K/DA: Kai'Sa, Akali, Seraphine, Ahri, and Evelynn from Riot circa Nov. 2020
Collaborations between Western artists and K-Pop artists are a common staple in the modern music industry. BTS and Halsey, Blackpink and Lady Gaga, NCT 127 and Jason Derulo, and so many more are just examples of some of the more famous performers from America that have worked with K-Pop artists to bring a new wave of music to the west. But, there is a new wave of K-Pop and collaborations that has taken the music market and video game industry by storm.spotlight and hot topic of the music industry.
Collaborations between Western artists and K-Pop artists are a common staple in the modern music industry. BTS and Halsey, Blackpink and Lady Gaga, NCT 127 and Jason Derulo, and so many more are just examples of some of the more famous performers from America that have worked with K-Pop artists to bring a new wave of music to the west. But, there is a new wave of K-Pop and collaborations that have taken the music market and video game industry by storm.
Riot Games are known for their video games but, more importantly, their music and the songs created by famous acts for their wildly popular championships based around their popular game League of Legends. The songs are constantly smash hits within the gaming community, making fans of their music out of the players of League of Legends. However, it was in 2018 that Riot changed up the game for their music, for their community, and the music industry as a whole.
Riot decided to take advantage of the wave of K-Pop that was becoming increasingly popular in the United States. They decided to dip their toes in the proverbial K-Pop water and serve a taste of their take on it. So, in November of 2018, the K-Pop group K/DA was formed.
Riot decided to bring on two Western artists and two Korean artists to be the vocal visages of these new K-Pop idols. They brought on Madison Beer, a rapidly growing artist in America at the time, to sing as Evelynn. Jaira Burns, a lesser-known artist, was brought on to provide the rapping/singing for Kai'Sa. For the voices of Ahri and Akali, they brought on Miyeon Cho and Soyeon Jeon from the K-Pop girl group, (G)-Idleleader, lead dancer, and rapper, and Evelynn the main visual and vocalist. Riot did everything they could to accurately portray a K-Pop group, none short of recruiting K-Pop stars to fill the vocal roles of these ladies.
Riot decided to bring on two Western artists and two Korean artists to be the vocal visages of these new K-Pop idols. They brought on Madison Beer, a rapidly growing artist in America at the time, to sing as Evelynn. Jaira Burns, a lesser known artist, was brought on to provide the rapping/singing for Kai'Sa. For the voices of Ahri and Akali, they brought on Miyeon Cho and Soyeon Jeon from the K-Pop girl group, (G)-Idle, respectively. The four talented women grouped up to become the voices of K/DA, singing on the title release of POP/STARS, the first release for K/DA on November 2nd, 2018.
Jaira Burns, Soyeon Jeon, Madison Beer and Soyeon Cho from Soompi
From then on, K/DA went on to achieve global popularity, as is the nature of music from the genre it is apart of, K-Pop. They garnered fans from all across the globe and even got their spotlight performance at the 2018 League of Legends World Championship.
K/DA performing at the League of Legends 2018 World Championships
The group was a success, hitting charts like never seen before for Riot's music, gaining thousands of new fans, and gaining the attention of gaming and K-Pop fans alike all across the globe.
The album went live on November 6th, 2020, and, since then, has brought together fans worldwide to celebrate the release after a two year hiatus, even in the midst of a global pandemic. Fans, now called BLADES, reveled in the new content, music, merchandise, and even the new addition to the game and the group. The group was even given their own light-stick, a common piece of merchandise found in other K-Pop acts. w tracks, acts such as TWICE, Bea Miller, and Kim Petras.
The album went live on November 6th, 2020, and, since then, has brought together fans worldwide to celebrate the release after a two-year hiatus, even in the midst of a global pandemic. Fans, now called BLADES, reveled in the new content, music, merchandise, and even the new addition to the game and the group. The group was even given their own light-stick, a common piece of merchandise found in other K-Pop acts.
K/DA light-stick from @riotgamesmerch on Instagram
During the two years since they debuted, K/DA made a name for themselves in both the K-Pop and gaming communities, garnering popularity among those fans. They've done exactly what they were intended to do: to break into those communities and garner popularity beyond belief for a group made by a primarily gaming company.
We've seen the popularity of video games seep into the TV and movie industries and go beyond the constraints of console and PC gaming. K/DA have delved into the animation industry and provided shorts to accompany their characters lore, they've developed movies and work on television shows to promote their games. It's new to see video games taking an interest in the music industry and dipping their toes into unknown waters, however, not unwelcome.
It seems as if there's much success to be had in the music industry in terms of games, gaming companies wanting to take p is South Koreans. This demographic largely influences many decisions made by the company, especially considering many of their championships have been held in the East Asian country. With the rise in popularity in recent years of K-Pop and other Korean pop culture too globally, the move of creating an inclusive variety of music was not only a smart business move but a move to encourage musical diversity in the United States.
It's no surprise the Korean genre has influenced Riot's art, considering a large consumer of their game League of Legends are South Koreans. This demographic largely influences many decisions made by the company, especially considering many of their championships have been held in the East Asian country. With the rise in popularity in recent years of K-Pop and other Korean pop culture too globally, the move of creating an inclusive variety of music was not only a smart business move but a move to encourage musical diversity in the United States.
Riot Games taking these steps into making a name for themselves in the music world is a big step in a new direction, showing that video games and their companies are more diverse and can assimilate and thrive in any industry they choose to. Not only that, but they've proven that their games AND music can transcend language and genre barriers.
Nevertheless, this isn't the first time, Riot has created music to promote League of Legends. We've seen the same effort put forth by the gaming company to make music like "Warriors" by 2Wei and Edda Hayes as well as "Legends Never Die" by Imagine Dragons. This is the first time, however, they've created a virtual pop group to earn a place in the music industry, specifically the K-Pop industry.
True Damage, Pentakill, and K/DA respectively from Riot
The diversity Riot Games has exhibited in recent years, dabbling in different industries besides games, has shown that themselves and other gaming companies don't and shouldn't just limit themselves to video games. It shows they can acclimatize to any industry and mode of art. However, their proficiency and ingenuity when it comes to making music based off their video games and characters showcase the diversity of their company.
The diversity Riot Games has exhibited in recent years, dabbling in different industries besides games, has shown that themselves and other gaming companies don't and shouldn't just limit themselves to video games. It shows they can acclimatize to any industry and mode of art. However, their proficiency and ingenuity when it comes to making music based off their video games and characters showcases the diversity of their company.
The introduction of video games into the music industry and K-Pop and other genres of music to the gaming industry is not an unwelcome one, bringing forth a new era for both industries and providing a new way to promote video games. Riot Games has thrown a new ball into the pop culture playing field and we can't wait to see what they do next.
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