Indie Music Exposure or Mainstream Meddling?

Initially when I started this blog post yesterday, I thought perhaps the word "meddling" is too strong, but it seems perhaps appropriate to shed light on people's concerns on this issue.

Summary: SM entertainment is investing in indie label Baljunso in hopes of spreading indie music. Most likely you have come across this blog because you were searching for something on Hallyu, Kpop, or Kdramas - although there is a strong prevalent indie scene in Korea (as the word might suggest) it is more underground. It doesn't cater to the constant variety TV shows, music programs, ect. and that's fine - it's also for another audience. But unfortunately this also leads to a lack of advertisements (CF's in Korea), where the main revenue stream is for the entertainment industry, and a lack of (opportunity for) greater exposure.





At the same time, there is the other side of the story. Not everyone wants the indie music label to hit it mainstream. For some, spreading of indie music is equal to tainting or ruining the color or uniqueness of the band or label. And if my assumptions are correct, some of the indie fans want to keep it more underground anyway.

But again, it's a catch-22. I know what it's like to see your favorite indie band go mainstream and completely change their style of music. (Whether this was artistic choice or direction change to appease a greater audience is definitely debatable). And there are legitimate concerns of how much control SM will have through this new venture. At the same time, while you want to keep the indie scene separate from the mainstream music, but it isn't always as sustainable. If you remember, in mainstream Kpop, the fan culture really drives the finances (both in Korea and abroad).  There are plans to stream a live concert through SM's youtube channel to increase exposure of these bands. I'm curious to see how this develops, and if there will be collaboration between SM artists and Baljunso artists, or if this will purely be a way to use SM name to bring about more interest. Will this marketing work without the artists getting involved?

Anyway, in closing, I will just add a video below of my current ringtone and a presumably indie band in Korea. Enjoy!