Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

All-Student K-Pop Bands Debut at K-Pop & Beyond Summit

10/10/2024

All-Student K-Pop Bands Debut at K-Pop & Beyond Summit The diversity of the artists involved in the collaborative K-Pop Idol project, which developed the two groups, reveals the growth of the Hallyu community at Berklee.

By

Daniel Pesquera

October 9, 2024

Students from X-change and B-Girls, two groups formed out of the K-Pop Idol Project, pose at Berklees 2024 fall K-Pop & Beyond Summit.

Dave Green

In a packed David Friend Recital Hall, with top-level industry professionals in attendance, two student K-pop groups took the stage for the first time. Berklee's 2024 fall K-Pop & Beyond marked the debut of X-Change and B-Girls, who each gave electric performances representing the culmination of the student-driven K-Pop Idol Project.

The K-Pop Idol Project was conceived by students under the guidance of Dr. Ray Seol, assistant professor of professional music and organizer of K-Pop & Beyond. It brings together artists of different cultural and musical backgrounds to envision and create a K-pop band from scratch. Students lead every aspect of the group's formation and development-from auditions, songwriting, and video production to choreography, marketing, and social media management-with the goal of making a K-pop group that reflects the values of today's aspiring industry professionals.

X-Change is a mixed-gender group featuring Dasom Chung, Chrisen Yang, Mingxin Li, and Dolly Zhang as performing members and Kyra Clark and Madi Cores Sailer as directors. Their distinctive original music and choreography celebrates Gen Z culture and lifestyle while embracing foundational elements of the new wave of K-pop.

I am so honored to be a part of something so unique. This project holds a lot of personal meaning to me as it had always been a long time dream to be a K-pop idol, said Chung, who is the casting team lead, choreographer, and performer for X-Change. As I aged out with not many opportunities to pursue this in the States, this project is the closest I've ever gotten to something like it. It immensely aligns with my future job prospects as I am very much into dance and choreography, and getting to choreograph for this group is a great continuing step towards roles.

From left to right: Chrisen Yang, Dolly Zhang, Dasom Chung, and Mingxin Li of the K-pop Idol group X-change make their debut performance at Berklees 2024 fall K-Pop & Beyond.

Dave Green

B-Girls (Berklee Girls) is a dynamic K-pop trio that takes inspiration from the trailblazing K-pop girl groups of the '90s like S.E.S. and Fin.K.L. Made up of vocalists Bronwyn Shae Zoppelt, Veronica Leong, and Sofia Shkidchenko and directed by Christine Lee and Hyeri Han, the group's electrifying remixes and original tracks blend nostalgic vibes with a modern Gen Z flair to create a fresh sound. Guest rapper Samad Grays joined the B-Girls for their K-Pop & Beyond performance.

Im a Ukrainian singer-songwriter and I love exploring different genres of music, said Shkidchenko. I got into K-pop when I was around 12. Before that I hated taking dance classes, but after watching K-pop choreographies I started appreciating dance. The songs also helped me widen my musical interests.

With students from the two teams representing South Korea, China, Ukraine, Germany, Canada, Macau, and the United States, the cultural and artistic diversity within the Idol project is a powerful reflection of the rapid growth of the Hallyu community at Berklee over the last several years.

K-pop is one of the best examples of how a once-peripheral culture can be celebrated globally, said Seol. Understanding the significance of local culture is key to arts education, and K-pop offers everything you'd want to learn at a music college-from music production to technology and business. In my K-pop course, only one or two students are Korean, yet the non-Korean students demonstrate a deep passion for K-pop and Korean culture. I believe this is a very positive phenomenon that can catalyze the discovery of other local cultures with the potential to become the next global icons.

From left to right: Bronwyn Zoppelt, Sofia Shkidchenko, and Veronica Leong, known as B-Girls (Berklee Girls), making their debut performance at K-Pop & Beyond.

