K-Pop as Cultural Hybrid: Mimicry, Identity, and Global Power in Gangnam Style and APT.

Western pop culture's strategic adoption and recontextualization elements have distinguished K-pop as a globally dominant music genre. K-pop distinguishes a distinctly Korean identity. This paper examines K-pop's hegemonic rise as a soft power tool and a vehicle for cultural and linguistic empowerment, focusing on its ability to challenge Western cultural supremacy. Through the theoretical frameworks of Pierre Bourdieu's concept of cultural capital, cultural hybridity, and Homi Bhabha's notion of postcolonial mimicry, this study argues that K-pop operates not merely as imitation but as a form of cultural negotiation and reclamation. The global success of K-pop, with its unique blend of Korean and Western musical influences, has contributed significantly to South Korea's cultural visibility and economic growth while also reshaping global pop culture and using Gangnam Style by PSY, a viral cultural sensation from 2012, and APT. (2024), a recent Billboard-charting track by Yoon Jong-shin featuring Rosé and Bruno Mars; this paper investigates how the Korean language, social critique, and cultural memory are embedded within global pop aesthetics. These two case studies, drawn from different timeframes, illustrate the evolving dynamics of K-pop's cultural hybridity and global accessibility. It transforms mimicry into an act of resistance and innovation. The paper demonstrates how K-pop harnesses language, identity, and performance to subvert the dominance of Western pop culture and assert its global cultural legitimacy.