to their New York studio, where JYJ performed "Ayyy Girl" and "Empty" from their album The Beginning; and in December, Billboard's readers put the album on Billboard Readers' Poll "Your Fave Album Of 2010."[11][12][13]

During the first half of 2011, according to Billboard magazine, the Korean music industry grossed nearly $3.4 billion, with K-pop being recognized by Time magazine as “South Korea’s Greatest Export.”[8] On August 25, 2011, Billboard and Billboard Korea launched the Billboard Korea K-Pop Hot 100 chart, ranking digital sales of the country’s top songs and mobile downloads, and modeled on its Billboard Hot 100 and other Asian charts. Sistar’s song "So Cool" was the first to top the chart.[14][15] On November 25–26, 2011, Billboard Korea hosted the "2011 Billboard K-Pop Masters, presented by MGM Grand" inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.[16][17] The announcement said that the recently created Billboard Korea publication was set to "showcase the top acts in K-Pop music," after releasing its Billboard Korea K-Pop Hot 100 music chart.[15] The line-up included TVXQ, 4Minute, G.NA, MBLAQ, Sistar, Beast, Shinee, and Brown Eyed Girls.[18] The MGM Grand said, "This event is significant because K-pop singers, who are becoming hugely popular not only in Asia but also in Europe and the Americas, will have their first concert together in Las Vegas." MGM Grand added that the event would serve as "an opportunity to showcase the appeal of K-pop music as one of the fastest-growing musical trends around the world."[19]

In July 2012, Psy's hit "Gangnam Style" took "the genre to the top of western charts," and made K-pop history.[20][21] Psy's success "reached beyond the Korean-American community, with online viewership, according to Google data, showing a doubling after 2012's Gangnam Style".[22]Not everyone was happy with Psy's success on the Billboard charts, especially with "Gangnam Style"'s #1 spot on the new Hot Rap Songs chart;[23] it reached #2 on Billboard Hot 100.[24] Critics said the October 2012 change in the way the magazine tallied their charts, which included digital sales, online streams and radio airplay gave stars with a pop-oriented sound and broad crossover appeal an advantage over other artists.[23] CNN noted that Billboard's 2012 "annual series of top 21 musicians under the age of 21 listed K-pop star IU at 15th on the list which includes heavyweights in the western music business such as Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber."[25]

K-Town, 2013 - Present

The January 2013 column's launch was heralded as a possibility for more K-pop artists than Psy to seek out a coveted spot on the Billboard charts, with the caveat, "Is it finally safe to say, K-pop is here to stay in the U.S.?"[26] Girls' Generation welcomed the column with a video greeting,[2] and the first column article was a feature on "rising K-pop superstars" Infinite.[1][27] In April 2013, The Korea Herald said the effect of YouTube and the Billboard chart cannot be ignored in the international success of Psy’s "Gangnam Style," and "Billboard’s recent interest in K-pop is not a fleeting phenomenon."[28] By July 2013, a year after "Gangnam Style", the surge continued, and Psy scored again with a new hit, "Gentleman". According to Google, 91% of viewership on top K-Pop channels were now coming from outside the Asia-Pacific region, as compared to less than half in 2011. Billboard provided a "Top 10 K-Pop Hits Post-Gangnam Style" (Psy's "Gentleman", Girls' Generation's "I Got a Boy", Hyuna's "Ice Cream", G-Dragon's "Crayon", G-Dragon's "One of a Kind", G-Dragon's "That XX", Girls' Generation's "Oh!", Beast's "Beautiful Night", Girls Generation's "Flower Power", and Kara's "Pandora"); and credited the two groups, Girls' Generation and Big Bang, as major acts that had cultivated large international followings.[29]In November 2013, The Washington Post said that since the late 1990s, Korea had been producing "some of the most exhilarating pop music in the world" and commented on the fans, the "distinctly fervent (and always online) K-pop fan network."[22]

