Over the past few years, K-pop has emerged as a force in music, with the genre’s artists taking over the Billboard charts and forming timely collaborations with established stars Stateside. The East-meets-West fusion will deepen with the premiere of Apple TV’s new series KPOPPED, a song battle show which pairs stars from both continents to remix their fan-favorite hits.
Executive produced by Lionel Richie and Miky Lee, the show will be hosted by Megan Thee Stallion and “Gangnam Style” rapper Psy. Set in Seoul, each episode will pair a different Western recording artist with a K-pop idol to remix, then perform tracks before a live audience in a competition to see whose “K-popped” song comes out on top.
Megan Thee Stallion is an excellent choice to co-host, as her experience with K-pop is more extensive than most. She was one of the first American rappers to acknowledge the genre, teaming up with BTS in 2021 to remix their hit “Butter.” More recently, she reconnected with BTS rapper RM for “Neva Play” from Megan: Volume 2, and followed up with the TWICE collaboration, “Strategy.”
Meanwhile, Psy also makes for a compelling pick, as his 2012 hit “Gangnam Style” was one of the first-ever K-pop hits to cross over in the US. Its viral success led to the opening of a new market in North America, becoming the most viewed video on YouTube for a time and sparking a number of parodies, remixes, and reaction videos.
The premiere date and performers for KPOPPED will be announced soon.
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