Lee Gyu-lee is a business writer at The Korea Times, focusing primarily on IT & telecommunications, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA. Prior to this, she has covered a wide range of cultural news, from film, television and K-pop to lifestyle and fashion.
Music trade show MU:CON to celebrate 10th anniversary
The poster for MU:CON 2021 / Courtesy of KOCCA
By Lee Gyu-lee
By Lee Gyu-lee
The Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) will be celebrating the 10th anniversary of its major annual music fair, MU:CON, this year with a diverse program, including K-pop concerts, an artist showcase and a conference.
This year's MU:CON, Korea's largest international music industry trade show, will be held online from Sept. 30 to Oct. 2 under the theme, “A Decade of K-pop and the Future Ahead.”
“Through the past 10 years, MU:CON has grown along with the development of K-pop, and it has become one of the most outstanding music markets in Asia,” Jo Hyun-rae, the president of KOCCA, said in a statement, Thursday. “As we celebrate our 10th anniversary this year, we hope that people will recognize the importance of K-pop in the global market, as well as the diversity of its music through the colorful fair.”
The fair will kick off on Sept. 20 with a concert, “MU:CON X The Celebration concert,” which will feature K-pop singers NCT Dream, Pentagon, Wonho and Brave Girls, as well as rock bands Monni, Soran and Jambinai.
A MU:CON artist showcase will be held during the three-day fair to promote musicians from diverse genres, such as solo artists Jamie, Kim Feel and Gaho, as well as rookie K-pop groups T1419, Hot Issue, Kingdom and DKB.
Throughout the artist showcase, K-pop musicians like ATEEZ, Everglow, Golden Child, Fromis 9, ONF and WOODZ will also hold special performances.
A conference will be held on Oct. 1 and 2 as a part of the fair to invite speakers in Korea and from abroad to discuss the current trend of the music industry and music-related future technologies.
Anita Elberse, a professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, will give the keynote speech on the first day of the conference. She is the author of “Big Hit Entertainment and Blockbuster Band BTS: K-pop Goes Global,” which is a case study about BTS's global success.
Kim Yeon-jeong, who is the head of Global K-pop & K-content Partnerships at Twitter, will share her insight on the globalization of K-pop, while columnist Jeff Benjamin will share an interview with songwriter Jenna Andrews, who wrote BTS's “Butter” and “Permission to Dance.”
The fair will also open a business pitching program for the first time to provide a platform for technology companies in the music industry to find global investors. Local companies like music licensing platform Beatsomeone, AI technology-based Neutune and mobile recording platform Phonair will take part in the program.
The global music event started in 2011 to help build a platform between local musicians and global music industry professionals and experts, as well as to introduce local musicians to overseas markets.
MU:CON 2021 will be streamed online through the agency's YouTube channel, KOCCA MUSIC, and will be broadcast on SBS MTV, SBS FiL and MTV ASIA.