In January 2014, in a special to The Globe and Mail titled, "So whatever happened to pop music’s Korean Invasion?" music critic J. D. Considine[30] wrote, "Perhaps it’s a mistake, then, to think of the Korean Wave as a massive tsunami. Instead, it seems more like a steady flow, rising slowly but steadily seeping in. And it will likely be a deeper presence here in 2014." He quotes Billboard's K-town columnist Jeff Benjamin, "K-Pop lives and breathes online," and "That’s why it’s been able to cross into mainstream consciousness."[31] On May 17, 2014, the Korea K-Pop Hot 100 chart was discontinued, in the U.S., with Billboard charts' Manager Gary Trust saying, "We've removed the chart temporarily while we make some adjustments and hope to have it back up soon."[32] K-Town continued to follow K-pop artists' ratings on their other charts, Billboard Twitter Real-Time "Trending 140", Psy's "Hangover" featuring Snoop Dogg reached #1 in late June,[33] and a #1 and K-pop's first time for Infinite with "Last Romeo" in September, on the Billboard Twitter Real-Time "Emerging Artists" chart.[34] K-Town also reports on YouTube's views in the U.S. and around the world.[35][36] In August, Big Bang fan's, the VIPs, won the Billboard Fan Army Face-Off, with 91% of the vote in the final round and second place going to Thirty Seconds to Mars fans, (with wins over Rihanna’s fans in Round 1, Selena Gomez’s fans in Round 2, Girls’ Generation’s fans in Round 3 and Skillet’s fans in Round 4; with over 20 million votes cast.)[37][38]

In October 2014, Janice Min, co-president and chief creative officer of Guggenheim Digital Media's entertainment group overseeing The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard said, "Half of the top ten news reported by The Hollywood Reporter (THR) is related to K-pop," and called the coverage at Billboard almost "obsessive." She said, "The world is getting more and more interested in Hallyu content," noting that "K-pop is huge. ... K-pop is significant," and 2014 had seen a record number of K-pop albums on the Billboard Hot 200 albums chart.[39][40]

