The person who brought Western R&B to Japan was Toshinobu Kubota (King of Japanese R&B). Also R&B was big in Japan. Toshi got several top-five hits and sold millions of records in the name of R&B in Japan
As a person that grew up with her music, starting from her and Sachiko's first album, DOUBLE still didn't get enough credit for/to me. Flowers are WELL deserved for singers/artist like DOUBLE, JAMOSA, ARIA/ASUKA, EMI MARIA, SOULHEAD, Heartsdales, Miliyah Kato, Daichi Miura, Emi Tawata, Emyli, Meajyu, FULL OF HARMONY, Mihiro/Mairo, SONOMI, COMA-CHI, SILVA, Toshinobu Kubota etc.
This brings me back. I was a young US Marine stationed in Okinawa, Japan for the 1st time in 2000, right around when Takako was coming back on scene as 'Double'. I remember listening to the Japanese music rankings on my way to base, when I heard the debut single "Can You Handle It (feat. FOH)" for the first time...I knew instantly she was no kidding authentic R&B/Hip-Hop (slow vibrato, stylization, syncopation, etc.). There were other Japanese female artists that would have the look, but none had the soul or sound like Takako (with also a super sexy look). As a black guy, I remember surprising a few Japanese girlfriends when my car pulled up bumping Double...alot of them didn't even realize it was Japanese until they listened closely, and still didn't know or believe Double was Japanese R&B...I definitely made a few Double fans (especially when I played "Angel").
Sounds like a blast! Okinawa is incredible to visit; I lived near Hiroshima during that time. I can see bumping Double and a lot of Japanese not realizing it's actually Japanese R&B, since it sounds a lot more American soul and R&B. It's great that you converted a few Double fans during your Okinawa time. Also, thanks for your service as well. Mad respect for the marines.
I’m sooo happy I found this video!! Their song “strange things” is going viral on IG right now. & I hope that she can blow up again& this generation can hear this story.
Oh yeah, I saw this going viral on IG and TikTok! I'm so glad that Double is finally getting recognition and the new generation is finding out about her.
Yeah That's the song that drove me to research the group/her great talent 🔥🔥 Good Music is timeless I hope that it sparks a resurgence for her al tho from the video it appears she is very private.
Here's an interesting answer to your question: TH-cam penalizes reuploading and censors videos with "offensive words." Let me explain. With reuploading, TH-cam punishes sites (I didn't know this at first) if you reupload the same video within 24 hours. I had to edit the video the 1st time because of copyright issues on the song "Real Love" and some Japanese songs. The second reason, offensive words, is that TH-cam demonetizes you (in this case, this video) if you say any one of their "offensive words." These words range from cussing to potentially harmful and adult words and political talk. This video got flagged for saying "sexy" I believe (an adult word, according to TH-cam), so TH-cam will hide such videos from its algorithm. It sucks, but until there's an alternative to TH-cam, gotta play by their rules. Many TH-camrs have said similar issues with the platform. I hope TH-cam really scales back on their "rules" and allows TH-camrs more freedom, especially with their "offensive words" auto-censor.
@@Popsori Wow,good to know. Though it's sad the that TH-cam Algorythm keeps being so weird after so many years Now I wonder ,do they have a list of offensive words?
They do. Most of the offensive words include stuff like "sexy" (said it once in my video), "sex" (a lot of TH-camrs now use the word "spicy" as instead), racist speech, and anything crime related. Other censored words including cursing / cussing and anything political. TH-cam doesn't take using an "offensive word" in proper context, like if you're condemning a terrible crime or you having to say that "bad" word to describe the situation. TH-cam is so strict, unnecessarily in my opinion, because they're bending backwards for advertisers for family, friendly ads on videos. Basically, your TH-cam channel has to be incredibly squeaky clean, like cleaner than a Disney movie.
