![]() ![]() ![]() Many young Asian-Americans are self-conscious of their state as others in America and turn to K-pop as a way of finding commonality. K-pop takes advantage of Asian-American “otherness” as part of their marketing technique, thus disqualifying K-pop from acting as a form of Asian-American music advocacy. According to this definition, Chocolat does not fit the standard of Asian-American music because Chocolat’s company used the members’ Asian-Americanness as commodity and noise marketing rather than purposeful growth. Many might consider this fact enough to quality Chocolat’s music as Asian-American music, but I argue that Asian-American music is not just defined by who performs it, but it is also defined by intent. However, what happens when Asian-Americans move past their role as consumers and become direct participants of K-pop? This is the case of Chocolat, a recently disbanded K-pop group that debuted in 2011 who’s concept was based around the fact that most members were mixed race and had lived overseas or been born abroad. K-pop has certainly seen success crossing over into America, as evidenced by multiple concert tours in the US, including sold out tours. For young Asian-Americans who feel stuck between two worlds, K-pop is a way of reconnecting with a form of pan-Asian culture. As a form of transnational media, K-pop has found success with many Asian-Americans identify with and enjoy K-pop because they see a bit of themselves in them. ![]()
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