Timeline of some highlights

Date Event Notes
Summer 2009 1st K-pop opener for U.S. artist concert tour Wonder Girls for Jonas Brothers World Tour 2009 North America leg of tour.[9]
July 20 2009 1st K-pop artists perform on U.S. television show Wonder Girls' Nobody on The Wendy Williams Show[41][42]
October 31, 2009 1st K-pop single to hit Billboard Hot 100 chart Wonder Girls' "Nobody" debuted at No. 76.[9]
December 9, 2009 1st K-pop artists perform on U.S. dance competition tv show Wonder Girls "Nobody" on So You Think You Can Dance[41][43]
September 23, 2010 1st K-pop artists on Billboard's annual showcase "21 under 21" #16, Wonder Girls, Birthdates (ages, at the time): Sunye: August 12, 1989 (age 21); Yenny: May 26, 1989 (age 21); Sohee: June 27, 1992 (age 18); Yubin: October 4, 1988 (age 21); Hyelim: September 1, 1992 (age 18)[10][44]
November 26, 2010 1st K-pop artists to perform live at Billboard Studio JYJ at Billboard's New York studio, from their album The Beginning "Ayyy Girl" and "Empty"[11][12]
December 8, 2010 K-pop artists on Billboard Readers' Poll Your Fave Album Of 2010 JYJ, The Beginning[13]
August 25, 2011 Korea K-Pop Hot 100 chart launched[45][46] Sistar’s song "So Cool" was the first to top the chart.[14]
October 11, 2011 Billboard article on K-pop artist going to military Rain joins Republic of Korea Army[47]
November 25–26, 2011 "2011 Billboard K-Pop Masters, presented by MGM Grand" Las Vegas 2 nights of concerts in MGM Grand Garden Arena, produced by Billboard, MGM Grand and KPMA, LLC. The line-up included TVXQ, 4Minute, G.NA, MBLAQ, Sistar, Beast, Shinee, and Brown Eyed Girls.[16][17][18]
January 31, 2012 1st K-pop artists on U.S. late-night talk show Girls' Generation performed The Boys on Late Show with David Letterman[41]
February 1, 2012 1st K-pop artists on U.S. morning talk show Girls' Generation performed "The Boys" on Live! with Kelly[41]
March, 2012 1st K-pop album on Billboard 200 chart* Big Bang, Alive debuted at No. 150.(* BoA's English language album BoA charted #127 on the chart in March 2009.)[48]
August 23, 2012 Korea K-Pop Hot 100 1st Top 10 Songs of the Past Year #1 IU, "You and I", #2 Davichi "Don't Say Goodbye" #3 Lyn "To Turn Back Hands of Time" #4 Trouble Maker "Trouble Maker" #5 T-ara "Cry Cry"[49]
September 2012 1st K-pop artist to hit #2 on Billboard Hot 100 Psy, "Gangnam Style'[24][50]
September 22, 2012 1st K-pop artist at iHeartRadio Music Festival Psy, "Gangnam Style"[51]
October, 2012 1st K-pop artist tops Billboard Hot Rap Songs chart #1, Psy, "Gangnam Style"[23]
October 17, 2012 Billboard article on 1st U.S. K-Pop Convention KCON 2012, October 16, convention and concert, Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Irvine, California[52]
November 3, 2012 1st K-pop artist on Billboard magazine cover Psy, "Gangnam Style"[53][54]
November 29, 2012 1st K-pop music on U.S. musical comedy-drama television series Glee cast perform Psy's Gangnam Style and dance to Big Bang's Fantastic Baby[55][56](*Big Bang song not reported by Billboard)
December 21, 2012 Billboard 1st yearly round-up, 20 Best K-Pop Songs of 2012 #1 Infinite "The Chaser", #2 Sistar "Alone", #3 Naul "Memory of the Wind", #4 2NE1 "I Love You", #5 Big Bang "Bad Boy"[57]