Not only that but Double hasn’t released any music after 2011. She had one song “Circle of Life” in 2015 but that’s it. In my opinion, she had the potential to be even bigger but she didn’t put too much effort into her career
Japanese R&B back in the day was BOMB!! I need DOUBLE to do another CD!👌🏽And yes!! Crystal Kay, Namie, Heartsdales, Michico, FOH, LL Brothers, Bennie K, M-Flo, A.I., aile, Giant Swing, etc I love them all! Add in HIROMI! This was awesome to see !💯💯
The song "Nokoribi" from Double is one of the Japanese songs that I've listen the most. If you love American 90's R&B, you will fall in love with Japanese R&B. I love Crystal Kay, M-Flo, Jamosa, Foxxi Misq, Jine, Utada Hikaru and more. I wish I knew more Japanese r&B from the 90's and 2000. Great video.
Thanks so much for rewatching the video! I'm glad there's J-pop fans out there that watch in-depth videos. I think I'll start to do other Japanese artists in the near future 😀
Amazing vid bro! I've been into R&B as long as I can remember and I cant believe I never delved into the Japanese side until this year! The stuff is incredible! Double's VISION is my personal favorite :D
Thank you for giving us an explanation about Double! It is the most informative, by the way, where do you get these MVs since some of these MVs are not available on YT at all.
I had no idea about Double. I typed in Japanese R&B out of curiosity and this was the first interesting video I saw. She represented American R&B well👍🏾, I was born April 1990 if that matters. If I was a artist I'd keep myself from the spotlight too and only be behind the scenes unless contractually obligated. Also she is beautiful..had to say that😊.
Oh wow, I'm surprised this video is the first result for Japanese R&B. I'm glad you stumbled on it and watched. I really did think she represented American R&B well. As for being born in 1990, you grew up in the 90s with awesome music. Good times! I think for artists, it's so tough to constantly be on and have a certain persona when live. Like yourself, I can't blame her for keeping out of the spotlight. With the last part, she's definitely beautiful for sure :)
I was born in 1999. So this is first time I’ve heard this group. They sound amazing. Great job on the video. 💕I hope you do a video on the future of J-Pop in America. ❤️
Omg amazing to see a video on these ladies they made AMAZING music and I loved them. I found them when I was about 13-14 very en Vogue, Xscape etc. sound
It's in queue actually. I'm thinking of having another way for video requests, such as my email list or Patreon in the near future, since I get many great requests.
Thank you for your videos, they are good references when it comes to K-pop or J-pop showbiz. Personally, R&B is not my cup of tea, in any language, but it is good to know about artists such as Double (never heard of them before).
I loved Double and Hearts Dale's. Such a fun time as Japan experimented with western music. Her collab with M-Flo "Summertime" th-cam.com/video/fOA-guJqtiI/w-d-xo.html was just a hell of a partysong. My gosh she was just beautiful. M-Flo was making collab music videos with everyone back then.
I'm not sure about iTunes, since I rarely use it. But on Spotify, which I'm subscribed to, they do: open.spotify.com/album/0cjz3SMGCT0NDx5ti12lFy open.spotify.com/artist/17R4EPcqqyTa84kesDmNGq
She actually did, collaborating with hip-hop group De La Soul for the song "Say I Gotta Believe" and American rapper Ak'sent "We International" back in 2007 for her album "Reflex."
Thank you for this video and exposing more ppl to these talented and amazing super sisters. Definitely were the inspiration for soul head. Can u do one for soulhead
I'd like to, but I'm thinking each artist deserves their own video. I have the Utada Hikaru script right now and it's over 6,000 words and 10 pages, so that's already a 20-25 min video alone.
Great, I may actually take you up on that offer in the near future. If you have Discord, we have a new Popsori Discord that we use to discuss K-pop and J-pop trends. It's also the best way to reach me. It'd be great if you join and we can continue the J-pop conversation there. discord.gg/pdtxzfD
Big Mama is definitely in my queue. It's tough balancing more indie or R&B acts with mainstream, but I may lean towards more non-mainstream groups in the future.
