SOFT POWER FOR INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMACY THROUGH K-POP LENS

Abstract

K-pop, or Korean popular music, has spread throughout the Korean Peninsula and the world in recent decades. Due to the constant expansion of K-pop in many countries, there is a growing scholarly debate about its potential as a soft power instrument of foreign policy. This paper looks to define the concept of K-pop music diplomacy, and the strategies and measures put into practice. It explains how the Korean government has instrumentalized K-pop and supported its foreign promotion as part of a wider public diplomacy strategy aimed at increasing the country’s power and prestige. It assesses the areas that contributed to K-pop's internationalization. In approaching the topic from the perspective of K-pop, the paper therefore highlights contemporary methods of soft power in popular cultural diplomacy. The paper shows how state and non-state actors use cultural industries such as K-pop to promote national interests, interact with foreign audiences, and foster the growth of the creative economy. The authors also applied statistical t-test, evaluating the number of performances of K-pop bands at home and abroad from 2019-2023 to analyze their impact on South Korean cultural diplomacy and its positive image construction. The study provides an insight into success, and usefulness of music diplomacy as exemplified by K-pop and found best practices for cultural diplomacy.