The Land of the Morning Calm is swept up in an R&B frenzy. With the recent comeback of the veteran R&B/urban duo Fly to the Sky, Taeyang's second full-length album, solo artist Zion. T's inexplicable popularity and the highly anticipated release of up and coming artist Crush's debut album, R&B is slowly wriggling its way into music chart positions that have long been dominated by dance-pop, ballad, and quasi-hip hop groups. It really is astonishing how quickly under R&B/soul artists such as Zion. T—who was pretty much a nobody a mere three years ago—was able to spread his fame so far and wide in South Korea and abroad. Also, the fact that Beyoncé's late self-titled album peaked at number 2 on Korean album charts is quite telling of how the mainstream Korean populace has warmed up more towards the R&B genre. Furthermore, I have noticed that many Korean hip hop/R&B/soul artists sample old-school hip hop/R&B tunes when composing their songs (A Tribe Called Quest, Big L, Marc Nelson, etc.). My own mother, who is a 40-something Korean ahjumma approaching her 50s has an almost unhealthy affinity for The Weeknd's music. So to celebrate and explore this love of R&B, I'll be lightly discussing the genre's beginnings—or more specifically, discussing the artists that set ablaze the soulful R&B trails in my motherland. 

The Pioneers

Seo Taiji was the archetypal figure in the Korean pop scene who paved the road to mainstream success for genres other than ballad, trot, and folk. And R&B really only developed subsequent to this breakthrough. His music is far from being considered R&B but that isn't the point. The point is that without Seo Taiji, Korean pop music wouldn't have gone through the revolutionary change necessary to go from uniform to diverse.

Although not as popular, Lee Soo Man had a protege by the name of Hyun Jin Young who also brought the American R&B and Hip Hop styles to Korea, but unfortunately Hyun Jin Young's career was cut short due to various legal issues.

YG's Influence

YG artists have also played a significant role in spreading R&B in Korean pop music. I assert this not because I have a unilateral penchant for them. I simply noticed YG has continuously been the R&B mainstay in popular Korean music. Even today, its artists maintain their hip hop/R&B emphasis, only to stray to heavy dance pop for a little while. Former artists including Wheesung, Lexy, Masta Wu, Perry, Jinusean, and 1TYM all specialized in performing R&B/urban/hip hop music. Now, Big Bang and 2NE1 continue their forefathers' legacy with a more mainstream-ready, modern type of music that infuses dance, hip hop, and R&B.

Old-School R&B

Of course, there exists other artists not under the aegis of YG with R&B backgrounds. If we are talking mainstream, then Yoon Mi Rae, Ra. D, SOLID, and even Lee Hyori can be considered the R&B ambassadors of Korea, who strengthened the genre's mold by introducing a culture that was alien in a way that resonated with the Korean audience. When you watch Lee Hyori's "10 Minutes" MV, you can't help but get an uncanny reminder of J. Lo in her "Jenny From the Block" days. When you listen to SOLID, you can see influences of Boyz II Men, and whenever I listen to Yoon Mi Rae, the "Korean Lauryn Hill" come to mind. But Lee Hyori, SOLID, and Yoon Mi Rae's music are not just replicas of their Western predecessors. They take the influence and shape their music to have relevance in the current Korean music scene and to cater to the tastes of their targeted audience. The gradual, conscious exposure of the genre through these artists allowed Korean listeners to access and develop a taste for R&B. The process surely would not have occurred without the above artists' contributions to Korean music.

Current Roster

R&B artists that grew big in the past couple years include Zion. T, Crush, and GRAY. These singers' success can be traced back to the contributions of aforementioned artists, without whom they may not have existed at all. Zion. T, Crush, and GRAY seem to derive inspiration from Western acts such as Michael Jackson and Gang Starr and they bring those influences directly into their music and deliver them to the Korean audience, much like how pervious artists had done. And current mainstream R&B artists better understand what their audience wants to hear. Plus they actively put their music out on various media platforms until people start to take notice, something that wasn't as easily done just a decade ago.  

The history of R&B in Korea is a rich one. And this article hasn't fully explored all aspects of it, but just skimmed the topmost surface. There are likely many more artists that had an influence on R&B in Korea that I don't know about or failed to mention. If that is the case, please feel free to enlighten me with your knowledge on Korean R&B music.