@@Popsori i mean that they're pumping so much new stuff that no one really cares or needs. U gotta be honest none of these stuff they've been putting out recently has gone mainstream or even in any news site. Things they do seem unnecessary and fit for a specific group that's too small to be sustainable.
@@blueocean8984 I see what you mean. I would respectfully disagree though. Japanese music has a lot of incredible artists and many bangers (which I hope to introduce in the near future). The problem is marketing and that Japanese music labels caught on too late. By the time these labels knew what was up, K-pop took over. You're right in that Japanese music, in general, hasn't made the news like the huge K-pop groups. I would say when it comes to J-metal or J-rock, however, you have acts such as Babymetal and One Ok Rock that have a pretty big fanbase in the West. For indie music, Mariya Takeuchi, of city pop fame, had a 25m view video and city pop started making a comeback in the last two years. There's a lot of potential for Japanese music. The mainstream J-pop genre does need a big act though, I do admit. The last huge one was Utada Hikaru, which was around 15 or so years ago. Today, acts such as E-Girls or some of the LDH or Johnny's groups would appeal to Westerners. But again, Japan's focus on the domestic market and not going West hurt a ton... If Japan and their music labels really pushed more concerts and marketing to the West, I can see a big Japanese star emerge in the future.
@@Popsori Oh yeah. I agree with you the marketing is really bad and while I do agree there are some really good J-music out there, I was referring to the AKB-#### groups. These groups have an incredibly small fan base for the production quality Japan seems to push...which is sad. I don't really follow music but I have to ask: how big even is Kpop? Where I live seems to have a lot of young people who likes it but you seem to be an expert in this area.
Ahhh, yeah, there's definitely a stigma with the AKB48 groups to Western international fans, for sure. But their fan base in Japan, East Asian fans, and to international fans that already like them, their popularity is immense. They're a cash cow despite cancelling the general elections (think of voting the starting AKB lineup like Produce 101, but live on major Japanese TV), and recent controversy by an idol from NGT48 being attacked (I also did a video on her, Maho Yamaguchi). soranews24.com/2019/03/20/new-single-moves-akb48-to-second-place-on-all-time-japanese-cd-sales-list-but-is-it-enough/ AKB48 and its sister groups were a major reason Produce 101 was created and why the third season, Produce 48, was made. Those groups, whether we like them or not, have a lot of influence in Asia. As for K-pop, it's pretty big in the West now. While it's still not entirely mainstream in the US, if you go to the bigger cities, like LA, SF, Chicago, and NY, the general public will probably know about BTS. Others may even know the other big acts, like Blackpink, Twice, or the emerging Monsta X, who was just on the Ellen Show. I have some friends as teachers in high school that say a lot of their students like K-pop. Anime and gaming cons have a sizable number of K-pop fans that attend. And colleges in the US have Korean classes and K-pop dance classes. K-pop is most likely the first thing people will mention if you ask about Korea or music from Asia.
![DOUBLE / Who's That Girl [Music Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Pr1WNuHLvoI/mqdefault.jpg)
![DOUBLE / Who's That Girl [Music Video]](/img/tr.png)
The person who brought Western R&B to Japan was Toshinobu Kubota (King of Japanese R&B). Also R&B was big in Japan. Toshi got several top-five hits and sold millions of records in the name of R&B in Japan
YESSSS! I love his music ❤. He is a pioneer of Japanese R&B.
