When people think of South Korea today, they increasingly associate it with culture—particularly the global sensation of K-pop, popular television dramas, and cuisine. Music groups like BTS and Stray Kids are leading the wave of South Korean K-pop.
South Korean entertainment serves as a form of diplomacy. One problem is that the South Korean government has undermined this export by going after the nation’s biggest entertainment company. Right now, diplomatic relations between the U.S. and South Korea are good and bad. CNN reported on September 9, 2025, that 475 individuals, most of which were South Korean workers, were detained at a Georgia Hyundai-LG battery plant causing anger from the South Korean government. This comes in the wake of good news last month when South Korean President Lee Jae Myung announced $350 billion in new investment in American manufacturing. While government relations are mixed between nations, the export of music and movies from South Korean talent has created a different type of diplomacy.
BTS and Stray Kids are both are talented and energetic South Korean boy groups. Their unique sound and choreography, have garnered them global popularity with songs like “Dynamite” and “Back Door”.” They are well-known for blending multiple genres, including rock, hip hop, and EDM. In the K-pop community friendship and healthy competition are a sign of a vibrant market. K-pop is enriched by the connections and diversity of entertainment companies, as shown by the many partnerships and relationships between artists.
At the center of this Korea Wave stands HYBE, the entertainment company that built the most recognizable K-pop group, BTS, into the world’s most recognizable music group. HYBE may appear as just another record label for those outside South Korea, but it is the nation’s soft-power engine.
Soft power is the ability of a nation to attract and influence through culture, values, and identity rather than coercion. Korea has few rivals in deploying this force. Once overshadowed by its larger neighbors, Korea has become a global cultural superpower. And if the Korean Wave has a flagship brand, it is HYBE. It is Korea’s most tremendous soft-power success — competing head-on with Western giants and reshaping global culture.
Tourism authorities saw staggering growth that has been directly attributed to the music of BTS and Stray Kids. The Hyundai Research Institute estimated that BTS generated more than 5 trillion won annually for the Korean economy, including $5 billion in direct GDP impact. At their peak, BTS alone accounted for 1 in every 13 foreign tourists visiting South Korea.
No South Korean brand — not Samsung or Hyundai — has achieved this emotional magnetism. Among the K-pop brands, BTS has done the most to elevate Korea’s attraction to foreign tourists. Fans from across the world travel to Seoul not just for concerts, but to visit filming sites, cafes frequented by idols, and the company’s HYBE Insight Museum. This is tourism as a pilgrimage — a cultural journey rooted in affection, not convenience.
South Korean entertainment is storming the American music scene and becoming a source of soft power for the nation. NPR reported on September 4, 2025, “a K-pop blockbuster lands atop this week’s Billboard albums chart, but it’s not the one you might be expecting: It’s Karma, the new album by Stray Kids, which becomes the group’s seventh consecutive chart-topper in the span of just three and a half years.” The hit K-pop movie Demon Hunters has become the most-watched Netflix original film of all time, and songs from the movie knocked Morgan Wallen out of the number one slot on Billboard charts recently. This cultural wave, or Korea Wave, is real!
However, the South Korean government’s scrutiny of HYBE, a key player in cultural soft power, has sparked unrest and could undermine this economic powerhouse. Ongoing investigations by various agencies threaten investor confidence and the stability of the cultural export sector, which is vital for South Korea’s international influence and economic growth.
It highlights the need for authorities to balance oversight with support for cultural exports that showcase national creativity. However, whatever the legal outcomes, it is critical to recognize what is at stake. The company is not merely a corporate entity but an institution of cultural diplomacy. Its artists have elevated South Korea’s global image in ways that traditional statecraft could not purchase with billions of dollars.
More recently, K-pop group Stray Kids scored their seventh No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 with “Karma.” With this latest triumph, the K-pop group surpassed industry giants like Linkin Park, and Dave Matthews Band.
Culture is currency. The export of entertainment has become the nation’s central bank. This should be a lesson for American policymakers and regulators on proportionality and not using government power to slow down a valuable export