Netizens are debating about the level of Taylor Swift's popularity in South Korea.

On an online forum, a netizen theorized the reasons that may factor into why the world-famous singer-songwriter "does not seem as popular in Korea."

The post reads:

"Taylor Swift's competitive edge lies in her prowess as a singer-songwriter with English lyrics. Naturally, Americans are drawn to Taylor's charms, given her American identity, beauty, and the cultural resonance of her lyrics.

For Korean listeners who cannot understand the English lyrics, the emotional impact of Taylor's songs is lost. Pop singers like Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Ed Sheeran, and Adele appealed to Korean audiences with their vocal color, techniques, and dynamic musical styles.

However, Taylor doesn't have exceptional vocal skills in comparison to those artists, and the beats of her songs are monotonous. It makes you wonder why she's so popular...especially for those who can't even understand her lyrics.

It is the same phenomenon as the Korean ballad singers having less success overseas in comparison to BTS and BLACKPINK, who have succeeded in appealing to international fans through their visuals, beats, rapping, vocals, and dance moves."

In short, the netizen argued that Taylor Swift's cultural identity, the language barrier, and the specificity of her musical genre carry elements that are not as easily transferrable to Korean audiences. 

Taking the songs of Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber as Taylor Swift's opposite examples, the netizen hypothesized that the relative lack of Taylor Swift's popularity in Korea is similar to the relative lack of the popularity of Korean ballad singers overseas. 

In the comments section, some netizens agreed the part about the pop genre but others offered new insights, suggesting that Taylor Swift is indeed popular in Korea but that her songs are not as high up on the ranks of domestic streaming platforms as they are on Spotify.

Several argued that she can "easily sell out major concert venues if she ever decided to come to Korea" and that more people in Korea are probably fans of Taylor Swift than they are of the aforementioned pop singers.

Some also humorously remarked that Taylor Swift "probably wouldn't even care if she's not popular in Korea."

Meanwhile, one comment also revealed that Taylor Swift apparently adopted a K-pop marketing strategy recently by including photocards in her albums.

Reactions poured in:

"There are people around me who like Taylor for her lyrics by analyzing them...but I am kind of tired of trying to translate every bit of the English lyrics. I also personally like addictive songs, which I personally don't find in Taylor's songs, except for a few. She also doesn't use her voice in technically varied ways, so I don't find myself listening to her songs that often. But she is already a world class singer, so who even cares?"

"Would Taylor even care or think about whether she is popularity in Korea or not? lmao"

"I have to say, there's just that one pop feel that Koreans tend to like more than her style. Taylor started out as an American country music singer, so I don't think that the roots of her discography and even her current style translate very well to what the Korean audiences are looking for."

"Taylor's songs really gave me a lot of strength when I was down. She also rose to the top from the bottom so if you know her story then I think it'd be hard not to like her. The fact that Koreans might be discussing her appearances just drives me crazy..."

"But I think Taylor has more fans even in Korea compared to the other artists lol I just think that she doesn't appear as much on our platforms. But if she ever held a concert here, I bet she will sell out immediately."

"I don't think she would even care whether or not she does well here lol....."

What are your thoughts?