I am interested in this question because I've been involved with Korean pop music ever since I was a freshman in high school. Since then I have had this desire to learn about every aspect of Korean culture, food, language, and especially music. The fact that it's so different than American music makes me feel different and slightly cool, like I'm always going to find something new and interesting to talk about with my friends. That being said, being able to choose this as my research topic makes me excited to research and learn even more about K-Pop. 

I've always had this question about the way K-Pop artists are treated. Yes, their lives seem perfect and glamorous with their perfect bodies and perfect makeup and perfect dancing, but as I learned more and more about what actually goes on behind the scenes, I was disappointed. Trainees are worked to the point of exhaustion and sometimes don't even get the chance to debut. It all seems so ridiculous that the companies would go so far as to sacrifice their artists' physical and mental health in order to be manufactured into a money-making machine. I love K-Pop with every fiber of my being, but there needs to be a line drawn to make sure that idols do not suffer on the inside while the rest of the world enjoys the perfect image on the outside.    

My first source is an article from BBC News titled "The Dark Side of South Korean Pop Music." Even though South Korean Pop music is becoming a massive industry, it has always had a dark past. Often artists would not get paid enough even with the long hours and long contracts. With K-Pop expanding overseas, this may force the industry to reconsider how they treat their artists, since, according to a former policy director, the current industry is not sustainable. The things at stake include the K-Pop artists and the industry itself. Will the artists be able to continue to live and work like this and will the industry learn to support them? As long as the issues still remain with legal controversies and money issues, the industry will struggle (Williamson). Since the author is reporting from BBC News, an established news site in the United Kingdom, it can be expected that the information is truthful. There is a little bit of bias because it seems like the author is in more support of companies changing their ways.

My second source is an article titled "K-Pop 'Slave Contracts'  --  A Closer Look." Many K-Pop idols sign contracts at a young age to be bound to a company for training, reaching as much as 13 years and having high demands, and some have chosen to fight back to get better conditions. However, do only the ones lashing out find the terms unreasonable? Maybe to other idols the pain and suffering is worth it for fame (Victoria). This article focuses on values like the amount of work asked for from young artists and how they are pushed past their mental and physical limits. The author just has a name with no background, but the site is credible because of the fact that its aim is to deliver all the information and happenings of Korean culture, food, music, film, and fashion to international fans. Bias is not really apparent in this source.

My third source is an article titled "The Road to K-Pop Stardom: Training." Young artists who are accepted to potentially become a K-Pop star often take on average 2-5 years of training before debuting. If at any point trainees do not meet the expectations of the company, they are dropped without a second chance. Afterwards, trainees can either go back to their normal lives or, if they're lucky, get picked up by another company (Guest, "The Road to K-pop Stardom: Training"). This article draws attention to the work ethic of trainees. The author is just listed as "Guest" on the site, a news platform for Asian and mostly Korean music, dramas, fashion, culture, and food. There's not much bias since the author is just explaining what K-Pop idols do during their training days before debuting, but in the end the author puts these difficult trainee days in a positive light saying how idols remember their days as a trainee and how it was a step towards achieving their dreams.

This research question is arguable because there are good and bad sides to the Korean pop music industry. On one hand, it has been successful at helping South Korea's economy, creating entertaining catchy music, and establishing a huge fan base for solo artists and groups, but at what cost? Is it worth it to completely exhaust the idols and ruin their lives by isolating them in order to practice and become perfect? Do the pros outweigh the cons? These questions and more can be discussed in much detail. Between the sources, there is an agreement that the idols can be overworked often with conditions that are difficult for artists at such a young age. There is really no disagreement between the articles. The different perspectives that each of these articles were written in has given me more insight on many different things that go on behind the scenes in the K-Pop world. I might need to revise the last part of my research question, probably about what exactly it means to "handle artists' lives." I would need to rephrase that to make it sound more understandable.