Dave Green

2024 fall K-Pop & Beyond is the latest in a series of events that have brought major artists and industry professionals to Berklee. This year's summit featured accomplished K-pop producer and artist Jae Chong, who was a member of the '90s K-pop group Solid and the first Korean-American nominated for producer of the year at the Golden Melody Awards. Previous events have welcomed songwriter and producer KENZIE '99, SM Entertainment CEO Chris Lee, and Nuel Always Cho, chief creative officer of Muzlive and a former executive at Sony, Universal, and Warner Music.

We are thrilled to witness young artists from diverse backgrounds embracing and contributing to the Hallyu wave, said representatives of the CJ Cultural Foundation, a key educational partner and cosponsor of the annual K-pop summit at Berklee since 2022. This collaboration not only highlights the universal appeal of Korean culture but also underscores the significant role the K-pop industry plays in the global music landscape. It is through these shared cultural experiences that we hope to inspire a new generation of artists to innovate and transcend boundaries.

Jae Chong from the 90sK-pop group Solid was the featured guest at the 2024 fall K-Pop & Beyond event.

Dave Green

The K-pop influence at Berklee has stretched well beyond the Boston campus. With the support of CJ Cultural Foundation and CJ ENM, students from Boston Conservatory at Berklee's contemporary and commercial dance programs have performed at KCON LA, the world's largest convention for Korean culture and music, since 2022.

I wasnt at all prepared
LINK: https://www.berklee.edu/berklee-now/news/all-student-k-pop-bands-debut...
See more stories from berklee

Most recent headlines

09/12/2024

Dalet Named an IDC Innovator in Media and Entertainment

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced that it has been named an IDC Innovator in the IDC Innovators: ...

09/11/2024

Dalet Expands Leadership Team to Fuel Next Stage of Growth

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced three new members of its executive team. Tara Bryant joins as Chi...

18/10/2024

Run3TV, TVision Partner on NextGen TV Measurement

NEW YORK Broadcasters who have deployed ATSC 3.0 (aka NextGen TV) have a new resource to help them better understand who's viewing 3.0 and what features the...

18/10/2024

Spectrum News Expands Into South Carolina

GREENVILLE, S.C. Spectrum News has expanded its footprint with the launch of Spectrum News South Carolina. The channel features local headlines at the top and b...

18/10/2024

FCC Proposes $146,976 Fine Against ESPN for EAS Violations

WASHINGTON The FCC has proposed a fine of $146,976 against ESPN, the statutory maximum the agency can impose for violating emergency alert system rules....

18/10/2024

Cox Communications Launches Xumo Stream Box

ATLANTA Cox Communications has launched the Xumo Stream Box, a 4K streaming device that brings together live TV and streaming, and said it is making the device ...

18/10/2024

RNZ Selects Dalet for New Editorial System

PARIS New Zealand public broadcaster RNZ has selected Dalet to transform its editorial systems with the media solutions provider's story-centric news produc...

18/10/2024

Cobalt Digital's Gene J. Zimmerman Named SMPTE Fellow

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. Gene J. Zimmerman, founder, president and CEO of Cobalt Digital, has been named a fellow of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engi...

18/10/2024

Harris Fox News Interview Draws 7.1M Viewers

NEW YORK Fox News Channel's (FNC) Special Report with Bret Baier is reporting that 7.8 million viewers watched its interview with vice president President K...

18/10/2024

Netflix Adds 5M New Subs in Q3

LOS GATOS, Calif. Netflix reported another generally strong quarter in its Q3 2024 earnings report, adding more than 5 million new subs as revenue increased by ...

18/10/2024

Sign up to the Creative COW Newsletter to enter the RE:Vision Effects 2024 Raffle!

Sign up to the Creative COW Newsletter to enter the RE:Vision Effects 2024 Raffl...

18/10/2024

Berklee Announces Leon V. Rosenberg Presidential Scholarship in Jazz Studies

Berklee Announces Leon V. Rosenberg Presidential Scholarship in Jazz Studies This permanently endowed scholarship honors the legacy of Leon V. Rosenberg, a pa...

18/10/2024

Berklee Alum Aliyah Khaylyn Wows The Voice Coaches with Tamar Braxton Song

Berklee Alum Aliyah Khaylyn Wows The Voice Coaches with Tamar Braxton Song The recent alums version of Braxtons Love and War for her blind audition left Micha...

