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Music programs of South Korea

Music programs of South Korea are broadcast weekly, with different artists performing on the shows to promote their music.[1]

South Korea's largest broadcasting companies each have their own show, which are broadcast on different channels. SBS has Inkigayo, KBS has Music Bank, MBC has Show! Music Core (also known simply as Music Core), Mnet has M Countdown, MBC M has Show Champion and SBS MTV has The Show.

or The Music Trend (previously known as SBS Popular Song) airs on SBS every Sunday.[2] It is currently hosted by actor Moon Seong-hyun, Han Yujin of Zerobaseone and Leeseo of Ive.[3]

Inkigayo

airs on SBS M every Tuesday. It is currently hosted by Xiaojun of WayV, Hyeongjun of Cravity and Nana Of UNIS.[4]

The Show

airs on MBC M every Wednesday. It is currently hosted by Gaon of Xdinary Heroes and Keum of Epex.[5]

Show Champion

airs on Mnet every Thursday.[6] It is currently hosted by Sohee of Riize, Jaehyun of BoyNextDoor and Hanbin of Zerobaseone.[7]

M Countdown

airs on KBS2 and KBS World every Friday.[8] It is currently hosted by actor Lee Chae-min and Eunchae of Le Sserafim.[9]

Music Bank

airs on JTBC every Saturday.[10] It is currently hosted by soloist BoA.[11]

Music Universe K-909

Virtual Gayo Top 10 (formerly known as Top 10 Songs) airs on every Friday. It is currently hosted by AleXa. It was previously aired on KBS from February 10, 1981 to February 11, 1998. It was revived in March 25, 2022. Its popularity in South Korea was unrivaled, since it was airing at a time when cable television and the internet wasn't as developed. It had a song ranking system similar to Music Bank which replaced Bravo New Generation, a music program originally intended to be the show's replacement but stopped airing only after a few months.[12]

KBS World

airs on MBC every Saturday. It is currently hosted by actor Lee Jung-ha, Younghoon of The Boyz and Sullyoon of Nmixx.[13]

Show! Music Core

airs on Arirang TV every Friday.[14] It is the only South Korean music program that has never had a chart system. It is also the only English-language South Korean music show. It is currently hosted by Lee Dae-hwi from AB6IX.[15]

Simply K-Pop

Show! Music Core broadcast for over seven years without a chart system from December 31, 2005, before it was brought back on April 20, 2013. It was once again removed on November 21, 2015. On April 22, 2017, the chart system was brought back yet again.[33]

[32]

Inkigayo revamped the show on July 15, 2012, without the chart system but revived it again on March 17, 2013.

[34]

The Show broadcast for over three years before it introduced a chart system on October 28, 2014.

[35]

Show Champion started broadcasting on February 21, 2012.

Music Bank has been airing since June 16, 1998. The last winner was on August 2, 2001, before the chart system was abandoned. It was revived again on September 7, 2007.

M Countdown has been airing since July 29, 2004 and has always had a chart system.

International impact[edit]

According to Caitlin Kelley of Billboard, South Korean music shows have incorporated international participation through social networking sites such as YouTube, which has been integrated into their voting system with the views of an artist's music video. She also credits these music shows for their participation in the globalization of K-pop. Every music program has its own regularly updated YouTube account, which allows persons outside of South Korea the opportunity to view the artists' performance, thereby offering a larger exposure of K-pop acts to other parts of the world. In a 2018 interview with Billboard, Dr. Suk-Young Kim, a professor at the University of California, claimed that "YouTube is how you circulate yourself internationally" but outside of the website, South Korean music had already reached overseas fans directly by "bringing those music chart shows overseas and creating a live concert out of them", citing Music Bank which has gone on world tours since 2011 as an example. Kim also mentioned KCON, a music festival organized by M Countdown, as a means to showcase "every element of Hallyu encompassing pop music, TV dramas, movies, fashion, food, and beauty".[22]