Fandom culture in South Korea

In South Korea, fandom culture has largely formed around K-pop idols and Korean dramas. These fandoms support a large market for official and unofficial fandom memorabilia. Fandoms in South Korea are politically viewed as a mainstream culture and not as a subculture. Fan culture in South Korea emerged post-war, and has contributed to South Korea's economic growth. South Korean fan culture differs from other fandoms due to the fan's involvement with their favorite groups. K-pop fans contribute to the group's success through promotions, merchandise production, streaming, voting for awards such as MAMA (Mnet Asian Music Awards), Melon Music Awards, and Seoul Music Awards, and creating fan accounts on social media that serve as a way to promote idols and their group. This kind of heavy engagement with K-pop artists creates a fan culture that deviates from Western fan culture, developing relationships with artists that span beyond the music itself.