January 29, 2013 Billboard K-Town column launched and 1st K-Town article Welcome video by Girls' Generation[2] and 1st K-Town article: "Meet INFINITE: Video Q&A With the Rising K-Pop Superstars"[1]
March, 2013 1st K-pop artists at SXSW K-Pop Night Out at SXSW, March 13, f(x), The Geeks, Guckkasten, No Brain, Yi Seung Yol, Jung Chang Shik, and Galaxy Express[58][59]
April 4, 2013 Billboard 1st article on K-pop concert performed in Korea "G-Dragon Opens Up at World Tour Kickoff", March 30–31, G-Dragon 2013 1st World Tour, Olympic Gymnastics Arena."[28][60]
May 4, 2013 1st K-pop artist tops Streaming Songs chart #1, Psy, "Gentleman"[29]
July 15, 2013 Billboard Top 10 K-Pop Hits Post-Gangnam Style Psy "Gentleman", Girls' Generation "I Got a Boy", Hyuna "Ice Cream", G-Dragon "Crayon", G-Dragon "One of a Kind", G-Dragon "That XX", Girls' Generation "Oh!", Beast "Beautiful Night", Girls Generation "Flower Power", Kara "Pandora"[29]
December, 2013 1st K-pop artists on Billboard's World Albums Artists Year End chart G-Dragon, 9th Place and SHINee, 10th Place[61][62]
May 2, 2014 K-pop artists top categories on Billboard Girl Group Week Readers' Poll 2NE1 #1 Favorite Girl Group Album Crush (write-in vote), #1 Most Fashionable Girl Group, #3 Most Promising New Girl Group; Orange Caramel #2 Most Underrated Girl Group; and Girls' Generation #2 Most Promising New Girl Group[63]
May 17, 2014 Korea K-Pop Hot 100 chart discontinued Billboard chart's manager Gary Trust says it is temporary, for adjustments."[32]
June 2014 1st K-pop artist tops Billboard Twitter Real-Time "Trending 140" chart #1, Psy, "Hangover"[33]
Summer 2014 2nd K-pop opener for U.S. artist concert tour Crayon Pop, invited for the entire Lady Gaga ArtRave: The Artpop Ball tour, opened June 26 - July 22, as their schedule allowed.[64][65][66]
August 2014 K-pop song used in U.S. focused commercial 2NE1's I Am the Best in Microsoft Surface Pro 3 ad.[67][68]
August 18, 2014 K-pop fans win Billboard Fan Army Face-Off #1 Big Bang's VIPs, with 91% of the vote in the final round. #2 Thirty Seconds to Mars Echelon. Started on Aug. 7, over 20 million votes were cast.[37][38]
September 2014 1st K-pop artist tops Billboard Twitter Real-Time Emerging Artists chart #1, Infinite, "Last Romeo"[34]
September 22, 2014 K-Town adds Reader's Comments section A Reader's Comments section, at the ends of the column articles was added back, after being taken down previously.[69]
October 2014 1st non-Psy act tops World Digital Songs chart #1, 2NE1's "I Am the Best", on the October 11 week's chart.[70]
October 8, 2014 Top Billboard staff speaks at Seoul music conference Janice Min, co-president and chief creative officer of Guggenheim Digital Media's entertainment group overseeing The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard, at Seoul International Music Fair (MU:CON SEOUL 2014).[39][40]
December 11, 2014 Billboard's 10 Best K-Pop Albums of 2014 #1 2NE1 Crush #2 Nell Newton's Apple #3 IU A Flower Bookmark #4 Seo Taiji Quiet Night #5 HA:TFELT Me? #6 Taeyang Rise #7 B.A.P First Sensibility #8 Epik High Shoebox #9 CNBLUE Can't Stop #10 Rain Rain Effect.[71]
April 5, 2015 Largest K-pop album sales in U.S. Exo Exodus sold 6,000 copies in the week ending April 5 (according to Nielsen); charting at No. 70 on Top Album Sales, No. 95 on Billboard 200,[72]and No. 1 on World Albums.[73]