17/10/2024

Exhibiting Forgiveness: An Exercise in Healing, On and Off the Set

PARK CITY, UTAH - JANUARY 20: (L-R) Jaime Ray Newman, Andr Holland, Andra Day, Titus Kaphar, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor and John Earl Jelks attend the 2024 Sundance...

17/10/2024

It's Never Too Early To Spread Festive Cheer, Our Spotify Holiday Singles Are Here

The air is turning crisp, and it won't be long until everyone is walking aro...

17/10/2024

Coldplay Unites With Spotify and FC Barcelona To Release a Special El Clsico Shirt, Merch Collection, and Matchday Playlist

Spotify is once again collaborating with record-breaking legends from the worlds...

17/10/2024

Gold Medal Gymnast Rebeca Andrade Gives Us a Peek at Her Spotify

Rebeca Andrade knows her way around the gym floor . . . and vault, and uneven bars, and balance beam. The 25-year-old is the most decorated Latin American gymna...

17/10/2024

Your Exclusive Look Inside Our Charli xcx and Troye Sivan SWEAT Tour Afterparty

Since Charli xcx and Troye Sivan kicked off SWEAT, their joint tour of North America, in September, the live shows have become part of the cultural canon. Toget...

17/10/2024

Last Cut Media Increases EditShare Footprint to Streamline Production

Last Cut Media Increases EditShare Footprint to Streamline Production Adds capacity, AI indexing and sharing technologies Boston, MA, 17 October 2024 - EditS...

17/10/2024

BLAM vs BOLT: what's in a name?

Since its launch in 2020, Blue Lucy's flagship product, BLAM, has also been the company's only product. BLAM is a sophisticated workflow orchestration, ...

17/10/2024

Noticias Telemundo AHORA Launches on Samsung TV Plus

MIAMI Noticias Telemundo, the news division of NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, has expanded the distribution of its FAST channel Noticias Telemundo AHORA to...

17/10/2024

Tegna, Dallas Mavericks Add 8 More Local Stations to TV Lineup

TYSONS, Va. and DALLAS Tegna and the Dallas Mavericks have announced that eight more stations in Texas, Louisana and Oklahoma will join six Tegna-owned outlets ...

17/10/2024

NAB Tells FCC Its Plan for Political AI Disclosure Can't Stand

The National Association of Broadcasters says the FCC will face legal obstacles if it goes ahead with its plan to address political deepfakes....

17/10/2024

Dish Launches New TV Offer That Includes Netflix

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. Dish Network has announced that new subscribers will get Netflix included with Dish TV subscriptions at no additional cost for two years....

17/10/2024

Opinion: The transformative impact of remote production and cloud migration on the media industry

John Wastcoat, SVP business development and marketing at Zixi, highlights how me...

17/10/2024

How cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos captured the colour of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Zambarloukos details the cameras and lenses he used to capture Tim Burtons spook...

17/10/2024

EMG/Gravity Media names Eamonn Curtin as chief commercial officer

He takes up the role immediately, having spent the past 10 years as global client director at EMG/Gravity Media By Jenny Priestley Published: October 17, 202...

17/10/2024

Council pulls plug on Mo-Sys Plumstead Power Station deal

Mo-Sys planned to refurbish the Grade II listed site, opening eight studio stages By Matthew Corrigan Published: October 17, 2024 Mo-Sys planned to refurb...

17/10/2024

Sony Expands Sports Data Business With KinaTrax Acquisition

TOKYO and BASINGSTOKE, U.K. Sony has acquired KinaTrax, a provider of markerless motion-capture technology for sports that collects in-game biomechanical perfor...

17/10/2024

Warner Bros. Discovery Plans To Launch Max in 7 New Markets

SINGAPORE Warner Bros. Discovery has announced that its streaming service Max will launch on Nov. 19 in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thai...

17/10/2024

Philo Launches on LG TVs

Philo has announced that its entire lineup of live and on-demand TV is now available on LG Smart TVs....

17/10/2024

Cox Media Group Provides Nearly $1 Million for Hurricane Relief

ATLANTA In addition to providing critical information about hurricanes Helene and Milton in its ongoing news coverage, Cox Media Group (CMG) has announced that ...

