Recently, K-Pop has been growing rapidly raising interest within celebrities such as Will.I.Am, Pharrell Williams, Snoop Dogg and more. With all this interest, how often do we see collaborations between the two? Here’s our top 5 mainstream/K-Pop collaborations.
5. SNSD ft Snoop Dogg – The Boys
SNSD used The Boys as a way to break into the American market, with some extra help from American rapper, Snoop Dogg. Snoop Dogg has been recently showing his interest and close relations in K-Pop by working with singers such as PSY, 2NE1, RaNia, T-Ara N4 and more. Unfortunately, he didn’t do this song much justice. This version of the song is the one which was probably most listened to by the American audience, but it isn’t the best version. The rap sounds completely out of place, his style with SNSD’s style just doesn’t mix well. It would make a good club track though.
4. Will.I.Am ft Apl De Ap & 2NE1 – Gettin’ Dumb
2NE1 and Will.I.Am’s relationship is well known, he adores them just as much as Blackjacks do. This song was released on his album #Willpower which features other artists such as Britney Spears, David Guetta, Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, Chris Brown and more. Anyone who doesn’t know 2NE1 will probably like this song more than Blackjacks do. It’s catchy, has a good beat and has that extra attitude from CL which spices it up. On the other hand, Blackjacks were hugely dissapointed. CL and Bom’s parts are good, but with an voice like Bom’s, he could’ve done so much more. The girl’s haven’t had a chance to show off their talent, only to sing some average lyrics a couple of times. I know he’s recorded more with the girls, so let’s hope we can get the full 2NE1 next time.
3. Wonder Girls ft Akon – Like Money
This song is incredibly catchy and has an interesting robotic theme to it. The music video introduces each member which I think is good for anyone who’s new to K-Pop, and the song shows each member’s vocals off individually. The only downside is the autotune, they’ve used it for the robotic effect but most Americans tend to think it’s only used when people can’t sing. This can really put people off, but the song itself is great.
2. Major Lazer ft GD, TOP, Bruno Mars, Tyga and Mystic – Bubble Butt Remix
A Korean – American collaboration with Korean lyrics! I’ve put this as number two as some K-Pop fans might not like the style of this song. It’s not as innocent as K-Pop, but I still find it’s a great song. TOP’s voice can be heard pretty much throughout, and I’ve also heard that he’s in high demand with American artists. Let’s hope to hear more collaborations with him! This song is catchy, fun and good way to put K-Pop in a less streotypical light. When people think K-Pop, they think synchronised, heavily made up men. This is a good track to show that there’s more to K-Pop than the good looking boy groups.
1. Pixie Lott ft. GD & TOP – Dancing On My Own
This song came as a surprise for VIP’s all over the world, but mostly for us in the UK. Pixie Lott is a well known British artist with many UK chart toppers. To have GD & TOP feature on a track in her Japanese album not only grabs the attention of Japanese K-Pop fans for her, it also helps build a reputation for K-Pop in the UK. The boys are both rapping in full English and their vocals blend almost perfectly with Pixie Lott’s.
It’s also worth mentioning Will.I.Am’s music video featuring Niki Minaj which seems to be set in Korea, with Korean lyrics flying around. Check it out!
Which collaborations do you like? Comment your favourites below!
