Hello, I'm going to talk about a subject that's becoming very annoying on social media, especially on X (Twitter), about the idea that K-pop steals Black culture (African-American). As someone who has knowledge about the history of modern music, I am qualified to speak on this. I'll break it down by topic:
Did Motown invent photocards (trading cards)?
No. Trading cards were invented and popularized by the tobacco industry, baseball, and gum companies. They put cards with photos of celebrities, athletes, flags, and politicians inside product packages to boost sales. Record labels saw this and decided to do the same with their artists because they realized it was popular among young people. Motown didn't create this, nor was it the first label to do it — it was the first label to do it with Black artists. Even before Motown, the Japanese were already doing it: Japanese bromide.
Does K-pop use hip-hop beats?
Yes, it does, but we need to understand the origin of hip-hop beats. Beat creation originated in Japan, because the first programmable drum machine was invented in Japan — the first beatmaker. African Americans only started creating beats after gaining access to the Roland 808 in 1982, a Japanese technology, two years after its release. The beat we now know as the hip-hop beat already existed in Japan. Afrika Bambaataa, known as the godfather of hip-hop, has said many times in interviews that he learned to create beats by watching YMO (a Japanese band). Even the sound he created for 'Planet Rock' — which gave rise to the hip-hop movement — uses samples from YMO and Kraftwerk. If you want to hear a hip-hop beat before the hip-hop movement, search for 'Riot in Lagos' by Ryuichi Sakamoto. Modern electronic music originated in Japan — sampling, most electronic music effects, etc., came from Japan.
Was the finger heart sign created by Michael Jackson?
No. Yes, Michael Jackson used it long before K-pop popularized it, but he didn't create it. Michael Jackson started using this gesture after touring in Asia, especially after his tour in Japan.
Conclusion:
People say these things based on the assumption that if they see a Black artist doing something first, that means they invented it. Just because a Black person uses or does something doesn't mean they created it. For example, bandanas are considered an accessory of African-American culture, but they actually originate from India. Beatmaking is also considered part of African-American culture, but its origin is Japanese.
Most of the time, when I see a TikTok video showing how similar a K-pop song sounds to an African-American artist, it's just samples. K-pop fans don't know what samples are. Many hip-hop and R&B songs from the 2000s use samples from traditional Indian, Arabic, and Middle Eastern music, but I've never seen anyone say African Americans are stealing Indian or Arabic culture.
Okay, I'll stop here so it doesn't get too long.