In 2016, 18 songs received the prestigious “perfect all-kill” achievement, meaning that they placed first on every Korean streaming service possible. Two of those songs were by the six-month-old Korean idol girl group Twice.
However, the rarity of their explosive success was compounded by the fact that three of the members were not Korean – they were Japanese. Twice’s commercial potential signaled a newfound mutual interest of Korea in Japan’s music industry, and vice versa.
Twice’s success both domestically and overseas, especially in their rookie years, cannot be overstated. It was near impossible to escape them from 2016-2019 in Korea. From usage in presidential campaigns to viral selfie poses, Twice’s songs were at the forefront of pop culture.
In Korean fan culture, it is more customary for fans of male idols to have more physical purchasing power, while fans of female idols are more dedicated to digital purchase and streaming. With the unique “photocard” feature in physical albums—where each album includes a small selfie card of an idol, fueling a prolific online trade and collection culture—and the majority of domestic K-pop fans being women attracted to male idols, all signs point to a gendered pattern of music consumption.
However, Twice emerged as a rare girl group for the time that could succeed both ways. They dominated music charts, sold over 580,000 albums in Korea in their first full active year, and would later go on to become the best selling K-pop girl group of all time in Japan and South Korea—until they were surpassed domestically in 2023.
However, the Korean girl group renaissance from 2018-2023 that caused the sudden dethronement of Twice from the top selling spot in Korea does not exist in a vacuum. Before Twice’s debut, American-born Korean idols were scarcely found in K-pop, much less Japanese idols, who were often demonized as a result of international tensions. But after their commercial success, it was as if every girl group of the time had a Japanese member—most prominently, Giselle of SM Entertainment’s Aespa, and Kazuha and Sakura of Source Music’s Le Sserafim. These members brought forth international attention and added to the Hallyu Wave in Japan, bringing worldwide prominence to the groups. In an oversaturated girl group market, Japanese female success in the Korean music industry is partially attributed to Twice’s influence.
Noticing Twice’s prolific commercial performance and the hidden cashpot of Japanese talent, Korea’s leading TV network MNet launched a new program in 2018 called Produce 48, which casted equal numbers of Korean and Japanese contestants to create an uber-profitable girl group with fans from the world’s top music markets. The program aspired to mend the relationship between the countries through a collaborative musical act. They recruited the top female trainees—idol aspirants—from Korea and established singers in the Japanese girl group AKB48 for this program.
Though Twice and their career aided international relations, the underlying tensions were not completely resolved. Contestant Sakura (who would later become a part of the previously mentioned Le Sserafim) was projected as a popular victor, with fans on both sides of the Sea of Japan, but controversially ranked only second in public voting. It came as a surprise to many viewers that a contestant who had been consistently popular and was favorably edited could place anywhere but first.
Additionally, only two other Japanese members with similarly successful careers in AKB48 debuted alongside her. It was later revealed that the show’s voting system was criminally unjust. Vote manipulation favored Korean trainees and certain companies. On top of this, Japanese trainees were consistently “evil edited” as untalented or as purely employed for their appearance.
Political tension informs this anti-Japanese sentiment, stemming mainly during World War II imperialism when Japan took teenage girls into sexual slavery, and children into forced labor. This brutal mistreatment and forced prostitution of women, egregiously nicknamed comfort women during this time, has damaged the reputation of Japan across the majority of Asia.
The actions of the Japanese imperial army during World War II were nothing short of possibly the most horrific war crimes suffered in the Pacific. The Rape of Nanjing, unethical Unit 731 experiments (which is why modern medicine knows how to most effectively treat frostbite and Syphilis, and how the human body is 70% water), mass famines, and torture of prisoners of war have permanently changed the political atmosphere of the region. The psychological and economic effects of World War II are still felt in Korea today, and even in the diaspora overseas.
The generational trauma in East and Southeast Asian countries as a result of this imperialism had permanently shifted their cultures and societies. Yet, Japan somewhat refuses to acknowledge or take accountability for these war crimes. Like The Diplomat reports, Prime Minister Abe suggested in 2015 that the aforementioned “comfort women were not forcibly taken from their civilian homes,” minimizing the real-life trauma that Korea has faced.
But Twice’s success signals a new relationship between Korea and Japan. Their career and important role as cultural ambassadors has reinvigorated Japanese interest in Korean culture, and vice versa. Though their charting in Korea has slowed down as the 9-member group has taken a comfortable slower pace in their group activities, they remain one of the most dominant groups overseas. They are set to become the second foreign act to perform at Japan’s Nissan Stadium, a 70,000 capacity venue, after their highly anticipated Ready to Be tour.
A wholly peaceful relationship between the two countries may not be immediately possible, considering the relatively recent nature of the war, but their legacy blends their cultures together through music, inching the public’s view closer towards neutrality rather than unadulterated resentment. While the resolution of their political tension and true reparations towards Koreans may not happen within our lifetimes, K-pop’s cultural influence and soft power serve to improve Korean-Japanese relations. If there’s one thing Korea and Japan can compromise on despite their history, it’s good music.