17/10/2024

NAB Reiterates Opposition to FCC Blackout Reporting Plan

The National Association of Broadcasters has reiterated its opposition to an FCC proposal to require pay TV providers to notify the regulator when TV stations a...

17/10/2024

On-the-Go Lighting Gets a Powerful Boost with the Launch...

amaran, pioneer of lighting tools for creators, has just announced the launch of the amaran Ace 25x and 25c, brand-new bi-color and full-color compact LED light...

17/10/2024

Sonnet Announces Value-Priced Seven-Port USB PCIe Card

Sonnet Announces Value-Priced Seven-Port USB PCIe Card Brie Clayton October 16, 2024 0 Comments Allegro 7-Port USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type A PCIe Card Adds Six...

17/10/2024

Blackmagic Design Used on 2024 Summer and Blockbuster Season Films

Blackmagic Design Used on 2024 Summer and Blockbuster Season Films Brie Clayton October 16, 2024 0 Comments Global hits such as Abigail, Alien: Rom...

17/10/2024

PROVYS Introduces Sphere, a Scalable Broadcast Channel Management System

PROVYS Introduces Sphere, a Scalable Broadcast Channel Management System Brie Clayton October 16, 2024 0 Comments Accompanying image shows members of ...

17/10/2024

Autodesk Media & Entertainment brings new capabilities to enhance creativity and efficiency

Autodesk Media & Entertainment brings new capabilities to enhance creativity and...

17/10/2024

How Digital Twins Are Driving Efficiency and Cutting Emissions in Manufacturing

Improving the sustainability of manufacturing involves optimizing entire product lifecycles - from material sourcing and transportation to design, production, d...

17/10/2024

Waterways Wonder: Clearbot Autonomously Cleans Waters With Energy-Efficient AI

What started as two classmates seeking a free graduation trip to Bali subsidized by a university project ended up as an AI-driven sea-cleaning boat prototype bu...

17/10/2024

VEON Files its 2023 Form 20-F

17 Oct 2024 VEON Files its 2023 Form 20-F Amsterdam, 17 October 2024, 20:45: VEON Ltd. (Nasdaq: VEON, Euronext Amsterdam: VEON), a global digital operator ( VE...

17/10/2024

SVG Remote Production Forum 2024: All Sessions Now Available To Watch on SVG PLAY

SVG Remote Production Forum 2024: All Sessions Now Available To Watch on SVG PLA...

17/10/2024

DUNE: PROPHECY coming exclusively to Sky and NOW on November 18, as official trailer released

DUNE: PROPHECY coming exclusively to Sky and NOW on November 18, as official tra...

17/10/2024

Rohde & Schwarz achieves full coverage of Skylos test plan for NB-NTN devices, enabling SMS services

Rohde & Schwarz achieves full coverage of Skylos test plan for NB-NTN devices, e...

17/10/2024

Netflix Unveils the First Images of 'The Snow Girl 2: El juego del alma'

Back to All News Netflix Unveils the First Images of The Snow Girl 2: El juego del alma Entertainment 17 October 2024 GlobalSpain Link copied to clipboard ...

17/10/2024

'Turn of the Tide' Will Have a Third Season

Back to All News Turn of the Tide Will Have a Third Season Entertainment 17 October 2024 GlobalPortugal Link copied to clipboard Netflix announced today t...

17/10/2024

'The Lost Children,' the Documentary, Arrives on November 14

Back to All News The Lost Children, the Documentary, Arrives on November 14Play Video Play Video Entertainment 17 October 2024 GlobalColombia Link copied ...

17/10/2024

FOR-A powers new 12G truck for Production Crew

Native 12G-SDI for simple and immediate Ultra HD architectue...

17/10/2024

RNZ Selects Dalet for New Editorial System

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced that RNZ has partnered with Dalet to transform its editorial syst...

17/10/2024

Blancco Launches Free ROI Calculator to Help Enterprises Quantify Financial and ESG Benefits of Data Erasure

Home News & Press Press Release Blancco Launches Free ROI Calculator to He...