List of K-pop on the Billboard charts

Contributors

Jeff Benjamin manages and writes the column.[74] Prior to K-Town's launch, Billboard included K-pop news and articles, written by "Billboard Korea staff,"[1][75] which included Jeff Benjamin. He is a music/journalism alumni of New York University, where he interned with Billboard[76] and has contributed to other media featuring K-pop, including Rolling Stone, BuzzFeed, Nylon, CBS Radio, Mnet America, Fuse TV, Mnet TV America and Allkpop.[77]

Occasional other contributors are Jessica Oak in Seoul, Billboard U.S. staff, and Billboard Korea staff from offices in Gangnam.[78][79]

Readership and reception

In April 2013, The Korea Herald said, "the more Billboard talks about K-pop, the faster the speed of K-pop advancement in the U.S. will be."[28]

As a K-Town columnist, Jeff Benjamin has been called upon for his opinions on K-pop from the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Entertainment Weekly, New York's Korea Society, Mnet America's Headliner series, Television in South Korea, NBC News, and Time, among others;[77][80][81] and has appeared in panels for KCON,[52][77] and Global Hallyu Forum 2013 Washington, D.C.[82][83] South Korean media, including South Korea's own music chart, Gaon Music Chart,[84] has posted interviews and articles about Jeff Benjamin.[85][86][87][88] K-Town articles have been re-phrased and quoted in media in the U.S., South Korea, and around the world.[89][90][31][91][92][93]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Bae, Soo-min (January 31, 2013). "Billboard launches K-pop column with INFINITE". The Korea Herald. Retrieved September 15, 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Benjamin, Jeff (January 29, 2013). "Billboard & Girls' Generation Welcome You to K-Town!". Billboard. Retrieved September 16, 2014.
  3. ↑ Staff (January 29, 2013). "Billboard Reimagines Brand with Relaunch". Business Street. Retrieved September 16, 2014.
  4. ↑ Carr, David (January 7, 2014). "New Leader at Billboard Sees Future in Visuals". The New York Times. Retrieved September 16, 2014.
  5. ↑ Staff (January 28, 2013). "Billboard revamps magazine, iPad app, sites". Chicago Business Journal. Retrieved September 16, 2014.
  6. ↑ Lamb, Bill. "K-Pop". About.com Entertainment. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
  7. ↑ Choe, Sang-Hun (August 9, 2013). "Cramming for Stardom at Korea’s K-Pop Schools". The New York Times. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Jackson, Julie. 13, 2013 "Then & Now: A look back at the changing tides of K-pop". The Korea Herald. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Bell, Crystal (November 20, 2009). "Breaking & Entering: The Wonder Girls". Billboard. Retrieved September 23, 2014.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Billboard Staff (September 23, 2010). "21 Under 21: Wonder Girls". Billboard. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "JYJ Performs 'Ayyy Girl' and "Empty" at the Billboard Studios in NYC!". MTV K. November 26, 2010. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Letkemann, Jessica (November 26, 2010). "JYJ Performs Live in Our Studio". Billboard. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Readers' Poll Results: Your Fave Album Of 2010". Billboard. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Yoon-mi (August 31, 2011). "Sistar tops first Billboard K-pop chart". The Korea Herald. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 PR Newswire (September 28, 2011). "Billboard Korea Premieres K-Pop Masters Event Presented By MGM Grand Friday, November 25". Reuters. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Lee, KyungNam (December 5, 2011). "Hallyu stars at Las Vegas for ‘2011 K-Pop Billboard Masters’". Mwave. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 jbarky (December 2, 2011). "[Recap] 2011 Billboard K-Pop Masters". Soompi. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Billboard 2011 K Pop Masters". Songkick. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  19. ↑ "K-Pop to Descend on Las Vegas in November". The Chosun Ilbo. October 6, 2011. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  20. ↑ McCurry, Justin (September 28, 2012). "K-pop stars: the lowdown on South Korean pop". The Guardian. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  21. ↑ Power, John. "[Voice] Can Psy start a new Korean Wave?". The Korea Herald. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Bevan, David (November 8, 2013). "A year after ‘Gangnam Style,’ K-pop continues to make its mark in America". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 McKinley Jr., James C. (October 26, 2012). "Changes to Charts by Billboard Draw Fire". The New York Times. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 Billboard Staff (November 1, 2012). "PSY Watch: Will 'Gangnam Style' Reach No. 1 on the Hot 100?". Billboard. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  25. ↑ Voigt, Kevin (October 25, 2012). "Psy: One-hit wonder or K-pop breakthrough?". CNN. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  26. ↑ "US Billboard Charts' First "K-Town" Column Features INFINITE". DramaFever. January 31, 2013. Retrieved September 23, 2014.
