Over the last couple of years, I’ve made it my personal crusade to get everyone I know into K-pop. I know the language barrier can seem intimidating, not to mention the loyal and sometimes ruthless stan communities. But there’s simply so much to love that you’re missing out on if you only keep up with Western music and pop culture. K-pop idols are making innovations in music and choreography, K-pop companies often drop extra content like documentary series or variety shows, and then there’s one of my favorite things to keep up with: K-pop style trends.
Think about the 2021 style trends you’ve seen all over your TikTok FYP and the internet at large. In hair trends, the wolf cut and the return of the mullet reigned all summer. The cowboy aesthetic, complete with cowboy boots and cow print, is big in fashion right now. And don’t forget about neon, which came back in full force, both in clothing and in makeup and beauty trends.
What if I told you that for each of these trends, K-pop did it first?
Let’s take the wolf cut for example. When K-pop boygroup TOMORROW X TOGETHER (TXT for short) released their “0X1=LOVESONG (I know I Love You)” music video on May 31, member Beomgyu was seen rocking the wolf cut. But while Gen Z Americans were picking up on this trend for the first time this summer, Beomgyu was instead paying homage to a long history of the wolf cut in K-pop. You have EXO’s Baekhyun in 2017’s “Ko Ko Bop” to thank for bringing the trend back to the Korean mainstream, at least according to his fans.
K-pop is also no stranger to the mullet, the wolf cut’s more extreme cousin. You may hear a lot of talk about Miley Cyrus being the one to usher in the mullet’s new era, but if you ask me, idols like BTS’s V, NCT’s Taeyong, and SEVENTEEN’s The8, to name a few, should get credit where credit is due for helping revive the mullet in 2018. The8 even gained the affectionate nickname “Mull8.” (Points for creativity.) The mullet was such a hit among male K-pop idols that journalist Kate Halliwell led K-pop Twitter in a March Madness-style bracket to vote for the best K-pop mullet last year. (V won, if you’re wondering.)
And that’s only hair. What about the cowboy aesthetic? Lil Nas X, of course, deserves to be the face of this movement — without 2019’s “Old Town Road,” who knows whether we’d all be adding cowboy boots to our shopping carts like we are now. (Or maybe that’s just me?) It is worth noting, however, that BTS’s RM featured on one of the many “Old Town Road” remixes, and the whole group performed it with Lil Nas X at the 2020 Grammys. And while the cowboy aesthetic seemed to die down in 2020 in the States, it was only growing in Korea: the music videos for ITZY’s “Not Shy,” TXT’s “Blue Hour,” and SuperM’s “100” (all of which came out within just a few months of each other last year) along with others, all featured idols dressed up and ready for the Wild West. BTS also donned cowboy-inspired outfits in “Permission To Dance” in July. It’s no coincidence that cowboy boots became huge in American fashion this summer. Sorry, U.S., but you’re a little late to the game!
Neon is also a big deal right now — whether completely monochromatic or just a few pieces to brighten up your wardrobe, celebrities like Zendaya and Hailey Bieber are shining bright and throwing it back to the color palette of the ’80s. K-pop stars have been wearing neon for years, as reported by K-pop media outlet Soompi. Groups like MAMAMOO, Apink, and others have worn these looks for both music videos and red carpet appearances throughout the 2010s. American audiences probably at least know of the two biggest K-pop groups right now: BTS and Blackpink. BTS were decked out in bright colors (and hair) in their 2019 hit “Boy With Luv,” and Blackpink stars Jennie and Rosé were seen rocking neon eyeliner looks as recently as July. Are you sensing a pattern yet?
Of course, not every K-pop style trend originated in South Korea — in fact, many of them harken back to black culture. Much of K-pop music is influenced by hip-hop and R&B — many groups have rappers, and many K-pop songs are actually penned by black Americans, who Rolling Stone reported in 2018 were finding more work in Korea than in the American pop music industry. It follows, then, that K-pop style takes from similar influences: Bucket hats and other streetwear popularized by black culture are all over the Korean fashion landscape.
I’m, of course, not trying to argue that K-pop started all of the trends mentioned here; the history of many fashion trends goes back decades, and fashion is often drawing influence from multiple cultures, thanks to globalization. K-pop is influenced by the Western music industry, and vice versa. But if you’re looking to figure out what trends will hit American retail stores a couple years from now, you’re better off keeping up with K-pop than with your favorite Western celebrities — “high teen” fashion, anyone?