[ASKKPOP] East Meets West: 10 K-Pop / Foreign Artist Collaborations
K-pop has turned into something of an infectious global phenomenon as it's no longer exclusive to South Korea alone. People enjoy the K-pop brand all over the world, and to accommodate the spike in interest and range of different cultures now tuning in, K-pop artists have reached out overseas to collaborate with Western artists. This mutual give and take of styles and composition has officially inaugurated K-pop as a global genre as opposed to simply a Western imitation.
East meets West in these 10 K-pop/Foreign Artist Collaborations:
1.Wonder Girlsft.School Gyrls, "The DJ is Mine"
The collaboration between these two five-member girl groups of different nationalities is interesting. Taking into consideration the American girl group, School Gyrls (produced byNick Cannon), and the Korean girl group, Wonder Girls, the song synthesizes both of their styles into an easily addictive dance track.
2.4minuteft.Amerie, "Heard 'em All"
The ladies of 4minute and American artist Amerie combine Korean and English in this track, which, surprisingly, works quite well. There are no harsh breaks or awkward transitions between the languages. And from the way she carries herself on stage with the other girls, Amerie looks like she could be the sixth member.
3.Dynamic Duoft.DJ Premier, "AEAO"
Korean hip hop meets American hip hop in this collaboration between Korea's rap maestros, Dynamic Duo, and one of rap's greatest producers, DJ Premier. Veterans to the K-pop scene, membersGaekoandChoizaleft their mark on the country's music scene by bringing the rap genre to Korea's mainstream. Now, by joining forces with rap's legendary producers, DJ Premier, Dynamic Duo has altered the course of the Korean rap scene indefinitely.
4.JYJft.Kanye West, "Ayyy Girl"
In 2010,JYJlooked beyond Asia for help in making their debut studio album, 'The Beginning.'The album is the group's first English release, and the track "Ayyy Girl" brings together Kanye's raw rapping style with JYJ's honey vocals.
5.Wonder Girlsft.Akon, 'Like Money'
The unlikely pairing of Wonder Girls and Akon takes shape in the electro-pop track "Like Money." The MV finds the girls dancing in metallic, TRON-inspired costumes, with Akon covering the hook.The Wonder Girls hardly bring anything to the table that isn't crazy addictive ("Tell Me", "Nobody", "So Hot"), and "Like Money" is no different. Particularly, with Akon's featuring, the song tends to stay in your head, whether you like it or not.
6.Will.i.amft.2NE1, "Take The World On"
"Take The World On" is their first collaboration; hopefully, there are more to come. The crossover between the two music icons seems to stay simultaneously true to both their styles while meeting somewhere in the middle to create this upbeat track. Oh, fun fact, "Take The World On" was used as a promotional video forIntel.
7.Junsu (XIA)ft.Quincy, "Incredible"
Quincy, the son of famous American rapperP.Diddy, raps in English for his feature in the title track for Junsu's 2nd album, 'Incredible'. He adds to the charm of the upbeat song by including in his English rap, "You're so hypnotic, girl, you're incredible,"in the second half of the song. The MV matches the exciting song, which, for some reason, is reminiscent of summer.
8.Skrillex & Diploft.G-DragonandCL, "Dirty Vibe"
The collaboration between Skrillex, Diplo, G-Dragon, and CL goes to show just how much influence K-pop artists have in the music world. Two of America's top electronic musicians / DJ's enlist the help ofYG's representative rappers G-Dragon and CL for this EDM-meets-K-pop English-language collaboration.
9.Eric Benetft.Ailee, "Almost Paradise"
American R&B artist, Eric Benet, and Korea's soulful singer, Ailee, team up to belt out the power ballad "Almost Paradise." Eric Benet's crooning voice and Ailee's signature powerhouse vocals softly combine to carry out this heartfelt love tune.
10.Psyft.Snoop Dogg, "Hangover"
Ah, the famous (or infamous?) collaboration between Korea's representative Gangnam Oppa and one of America's iconic rappers, Psy and Snoop Dogg respectively. The MV for the track has over 100 million hits, which isn't shabby by any standards.
These are only 10 of the more memorable K-pop collaborations with foreign artists. And it's probably a safe bet to say we'll be seeing more crossover moments as K-pop continues to make inroads in the Western music market.