January 31, 2012, 7:05 AM HKT
A K-Pop Sensation Plays Letterman
By Robert Michael Poole
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| Girls’ Generation in concert in Seoul. The band performs an English-language version of its hit single ‘The Boys’ on ‘The Late Show’ Tuesday. |
Girls’ Generation is performing on CBS’s “The Late Show With David Letterman” tonight, the latest inroad by K-pop into the U.S. market.
The nine-piece pop act, which already plays to packed concert venues around Asia, will sing an English-language version of their male-baiting single “The Boys,” which was co-written by Teddy Riley, famed for his work with Michael Jackson, Bobby Brown and Usher.
While Girls’ Generation has played in the U.S. before, the TV appearance marks a new level of mainstream American exposure for the group, and Korean pop in general, as its world-wide audience grows.
SM, which manages Girls’ Generation, organized a Madison Square Garden concert in October that sold out. In November, Big Bang, a boy band, took the “World Wide Act” award at MTV’s Europe Music Awards, while MTV Iggy, which focuses on music from outside the U.S., named Korean group 2NE1 its “Best New Band in the World.” JYP, the agency that works with the Wonder Girls, is set to break a Teen Nick made-for-TV movie, starring the girl band, in February.
While a Letterman appearance will surely boost Girls’ Generation’s recognition stateside, the telegenic group has a strong global following — one video, “Gee,” has more than 64 million views on YouTube. “These girls are sexy enough to open the floodgates for the Korean wave with this performance,” says Billboard’s East Asia correspondent Rob Schwartz.
Several members hail from the U.S. — Jessica, Tiffany and Sunny (they only go by their first names) were all born in California, giving them another advantage as they make the media rounds.
“We definitely want to sing in English,” said Tiffany, during a summer concert headlined by the Red Hot Chili Peppers in Japan. “We need to be nine Beyonces.”
More: See photos from Girls’ Generation’s recent performances
http://blogs.wsj.com/scene/2012/01/31/girls-generation-plays-letterman/?KEYWORDS=girls+generation
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