As we have previously covered, Clubland TV recently launched the UK’s first TV show dedicated to K-pop music. Here at UnitedKpop we were very excited by this so we got in contact with them and managed to get an exclusive interview! Keep reading for Clubland’s views on K-pop and it’s future in the UK as well as more details about their new “K-pop 10” chart show and their plans for K-pop on the channel in the future.
Hello, thank you for taking the time to chat with us. Firstly, if you could please introduce yourself and Clubland TV.
Hi, I’m Xenara, I create the K-pop shows on Clubland TV. Clubland TV is a UK Dance Music Channel created by the record label ‘All Around the World’. AATW started the hugely successful ‘Clubland’ compilation CD series in 2002 (Clubland 22 will be the next release), setting up a TV Channel based on the compilations seemed like a good idea. And it was! In 2008 Clubland TV was born.
We see you’ve just started a new K-pop show. Could you tell us a bit about the show? I believe it’s the first of it’s kind in the UK?
Indeed it is the first K-pop show in the UK, which is really exciting. It’s great to be able to bring K-pop over the UK! The current show lasts around 45 minutes and plays a countdown of top 10 K-pop tracks that we believe are fantastic!
What made you decide that you wanted to show K-pop on your channel?
We have been playing with the idea of K-pop for such a long time now. Even before I worked for AATW, I listened to K-pop as a fan so I thought it would be great to be able to bring K-pop to the UK someday (I know there are a lot of fans but there was nothing for them on UK TV!) All of us at AATW love the K-pop videos and it wasn’t long before we all decided to go ahead with a TV programme. As I am the biggest K-pop fan at AATW, I write the programmes and choose the music and I’m glad it’s taken off so well in the UK!
Do you think there’s anything unique about K-pop or anything that K-pop artists do better than western pop artists?
The K-pop Artists are completely unique! They are on another level!! The videos, clothing and style, let alone the music; which is just unbelievable!! They all definitely have a spark about them. Artists such as BoA and BIG BANG make it so hard to look away from the screen! The YouTube views on the rest really do prove this with some of the lesser known songs having over 40 million views. Amazing!
What about you? Do you have any personal favourite K-pop artists or songs?
I personally am a HUGE Big Bang fan! ‘Fantastic Baby’ and ‘Monster’ just blew me away! Also I love Girls’ Generation. I watched the video for ‘Gee’ and was an instant fan. Not only are they good artists with great songs, they are great role models as well!
Here at UnitedKpop we’re very passionate about all kinds of Korean pop music but do you think it has a bright future here in the UK? Are there any particular artists or tracks that you think have potential in the UK market?
I personally think that K-pop has got unbelievable potential here in the UK and even globally. In fact PSY’s “Gangnam Style” really backs that up being the first Korean number 1 in the UK! Websites and groups like UnitedKpop which promote K-pop in the UK also show this, you have a huge amount of followers and fans including all here at AATW. In my eyes “Fantastic Baby” by Big Bang is a great commercial track, also have a great feeling about the Wonder Girls’ “Like this”.
Do you think there any changes that these artists would have to make to their style or presentation in order to be successful here?
The Korean Artists have a very unique style and individual ways and it suits them. One of the factors the makes K-pop so amazing is the presentation of the artists in their videos and on stage! They always look good, no matter what they wear! I for one totally love the studs, leather jackets and hairstyles that come with the K-pop scene. However I think one thing would really help bring K-Pop to the UK is more English versions of tracks, I think this would help K-pop pick up even more fans and become a further success in the UK. Maybe even a few crossover tracks with a big ‘featured’ UK artist.
Finally, all our readers want to know: Will K-pop 10 become a regular feature on Clubland TV and do you have any plans to increase the presence of K-pop on your channel? We hear there’s going to be a new show with a brand new chart out soon?
K-pop will become a regular feature on Clubland TV providing we can continue to source great new K-pop videos. After the first day of ‘Clubland’s K-pop 10’, Twitter and Facebook was just swarming with the gossip of K-pop on UK television. I got so many good reviews! I would love to increase the K-pop on the channel in the future and bring even more K-pop to the incredible fans in the UK! There is a new chart out very, very soon and I’m so excited to get it out there. Due to so many positive reviews we’ve updated the current chart with even more K-pop tracks.
Thank you so much again for taking the time to answer our questions and we hope to see even more K-pop on Clubland TV in the future!
You’re welcome! All at AATW and Clubland TV are really looking forward to hearing more K-pop news from UnitedKpop! To all the awesome fans, thank you for watching Clubland’s K-pop 10 and I hope you enjoy upcoming shows on Clubland TV! Catch us on Sky 383, Freesat 510 and speak to us on our Facebook page.
Xenara AATW
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So tell us what you think about this interview. Have you seen the show? Are you excited that Clubland are bringing K-pop to British TV screens? Do you think this is a sign that it is growing as a genre in the UK? Do you agree with Xenara’s opinion on the future of K-pop here? We’d love to hear your thoughts so please let us know in the comments.
