September 2021 Episode Guide
September 2021 Episode Guide
Last Month on 17 Carat K-Pop
The 2000 and Late Late Show: The future of LOONA, the underlying causes of ARMY’s disappointment with James Corden, China’s new restrictions on cartoons, behind-the-scenes details about the making of SEVENTEEN’s dance routines, and more!
“STAY Tuned” Episode 11: Why does it seem like so many artists nowadays are getting sued for copyright infringement? Why are more artists than ever adding writers to song credits after a song’s release? Is there a legal distinction between sampling and interpolating an artist’s work? The first half of this episode addresses these questions, with context from landmark lawsuits and experiments on the psychology of copying. The second half of this episode covers all sorts of tech and entertainment news, from the revival of a digital metal band to the app that wants to be “The Next Spotify”!
NCT yoUth: After arguing for and against certain additions to Rolling Stone’s new “500 Best Songs of All Time” list, I share the best excerpts from BTS’s UN speech, information about some IN-PERSON K-pop events coming up (!), and more of the latest K-pop news!
STICKER is Here! (NCT Talk, Vol. 10): I react to and review NCT 127’s new album, STICKER, give an overview of The Matrix, list the reasons to believe The Matrix served as a massive source of inspiration for NCT’s concept, and dissect the many ways one of the band’s “Resonance” monologues can be interpreted, especially in light of the new additions to the NCT Music Video Universe!
RM’s Recs, Ep. 1: The Classics: This is the first episode in a five-part series of guides to books RM from BTS has recommended! This episode focuses on his more popular book recommendations: The Catcher in the Rye, 1984, and The Stranger. I cover the plots, characters, symbols, and themes in these books, and then I draw broad parallels to the symbols and themes in BTS’s songs and music videos.
C.R.O.W.N (Cl and Rose OWNed the Met Gala): After an abridged history of C-rock and C-pop that adds context to the current wave of restrictions on creative expression in China, I share some of the best details in TXT’s series of PAPER magazine interviews, the latest on TS Entertainment’s closure, and more of the latest K-pop news.
The Best New K-Pop and J-Pop: August 2021: A ranking and review of the twenty best K-pop and J-pop releases of August!
K-Pod Save the World: This episode begins with an overview of all the major headlines in China’s music and entertainment scene lately: the disbandment of a band after just four days, the disappearance of a famous billionaire, the banning of celebrity rankings, and more. I use sociological and historical context to better understand why all these events are happening and what they all have in common. In the second half of the episode, I unpack the sources of ARMY’s anger at a recent BTS cover story and summarize the legal fight that had to take place prior to releasing the “Butter” remix. Lastly, I cover a host of miscellaneous K-pop headlines from the past few weeks.
On How to Stan
The Daily Show: How did Stephen Colbert change the perception of the place where politics and fan culture intersect? What kind of impact has this merging of the personal and political had on society? And what ultimately makes someone a member of the "Colbert Nation"? Through both prior research on the nature of television and celebrity and examples of times Colbert's segments had real-world impacts, I find the answers to those questions. Then (starting around the 38:40 mark), I reveal what I think is the key to The Daily Show's longevity. In both logistical and more subjective ways, I explain what about The Daily Show keeps it so well-done and relevant, which Trevor Noah quote sums up the nature of political talk shows, and why an unexpected cameo speaks volumes about what the show does best.
True Crime: There are infinite reasons why people can be drawn to the true crime genre. The horror element excites and intrigues some people. The feeling of becoming a detective galvanizes online communities, sometimes to the detriment and other times to the betterment of investigations. The stories of victims can hit close to home in ways that allow people to process their own traumas. The list of reasons goes on and on, but one thing all fans of the genre should have in common is a desire to be introspective. In what ways has the digital landscape made it easier or harder to achieve true justice and solve cold cases? When does a passion for getting to the truth cross over into an unhealthy obsession with a case? In what ways has social media warped the discourse around crime? Most importantly, what about true crime and its media coverage needs to change? In this episode, I interrogate my own fascination with true crime and how the roots of this fascination can be redirected in better ways.
Sources and Further Reading
A look at the deeper meanings woven into SEVENTEEN’s dance routines
TXT’s series of PAPER magazine interviews
Rolling Stone’s new “500 Best Songs of All Time” list
More on the “Sea of Unconscious” and other philosophical/psychological concepts touched on in NCT’s work
“The Matrix and Philosophy: Welcome to the Desert of the Real”
More on the popular, digital-only metal band
All about China’s indie rock scene
The company comparing itself to Spotify and Apple Music
Background on the one-man corporation that is responsible for hundreds of music copyright-related lawsuits
A study I referenced on cryptomnesia
How the “Blurred Lines” lawsuit permanently altered the handling of copyright infringement claims in the music industry
If you want to read about more music copyright suits that are not mentioned on episode eleven of “STAY Tuned,” there is a database of cases you can read about here!
"Star Power: Celebrity Advocacy and the Evolution of the Public Sphere"
“The Impact of Digital Platforms on News and Journalistic Content”
“People I Want to Know: Twitter, Celebrity and Social Connection”
"Calling on the Colbert Nation: Fandom, Politics and Parody in an Age of Media Convergence"
“The Daily Show: Discursive Integration and the Reinvention of Political Journalism”
“Television Personalities: Stardom and the Small Screen”
“Channels of Power: The Impact of Television on American Politics”
Entertaining the Citizen by Van Liesbet Zoonen
Jonathan Gray’s views on television personalities and fandoms
The study I referenced about why women are more drawn to true crime than men
Examples of times when internet sleuths teamed up to try to solve a case