  27. ↑ "빌보드, K-POP 칼럼 'K-타운' 신설" (in Korean). Korea Daily. January 30, 2013. Retrieved December 5, 2014.
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 Jeong, Jin-young (April 14, 2013). "Will Billboard interest in K-pop expand the market?". The Korea Herald. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 Gruger, William (July 15, 2013). "K-Pop's Profile Expands Exponentially, All Thanks to Psy". Billboard. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  30. ↑ "rocksbackpageslibrary, J.D. Considine". Rock's Backpages. Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 Considine, J.D. (January 8, 2014). "So whatever happened to pop music’s Korean Invasion?". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 Lent, Jesse (June 13, 2014). "U.S. Version Of Billboard K-Pop Hot 100 Removed Indefinitely For 'Adjustments' [EXCLUSIVE]". Kpopstarz. Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  33. ↑ 34.0 34.1 Benjamin, Jeff (September 11, 2014). "INFINITE Become First Korean Act to Top Twitter Emerging Artist Chart, Enter Top Tracks". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  34. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff (June 25, 2014). "K-Pop Concerts on Major Global Increase (Infographic)". Billboard. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  35. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff (June 6, 2014). "Most Viewed K-Pop Videos in America vs. Around the World: May 2014". Billboard. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  36. ↑ 37.0 37.1 Song, Dain (August 6, 2014). "Big Bang goes head to head against Thirty Seconds to Mars for best fan army". JoongAng Daily. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
  37. ↑ 38.0 38.1 "Big Bang’s VIPs win Billboard’s Fan Army Face-off". The Korea Times. August 19, 2014.
  38. ↑ 39.0 39.1 Jackson, Julie (October 6, 2014). "[Herald Interview] Billboard’s Janice Min talks potential and future of K-pop". The Korea Herald. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
  39. ↑ 40.0 40.1 "Advice to K-Pop Chief Creative Officer of Billboard Mentions Qualitative Change of K-Pop". Business Korea. October 8, 2014. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
  40. ↑ 41.0 41.1 41.2 41.3 Benjamin, Jeff (February 1, 2012). "Girls' Generation Makes Big U.S. Debut on 'Letterman': Watch". Billboard. Retrieved October 8, 2014.
  41. ↑ "Wonder Girls on the Wendy Williams Show!". Allkpop. July 20, 2009. Retrieved October 8, 2014.
  42. ↑ "So You Think You Can Dance 2005, TV Show". TV Guide. Retrieved October 8, 2014.
  43. ↑ "Wonder Girls showcased on Billboard's '21 Under 21'!". Allkpop. September 24, 2010. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  44. ↑ Billboard Korea staff (August 25, 2011). "Billboard K-Pop Hot 100 Launches; Sistar Is No. 1 on New Korea Chart". Billboard. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  45. ↑ Brown, August. "K-pop enters American pop consciousness". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  46. ↑ Lee, Jin-Man (October 11, 2011). "K-Pop Star Rain Joins South Korean Army". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  47. ↑ "Big Bang's 'Alive' charts on the Billboard 200". Allkpop. March 9, 2012. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  48. ↑ Billboard Staff. "K-Pop Hot 100 Chart: Top 10 Songs of the Past Year & Birthday Wishes From Big Stars". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  49. ↑ Trust, Gary (September 26, 2012). "Maroon 5 Still Tops Hot 100, PSY One Step From No. 1". Billboard. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  50. ↑ "Psy Backstage at iHeartRadio Music Festival 2012". Billboard. September 22, 2012. Retrieved October 8, 2014.
  51. ↑ 52.0 52.1 Benjamin, Jeff (October 17, 2012). "KCON 2012: 15 Things Seen & Overheard". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  52. ↑ "PSY's 'Gangnam Style': The Billboard Cover Story". Billboard. October 26, 2012. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  53. ↑ "Billboard Magazine Covers 2012". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  54. ↑ Goldberg, Lesley (October 31, 2012). "'Glee' Takes on 'Gangnam Style': Watch". Billboard. Retrieved October 8, 2014.
  55. ↑ "Big Bang Featured On Hit American Television Show, Glee!". KpopStarz. November 29, 2012. Retrieved October 8, 2014.
  56. ↑ Jeff Benjamin, Jessica Oak, Billboard Korea Staff (December 21, 2012). "20 Best K-Pop Songs of 2012: BIGBANG, PSY, 2NE1 & More". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  57. ↑ Billboard Staff, Austin (March 14, 2013). "SXSW Shorts: Charli XCX, Shoes, Nik Bartsch, White Lung and K-Pop's f(x)". Billboard.
  58. ↑ Oak, Jessica (March 26, 2013). "f(x) Talks About Performing as First K-Pop Act at SXSW". Billboard. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
