How Australians are slowly dominating the K-pop music industry

Korean pop music, or K-pop, is now a certified cultural phenomenon that has captivated millions worldwide, including in Australia. But beyond the soft power spectacle lies something closer to home: Australian K-pop stars.

From BLACKPINK’s Rosé to Stray Kids’ Bang Chan and Felix, Aussie K-pop “idols” (the name given to K-pop stars) are bringing their hometown stories, slang and accents to one of the world’s biggest music industries – and by extension, to the world.

K-pop in Australia

The K-pop fanbase in Australia is comprised mainly of teens and young adults. Fans are drawn in by the perfectly synchronised choreography, dazzling visuals and catchy earworms sung in both Korean and English.

While far smaller than the fanbases in the United States or Asian countries, Australian K-pop fans are passionate and engaged. This is evidenced by streaming numbers and sold-out arena tours. As of writing, the song Golden from Netflix’s KPop Demon Hunters (2025) was enjoying its 5th week at the top of the ARIA Top 50 Singles chart.

Australian K-pop fans are heavily online, and many are highly motivated to take part in event coordination, such as to celebrate idols’ birthdays, as well as content creation, from dance covers to merchandise guides.

Offline, K-pop’s growing popularity has seen Australia host a number of world tours, with acts such as BLACKPINK, Twice, and Stray Kids performing sold-out concerts to fans in Sydney and Melbourne.

In 2023, Twice became the first Korean act to headline a stadium show in Australia, to an audience of 25,000 fans. They will return later this year for a 360-degree stage arena tour.

Why Australian idols?

While musical talent in the Western music industry is typically discovered “organically”, K-pop works differently. The industry is run by South Korean entertainment companies, including the “big four”: HYBE, SM Entertainment, YG Entertainment and JYP Entertainment.

These companies cast their nets globally to sign prospective idols, often under the age of 15. Many will train for years, living in shared dorms under strict conditions. Only a fraction of the people recruited end up debuting in a K-pop group.

Singing and dance skills are of course a requirement. However, other factors such as English fluency, international marketability and multicultural backgrounds are now also extremely valuable for hopeful idols.

This reflects a broader trend in the K-pop industry, wherein the use of English has grown, both through song lyrics and the outsourcing of Western idols and artists for collaborations and features.

This was set in motion by the enormous success of BTS’ 2020 hit Dynamite. This song was the group’s first entirely English track, and the first K-pop song to hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Since then, English has played a major role in driving K-pop’s global visibility, accessibility and chart success.

In my research on the rising use of English in K-pop, I have found while an Australian presence in the industry is still relatively rare, it is growing fast – likely due to a demand for English proficiency.

As of 2025, just 25 idols with Australian ties have debuted in the industry – a figure that pales in comparison to the more than 140 from both Japan and the United States.

However, 15 of these 25 idols debuted in the last five years and, most importantly, many are members of some of the biggest K-pop acts, including BLACKPINK’S Rosé, Stray Kids’ Bang Chan and Felix, NewJeans’ Hanni and Danielle, NMIXX’s Lily and ENHYPEN’s Jake.

Rosé, most famously known for her single Apt. featuring Bruno Mars, grew up in Melbourne – while Bang Chan and Felix were raised in Sydney.

These idols now serve as unofficial Australian ambassadors both onstage and online, with their Australian roots forming an integral part of their idol identity.

The ‘Aussie line’

This visibility has led K-pop fans to celebrate this distinct cohort, nicknamed the “Aussie line”. Many fans delight in their Australian accents, use of local slang and stories about growing up in Australia. Some idols even embrace the “Aussie line” label themselves.

In an industry where North American idols are normalised, their distinct “Aussie-ness” provides a novelty enjoyed not just by local fans, but internationally.

At the same time, their presence in K-pop highlights the limitations of Australia’s own music industry, which remains a site of insecurity and instability for local musicians. This is reflected in the ongoing underrepresentation of Australian acts in the ARIA charts.

Beyond this, Asian-Australian musicians (and Asian-Australians in general) have long had to contend with various forms of racism, prejudice and social exclusion.

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Despite having to leave Australia to find fame, the achievements of Australian K-pop idols generate immense pride for local fans – and prove Australia is more than just an audience, but also a contributor, to the global K-pop phenomenon.