Japanese R&B was the bomb back in the days... I used to listen to all the artists mentioned in this video
As a person that grew up with her music, starting from her and Sachiko's first album, DOUBLE still didn't get enough credit for/to me. Flowers are WELL deserved for singers/artist like DOUBLE, JAMOSA, ARIA/ASUKA, EMI MARIA, SOULHEAD, Heartsdales, Miliyah Kato, Daichi Miura, Emi Tawata, Emyli, Meajyu, FULL OF HARMONY, Mihiro/Mairo, SONOMI, COMA-CHI, SILVA, Toshinobu Kubota etc.
i love them/her sooooo much
This brings me back. I was a young US Marine stationed in Okinawa, Japan for the 1st time in 2000, right around when Takako was coming back on scene as 'Double'. I remember listening to the Japanese music rankings on my way to base, when I heard the debut single "Can You Handle It (feat. FOH)" for the first time...I knew instantly she was no kidding authentic R&B/Hip-Hop (slow vibrato, stylization, syncopation, etc.). There were other Japanese female artists that would have the look, but none had the soul or sound like Takako (with also a super sexy look). As a black guy, I remember surprising a few Japanese girlfriends when my car pulled up bumping Double...alot of them didn't even realize it was Japanese until they listened closely, and still didn't know or believe Double was Japanese R&B...I definitely made a few Double fans (especially when I played "Angel").
Sounds like a blast! Okinawa is incredible to visit; I lived near Hiroshima during that time. I can see bumping Double and a lot of Japanese not realizing it's actually Japanese R&B, since it sounds a lot more American soul and R&B. It's great that you converted a few Double fans during your Okinawa time.
Also, thanks for your service as well. Mad respect for the marines.
I’m sooo happy I found this video!! Their song “strange things” is going viral on IG right now. & I hope that she can blow up again& this generation can hear this story.
Oh yeah, I saw this going viral on IG and TikTok! I'm so glad that Double is finally getting recognition and the new generation is finding out about her.
Yeah That's the song that drove me to research the group/her great talent 🔥🔥 Good Music is timeless I hope that it sparks a resurgence for her al tho from the video it appears she is very private.
Why this doesn't have more views?
Here's an interesting answer to your question: TH-cam penalizes reuploading and censors videos with "offensive words." Let me explain.
With reuploading, TH-cam punishes sites (I didn't know this at first) if you reupload the same video within 24 hours. I had to edit the video the 1st time because of copyright issues on the song "Real Love" and some Japanese songs.
The second reason, offensive words, is that TH-cam demonetizes you (in this case, this video) if you say any one of their "offensive words." These words range from cussing to potentially harmful and adult words and political talk. This video got flagged for saying "sexy" I believe (an adult word, according to TH-cam), so TH-cam will hide such videos from its algorithm.
It sucks, but until there's an alternative to TH-cam, gotta play by their rules. Many TH-camrs have said similar issues with the platform. I hope TH-cam really scales back on their "rules" and allows TH-camrs more freedom, especially with their "offensive words" auto-censor.
@@Popsori Wow,good to know.
Though it's sad the that TH-cam Algorythm keeps being so weird after so many years
Now I wonder ,do they have a list of offensive words?
They do. Most of the offensive words include stuff like "sexy" (said it once in my video), "sex" (a lot of TH-camrs now use the word "spicy" as instead), racist speech, and anything crime related. Other censored words including cursing / cussing and anything political. TH-cam doesn't take using an "offensive word" in proper context, like if you're condemning a terrible crime or you having to say that "bad" word to describe the situation.
TH-cam is so strict, unnecessarily in my opinion, because they're bending backwards for advertisers for family, friendly ads on videos.
Basically, your TH-cam channel has to be incredibly squeaky clean, like cleaner than a Disney movie.
Not only that but Double hasn’t released any music after 2011. She had one song “Circle of Life” in 2015 but that’s it. In my opinion, she had the potential to be even bigger but she didn’t put too much effort into her career
Japanese R&B back in the day was BOMB!! I need DOUBLE to do another CD!👌🏽And yes!! Crystal Kay, Namie, Heartsdales, Michico, FOH, LL Brothers, Bennie K, M-Flo, A.I., aile, Giant Swing, etc I love them all! Add in HIROMI! This was awesome to see !💯💯
I wanted to know what happened to her. She was amazing
I saw someone on Twitter she continues to make music despite I saw her last project was in 2011 but I can’t find her anywhere.
