South Korea : Dalgona Coffee, 16th Century Zombie Thrillers & AR-Infused K-Pop Concerts

"Next to drive-thru virus testing centers, Korea's most ingenious innovation during the coronavirus outbreak may be the breakout viral video recipe for Dalgona coffee, which has become a super-spreading hashtag across social media communities around the world," says Seoul-based music industry executive Bernie Cho. The insanely popular fluffy, whipped coffee that looks a lot like butterscotch pudding has taken over Instagram, YouTube and TikTok since the lockdown began. And, for Koreans looking for a new show to binge while they sip their brew, Cho says one popular program is Kingdom, a "fictional 16th century zombie thriller about the political turmoil caused by a pandemic pandemonium spreading across the Korean peninsula." Released on January 20 — the same day South Korea announced the first reported case of COVID-19 as Cho points out — the series, whether in a case of "art imitating life or life imitating art" has "struck a nerve with audiences." Not to be outdone, the country's biggest entertainment juggernaut – K-Pop – has also attracted a huge audience tuning in from home. "The biggest music company in Korea (SM Entertainment) and the biggest online platform in Korea (Naver) recently banded together to launch a brand-new live music streaming service called 'Beyond Live,'" Cho says. "Unlike other live music streaming events hosted at home and offered for free, 'Beyond Live' backs up its bravado by real-time streaming AR-infused K-Pop concerts that feel like epic music videos performed live and by charging upwards of $30 USD for the international, interactive, immersive experience. With over 75,000 online fans from 100+ countries tuning into K-Pop boy band SuperM, 'Beyond Live' is bending the curve on the battered live concert business."

https://www.papermag.com
By Abby Schreiber

Featured Commentator : Bernie Cho [DFSB Kollective]