K-Pop: A Phenomenon or A Niche?

Just recently (as in a few hours ago) I stumbled upon this really interesting article on K-Pop on one of my favorite sites, The Verge.  It basically talked about a recent K-Pop convention in California.  From the article, which you can find below, I learned a lot of interesting things about the genre.  Apparently, its really popular among teenage girls (no surprise there really), but the process on how these "bands" - a term I use loosely here - are pre-fabricated based on looks, rather than actual talent.  While I have to agree that K-Pop might never reach mainstream popularity like PSY's "Gangnam Style," I think its interesting westerns are able to find interest in K-Pop, especially since many of the songs are in Korean. There's even a worldwide fan organization, K-Pop United, and "Fan Chants" that are a vital part of the K-Pop marketing.

That's where my question arose: is K-Pop some pop culture phenom or just a niche market targeted at a certain demographic?  I believe its somewhere in the middle.  It's really a case of love it or hate it.  I remember a few weeks ago, one of my co-workers, who is a male, began to show me and a few others some of his favorite K-Pop songs on YouTube.  I don't really care for it, I barely even like "Gangnam Style."  I remember last semester a few of my friends (a group of males & females) began to talk about their favorite K-Pop group.  This included, SHINee, G-Dragon, Girls Generation, Super Junior, and 2ne1.  This even led to a heated discussion about which songs were best.  I threw fuel into the fire, stating "I don't really like K-Pop."  They all looked at me in shock, as if knowing who any of these groups and songs were normal.  They even tried to "convert me."  Playing all this terrible, rather boring tunes, thankfully it didn't work.  In the end, K-Pop will probably continue to gain traction, but I know I'll never be a fan.  I rather stick to American music and more recently, British Pop (B-Pop anyone?).

I highly suggest everyone read this interesting article as well: http://tinyurl.com/96s3dga