Double is so lit
The song "Nokoribi" from Double is one of the Japanese songs that I've listen the most.
If you love American 90's R&B, you will fall in love with Japanese R&B.
I love Crystal Kay, M-Flo, Jamosa, Foxxi Misq, Jine, Utada Hikaru and more.
I wish I knew more Japanese r&B from the 90's and 2000.
Great video.
Thanks for watching the video! And I love Japanese R&B too. Maybe I'll introduce more singers in the future 😀
Could you make a video, regarding the J-Pop queens Namie Amuro, Ayumi Hamasaki, Kumi Koda, Hikaru Utada, Ringo Shiina...? Thanks!
Always come back to this video, love to rewatch Double's story over
Thanks so much for rewatching the video! I'm glad there's J-pop fans out there that watch in-depth videos. I think I'll start to do other Japanese artists in the near future 😀
@@Popsori I would love that! In depth videos are definitely something I enjoy.
Double's disco is amazing!! Thank you for highlighting a Jrnb QUEEN 💕
Im black from the UK and loved their vibe
I'm here because Takako Hirasawa is my idol. ^^,
That's a pretty good reason to be here 😀
Amazing vid bro! I've been into R&B as long as I can remember and I cant believe I never delved into the Japanese side until this year! The stuff is incredible!
Double's VISION is my personal favorite :D
Thanks so much for watching the video! Japanese R&B is amazing and vastly underrated! Glad you're delving into that side of J-music.
Double is actually my idol her music help my depression, thank you for making this video.
She's an incredible artist that didn't enough recognition. I'm there's Double fans like myself out there.
Wow! I was so surprised to see this video, but I’m also very happy too! Thank you for posting this!
Thanks I love Double, i always what happened to her.
from the UK
Do a profile on Nao Yoshioka. She's an r&b singer from Osaka. Folks, she's the real deal.
Thank you for giving us an explanation about Double! It is the most informative, by the way, where do you get these MVs since some of these MVs are not available on YT at all.
No problem, thanks for watching! I got the videos on TH-cam, Vimeo, and on Japanese sites.
Thank you so very much for this! Informative
Double, FOH, Mflo, Heartsdales, Bennie K. So many more. I had to buy from a site called CDJapan to get all my CDs before Spotify and iTunes
I was right there with you, buying my CDs from CDJapan. Good times indeed!
Ain't nothing like having that cd collection and man i love all those artist you mentioned so much
what a throwback! I LOVED Double... want to bust out all my old cds now ^_^
amazing THANK YOU
Shes loke the japanese Lauren Hill
I had no idea about Double. I typed in Japanese R&B out of curiosity and this was the first interesting video I saw. She represented American R&B well👍🏾, I was born April 1990 if that matters. If I was a artist I'd keep myself from the spotlight too and only be behind the scenes unless contractually obligated. Also she is beautiful..had to say that😊.
Oh wow, I'm surprised this video is the first result for Japanese R&B. I'm glad you stumbled on it and watched.
I really did think she represented American R&B well. As for being born in 1990, you grew up in the 90s with awesome music. Good times!
I think for artists, it's so tough to constantly be on and have a certain persona when live. Like yourself, I can't blame her for keeping out of the spotlight.
With the last part, she's definitely beautiful for sure :)
@@Popsori Wow! Thanks for responding. Keep up the great work.
Im tellin you, Double did right by black folks in her music
Just discovered Double and ended up here, thank you for the story
DOUBLE needs more love
I was born in 1999. So this is first time I’ve heard this group. They sound amazing. Great job on the video. 💕I hope you do a video on the future of J-Pop in America. ❤️
Just found out about them today definitely puttin them in my playlist
Good stuff, this is what I like to hear!
