[ASKKPOP] [Op-Ed] Could These English Speaking K-Divas Make It In The U.S.?

Looking at the dominant females of the coveted American music industry right now, there are some names that come quickly to mind:Lady Gaga,Katy Perry,Nicki Minaj,Ke$ha,Rihanna. Each of these singers have been able to carve out their own lane in the industry to sell and tour successfully making them young female forces in the industry. There are alsoEllie Goulding,Carly Rae Jepsen, andCher Lloydwho are newer chart successes that struck gold recently. Using a formula similar to these successful female artists, I'd like to consider bothG.NAandNS Yoon-Gas possible contenders for new U.S. pop princesses given their recent comebacks showing longevity.

First, why look at G.NA & NS Yoon-G specifically? The first is that these two were raised in Western culture. G.NA grew up in Canada while NS Yoon-G lived and studied in California. They both have a unique quality that entertainment companies have deemed important.Wonder Girlswould not have spent as much as they did immersing themselves in American culture if this wasn't the case. There needs to be the ability to relate to that audience which, in American music, appears to be through speaking the language. In the past decade, it's become extremely rare for a non-English song to make any type of chart moves in America. Yet songs sung in English become global hits in countries regardless whether English is the native language.

Americans have made their point clear that if you want to break their industry, you'll need to first master the language. This is why I believe K-pop can't break America on its own, but needs to be sung in English first and foremost. But that's for a whole different op-ed…

While certain artists in mainstream American consciousness lack a stage presence or personality, they can create winning hit singles by knowing the culture and how to use their qualities to appeal to it. The two women know the culture and their career has shown they can appeal to it.



First up, and I'm just going to begin with the thing on the minds of most red blooded males, their bodies. No, I'm not a pervert, but shallow Americans are automatically more inclined to pay attention and usually, in turn, take seriously a performer if they are more attractive. Much is made over G.NA's body and her breasts (the top search on Google Images when you type in "G.NA" is "G.NA breast"). Gaga kicked off the trend of shooting sparks out of the region and Katy's star power began truly rising once she started shooting whipped cream out of them in "California Gurls". G.NA already has a big draw point with her bosom where bigger is better in America.

While NS Yoon-G's body is more typical of the slender Asian body type, her's is still curvy-licious with her label showcasing all the right angles in the video to her new single "I Got You". In her latest, NS Yoon-G shows how sexy one can look in a pair of pants amongst hair flips and seductive glamour shots.

I also find the attitudes of these girls to be particularly important to Western appeal. The newcomers I mentioned earlier all seem to have their own little niche to fill and have stuck out in their own way. Strictly cute and catchy pop (in Carly Rae Jepsen's #1 single "Call Me Maybe" and "Good Time"), aggressive yet silly pop ("Want U Back" by Cher Lloyd), and polished electro-pop (Ellie Goulding's "Lights") were sounds or ideas not really being created by anyone in particular. I feel this is why these singers are making more of an impact than say a new artist likeJessie Jand her debut single "Price Tag" did with its very generic production.



G.NA's career staggered a bit with the release of the 'Top Girl' EP. She found controversy when her second single "Banana" was banned from MBC (most likely for being too racy) was subsequently scratched. While K-pop rarely gets so controversial,T-arawithstanding, one would feel a move like this would send G.NA back to play it safe with a nice ballad for her next release. Yet instead, G.NA went a completely opposite move and came back with a song called "2Hot" along with a music video that was worthy of being named 2 Hot. G.NA's brash visuals, which include seductively leaning on her back-up dancers, are both grabbing and titillating. She even recruited some jacked male models to carry her around throughout the video; another challenge to gender and cultural stereotypes.



NS Yoon-G has an approach to be reckoned with as well. Her January single "The Reason I Became A Witch" was such a confident tune (the intro begins "Extra extra! Read all about it! The queen is back in the game!") that when I first heard it I had to check her chart standings to be sure she in fact wasn't a huge idol. She has ways to go before hitting it huge, but she is growing in popularity with each release. Additionally, her recent over-the-top lip-synch comeback performance is sure to turn some heads. As my buddy TheProphetBlog pointed out, NS Yoon-G is doing the same thing (if not better) as lip-synching prosCheryl ColeandBritney Spears(in her prime) do with fierce choreography that just about make the lip-synching OK.

The last integral point of their Western appeal is none other than their musical style… which we know is the most important part of the music industry! Right?! Jokes aside, G.NA and NS Yoon-G have proven to have a unique ability to combine different music genres.Nicki Minaj,Ke$ha, andRihannahave been able to reach a huge level of fame by appealing to all types of audiences with genre-bending music that can appeal to a wide demographic and music fans.

G.NA seems more rooted in pop but her notable tracks have stretched her boundaries musically. "Black & White" is a bobby number with hip-hop and slight rock influences, she goes high-energy dance in "Top Girl", there's a slight island in the sexy "Banana", and "2Hot" is a brassy, fun soul-pop hybrid track. G.NA sounds at home and, very importantly, fun in all these tracks. I can't help but get excited from the spitting trumpets before she yells "Are you ready?!" in "2Hot".

NS Yoon-G has been mixing genres even more than G.NA and sounding equally great. She can craft a club banger like "Just Dance", own the confident urban/rock swag of "The Reason I Became A Witch", sound like a love-obsessed diva on the pop/rock of "I Got You", and, perhaps most telling, hit the target spot-on with "Don't Go Back" sampling a huge hit of the West, "Bulletproof" byLa Roux.

The state of female pop in the West is not formulaic, but there are some integral parts that can make a huge difference in one's success. The American pop market is an extremely lucrative one, but at the same also an extremely difficult one to break. Yet given their recent comebacks and the growth they have shown, artists like G.NA and NS Yoon-G now stand out as some of the best contenders to top the American charts when looking at the landscape and seeing which females are currently at the top.



About the author:
Jeff Benjamin is a Singer, Songwriter, DJ, Photographer and freelance writer who has written works for Billboard, Rolling Stone and now allkpop. Follow him on Twitter @Jeff__Benjamin