  59. ↑ Jessica Oak, and Jeff Benjamin (April 4, 2013). "G-Dragon Opens Up at World Tour Kickoff: Exclusive Video Interview". Billboard. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  60. ↑ I.said.hi (December 16, 2013). "G-Dragon and SHINee Rank in Top Ten Among "World Album Artists" for Billboard’s 2013 Year-End Charts". Soompi. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  61. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff (December 18, 2013). "G-Dragon & SHINee First K-Pop Acts to Rank on Year-End World Albums Artists Chart". Billboard. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  62. ↑ Billboard Staff (May 2, 2014). "2NE1, Spice Girls, Fifth Harmony Dominate Girl Group Week Readers' Poll". Billboard. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
  63. ↑ Billboard Staff (March 20, 2014). "Lady Gaga Taps K-Pop Act Crayon Pop to Open Summer Tour Dates". Billboard. Retrieved October 13, 2014.
  64. ↑ "Crayon Pop Open for Lady Gaga's Concert". Mnet America. August 14, 2014. Retrieved October 13, 2014.
  65. ↑ meltedd (March 28, 2014). "Crayon Pop Surprised to Receive Offer to Open Lady Gaga’s US Tour". Soompi. Retrieved October 13, 2014.
  66. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff (August 13, 2014). "Watch Microsoft Brilliantly Shade Apple With 2NE1's K-Pop Hit in New Ad". Billboard. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  67. ↑ "Microsoft features 2NE1 song I Am The Best in new advertisement". The Straits Times. August 13, 2014. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  68. ↑ "K-Town, Jeff Benjamin Goes Where K-Pop Lives". Billboard. September 22, 2014. Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  69. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff (October 6, 2014). "2NE1's 'I Am the Best' Tops World Digital Songs Chart After Big Sales Week". Billboard. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  70. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff, and Jessica Oak (December 11, 2014). "The 10 Best K-Pop Albums of 2014". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
  71. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff (April 8, 2015). "EXO's 'Exodus' Album Earns Biggest Sales Week Ever for a K-Pop Act". Billboard. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  72. ↑ "Exo,Chart History, World Albums". Billboard. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  73. ↑ "Contributor, Jeff Benjamin, K-Pop Columnist". Billboard. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  74. ↑ "Contributor, Billboard Korea Staff". Billboard. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  75. ↑ "Jeff Benjamin, Staff Writer at Fuse TV; K-Pop Columnist at Billboard". LinkedIn. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  76. ↑ 77.0 77.1 77.2 "Special Guests : Jeff Benjamin". KCON. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  77. ↑ Oak, Jessica. "Is San E's 'Body Language' K-Pop's New Sex Anthem? Watch". Billboard. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  78. ↑ Billboard Staff, and Billboard Korea Staff. "20 Best K-Pop Songs of 2013: K-Town Picks". Billboard. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  79. ↑ "What is K-pop?". NBC News. August 12, 2014. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  80. ↑ Trivedi, Anjani (August 1, 2013). "Forget Politics, Let’s Dance: Why K-Pop Is a Latin American Smash". Time. Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  81. ↑ "Global Hallyu Forum 2013: Hallyu Live!". Korean Cultural Center D.C. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  82. ↑ Stanley, Adrienne (May 9, 2014). "Chad Future & The Debate Over What Defines K-Pop". KPopStarz. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  83. ↑ GhostWriter (September 4, 2014). "Gaon Chart releases chart rankings for August 24 - August 30". Allkpop. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  84. ↑ Choi, Tae (January 30, 2014). "레이디스 코드, 美 빌보드 ‘2014 주목 할 만한 k-pop스타’ 선정" (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  85. ↑ <인터뷰> 칼럼니스트 벤저민 "케이팝은 이제 하나의 문화" (in Korean). Yonhap. November 9, 2013. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  86. ↑ "'음담패설' 빌보드 K-POP 전문기자 제프 벤자민, 알고 보니 존박 고교 동창" (in Korean). YTN. March 20, 2014. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  87. ↑ '음담패설' 존박 "美 빌보드 기자 제프 벤자민과 고교 친구' (in Korean). TV Daily. March 20, 2014. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  88. ↑ "Billboard's 20 Best K-Pop Songs Of 2013". Vibe. December 24, 2013. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  89. ↑ Ahn, So-hyun (January 30, 2014). "레이디스코드, 빌보드 주목할 만한 K팝스타 선정..걸그룹 유일" (in Korean). JoongAng Ilbo. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  90. ↑ "EXO's 'Overdose' most-viewed K-pop video last month: Billboard". GlobalPost. June 9, 2014. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  91. ↑ "L'US Billboard prédit une grande carrière pour le groupe de Jacki Chan, JJCC (Double JC)" (in French). KPopStarz French. March 26, 2014. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  92. ↑ "Winner lo hizo de nuevo y se ubica en el primer lugar de la lista mundial de álbumes Billboard" (in Spanish). Soompi Spanish. August 23, 2014. Retrieved September 26, 2014.

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