Thank you so much for this video i just discovered her on ig
Thanks for sharing Japanese great artists to the world！日本以外あまり知られていない素敵なアーティストを世界の皆さんに紹介してくれてありがとうございます。
Thank you so much for watching! I think Japanese music is incredible and needs to be shared to the world. ご視聴ありがとうございました!
Popsori もし宜しければリクエストがあります。是非浜崎あゆみの動画もお願いします。
I plan to do a video on Hamasaki Ayumi in the future! My next J-pop video is on Utada Hikaru.
Omg amazing to see a video on these ladies they made AMAZING music and I loved them. I found them when I was about 13-14 very en Vogue, Xscape etc. sound
I know right! Double is really good and like you said, had that En Vogue, Xscape vibe to them.
Wow I loved this
My fav song from them has to be Strange things!
"Strange Things" is a serious banger!
新潟出身か…どうりで綺麗だと思ったわ…北陸や北の方の女子はすごく綺麗な人が多いから、納得の美人シスターだ。
Thank you for these videos. I really do enjoy them 🧡
No problem at all! Thank you for watching and I'm honored for the kind words 😀
I hope some day you do an episode on Heartsdales!
It's in queue actually. I'm thinking of having another way for video requests, such as my email list or Patreon in the near future, since I get many great requests.
@@Popsori Definitely think about Patreon!
LCS they were dope!!!
Thank you for your videos, they are good references when it comes to K-pop or J-pop showbiz. Personally, R&B is not my cup of tea, in any language, but it is good to know about artists such as Double (never heard of them before).
No worries and thanks for watching! Gotta ask; which genres do you like?
@@Popsori Classic female Kpop (circa 2005-2012, SNSD, 2NE1, After School, etc.), early AKB48, and lately Keyakizaka46.
Classic, iconic K-pop groups indeed, as well as the big J-pop idols. I can get behind those picks.
I loved Double and Hearts Dale's. Such a fun time as Japan experimented with western music. Her collab with M-Flo "Summertime" th-cam.com/video/fOA-guJqtiI/w-d-xo.html was just a hell of a partysong. My gosh she was just beautiful. M-Flo was making collab music videos with everyone back then.
This is a great video.
Oh I love "Black Diamond"
Her latest song is called Upload.
You're right! I should have put "Upload" in this video, as I missed doing so. Thanks for that.
Are Double's songs available on iTunes/Apple Music?
I'm not sure about iTunes, since I rarely use it. But on Spotify, which I'm subscribed to, they do:
open.spotify.com/album/0cjz3SMGCT0NDx5ti12lFy
open.spotify.com/artist/17R4EPcqqyTa84kesDmNGq
Fantastic...thanks!
They’re finally on Apple Music now. Go check them out! (I have all their CDs but still looked for them online. They’re that good!)
@@BSu-ym5mo That's great news...thanks!!
All love to double. I still love your music
I wonder if she's done cover songs and collaborated with U.S recording artists.
She actually did, collaborating with hip-hop group De La Soul for the song "Say I Gotta Believe" and American rapper Ak'sent "We International" back in 2007 for her album "Reflex."
Thank you for this video and exposing more ppl to these talented and amazing super sisters. Definitely were the inspiration for soul head. Can u do one for soulhead
Oh my, it's big a hot minute since I've had someone mention Soulhead :) It's not on the queue right now, but perhaps in the future, maybe.
Popsori I think they’ve disbanded now sadly
It's actually okay, since I also do videos on groups that broke up too.
Can u do a Namie Amuro video?
It's in the works for sure. It's a toss up between Namie Amuro, Hamasaki Ayumi, and Utada Hikaru.
@@Popsori or put them all in one?
I'd like to, but I'm thinking each artist deserves their own video. I have the Utada Hikaru script right now and it's over 6,000 words and 10 pages, so that's already a 20-25 min video alone.
