Confessions of an Uncle Fan: The Series (episode 22)

Happy Tuesday! The Uncle Fan is back, rested up (sort of), and ready to dive right back into my favorite pastime, girl groups. Before we do anything else though, I wanted to thank the always entertaining and very talentedjennywillfor filling in for me last week. As I was reading herConfessions of a Fangirlarticle I realized two things: 1) I know nothing aboutZE:Aand 2) On a good day I might be able to construct some sentences in an amusing fashion, but I have a long way to go before I can call myself a writer.

Cool Things of the Week

The KARA Meltdown

I know everyone's already talking about it, but let me say for the record that KARA's appearance on 'Radio Star' last week was one of the most bizarre appearances on a variety show that I can recall. For those who missed it, membersHara,Seungyeon, andJiyoungappeared on the show, which is known to push the boundaries with the questions they ask the guests. Well, apparently it was all too much for the ladies as both Hara and Jiyoung turned on the water works but the crazy part was, it was over questions that were pretty harmless. Hara got upset over repeated references to her dating scandals and in Jiyoung's case, it was over MCKim Guraasking her to show "aegyo" or cuteness; which by the way is a standard question on EVERY SINGLE show out there. I understand Hara getting a little upset and annoyed. You don't want to talk about your personal life, but guess what, you're a celebrity! You make a lot of money from people's interest in you so you need to take the good with the bad. It's all a part of the package so just be cool about it and give a generic, vague answer like every other celebrity.  And Jiyoung (to steal aSNLbit), "Really?!" Crying because someone asks you to show your aegyo? Come on! I've seen her do this on who knows how many shows but she can't suck it up to do it one more time and starts to cry. Maybe it was just a bad day but the whole thing was strange andJ.Y. Parkmust have felt massively awkward being there.

Girl's Generation + IU = October Comebacks

OK, I got a little light headed just writing that but sure enough, the rumors are flying that GG and IU are indeed returning back to the K-pop scene next month. GG has been radio silent in Korea since their single "I Got a Boy" and whether you love them or hate them, GG is still the big dog when it comes to K-pop girl groups so it'll be interesting to see howSM Entertainmentapproaches their new album because a big hit would be nice right about now. For IU, I just hope she remembers what got her famous in the first place; her voice and a guitar. Her last album was good because she's a good singer but it was just so over produced. Too much orchestration, too much too much. You know? If she sings the way you sangLee Moon Sae's"Old Love", I will be first in line to pay for her CD which, incidentally, I haven't done since like 1999.

What is K-pop in America?

We know thatCrayon Pophas signed a partnership withSony Entertainmentwhich means that it's just a matter of time before they begin their journey into international markets, including the United States. On that note, I read some interesting articles about this recently, specifically around the idea that Crayon Pop followingPsywill pigeonhole K-pop to American fans as a gimmick-based genre featuring wacky dances and cartoonish personas. That's a very fair point because if I didn't know anything about K-pop except Psy and the next thing that comes along was Crayon Pop and their helmets and that quirky dance, then yes, that's exactly what I'd think as well. So why would K-pop keep sending over these types of artists? It's because K-pop isn't a single entity with a single strategy. It's a generic term used for marketing and branding purposes but in reality, it's a huge number of disparate companies competing against each other to make as much money as they can and when they see an opening, they're going to take it. Right now, the fun, wacky stuff is the type of music that sells and can break through language and cultural barriers so expect to see a few more Crayon Pops in the future but the day will come when other musicians also get their crack at making it big in the States. You just need to keep plugging away.

Girl Group Variety Show Round-Up

• 'Incarnation' -Ladies Code(some serious subject matter on this episode about anorexia)
• 'Radio Star'KARA Hara,Seungyeon, andJiyoung(the infamous appearance)
• 'Happy Together' -Clara
• 'We Got Married' -Eunji
• 'Star King' -Jewelry,Rainbow(seeTop 5 Favorite Girl Groupers Right Now)
• 'God of Food Road' -Baek Ah Yeon,Kim Ye Rim
• 'Running Man' -A Pink Eunji, Naeun,Girl's Day Minah, Yura,SISTAR Dasom, Hyorin
• 'Real Men' -SISTAR
• 'Barefoot Friends' -Eunji(seeTop 5 Favorite Girl Groupers Right Now)