@@Popsori I'm so glad.cant wait to watch them! I'm a super Namie fan so if you need any information about her just contact me.
Great, I may actually take you up on that offer in the near future. If you have Discord, we have a new Popsori Discord that we use to discuss K-pop and J-pop trends. It's also the best way to reach me.
It'd be great if you join and we can continue the J-pop conversation there.
discord.gg/pdtxzfD
Call Me is one of my favorites from DOUBLE
can you do about namie amuro pleasee
Can u also do one on the Korean group Big Mama?
Big Mama is definitely in my queue. It's tough balancing more indie or R&B acts with mainstream, but I may lean towards more non-mainstream groups in the future.
They're the queen of American / J-R&B forever.
Japan is tryharding god damn lol
Hmmm... what do you mean?
@@Popsori i mean that they're pumping so much new stuff that no one really cares or needs. U gotta be honest none of these stuff they've been putting out recently has gone mainstream or even in any news site. Things they do seem unnecessary and fit for a specific group that's too small to be sustainable.
@@blueocean8984 I see what you mean. I would respectfully disagree though.
Japanese music has a lot of incredible artists and many bangers (which I hope to introduce in the near future). The problem is marketing and that Japanese music labels caught on too late. By the time these labels knew what was up, K-pop took over.
You're right in that Japanese music, in general, hasn't made the news like the huge K-pop groups. I would say when it comes to J-metal or J-rock, however, you have acts such as Babymetal and One Ok Rock that have a pretty big fanbase in the West.
For indie music, Mariya Takeuchi, of city pop fame, had a 25m view video and city pop started making a comeback in the last two years. There's a lot of potential for Japanese music.
The mainstream J-pop genre does need a big act though, I do admit. The last huge one was Utada Hikaru, which was around 15 or so years ago. Today, acts such as E-Girls or some of the LDH or Johnny's groups would appeal to Westerners. But again, Japan's focus on the domestic market and not going West hurt a ton...
If Japan and their music labels really pushed more concerts and marketing to the West, I can see a big Japanese star emerge in the future.
@@Popsori Oh yeah. I agree with you the marketing is really bad and while I do agree there are some really good J-music out there, I was referring to the AKB-#### groups. These groups have an incredibly small fan base for the production quality Japan seems to push...which is sad. I don't really follow music but I have to ask: how big even is Kpop? Where I live seems to have a lot of young people who likes it but you seem to be an expert in this area.
Ahhh, yeah, there's definitely a stigma with the AKB48 groups to Western international fans, for sure. But their fan base in Japan, East Asian fans, and to international fans that already like them, their popularity is immense. They're a cash cow despite cancelling the general elections (think of voting the starting AKB lineup like Produce 101, but live on major Japanese TV), and recent controversy by an idol from NGT48 being attacked (I also did a video on her, Maho Yamaguchi).
soranews24.com/2019/03/20/new-single-moves-akb48-to-second-place-on-all-time-japanese-cd-sales-list-but-is-it-enough/
AKB48 and its sister groups were a major reason Produce 101 was created and why the third season, Produce 48, was made. Those groups, whether we like them or not, have a lot of influence in Asia.
As for K-pop, it's pretty big in the West now. While it's still not entirely mainstream in the US, if you go to the bigger cities, like LA, SF, Chicago, and NY, the general public will probably know about BTS. Others may even know the other big acts, like Blackpink, Twice, or the emerging Monsta X, who was just on the Ellen Show.
I have some friends as teachers in high school that say a lot of their students like K-pop. Anime and gaming cons have a sizable number of K-pop fans that attend. And colleges in the US have Korean classes and K-pop dance classes. K-pop is most likely the first thing people will mention if you ask about Korea or music from Asia.
No such thing 😂😂😂Just typical culture vultures. They hate our Rhythm but love our Blues... Malcolm X
You're a miserable person to make such assumptions about people you DON'T know.