Why are people full of nostalgia for the 1990s?

S.E.S., a girl group popular in the late 1980s and early 2000, perform on stage. / Korea Times file

By Rachel Lee

A nostalgia boom for the 1990s is sweeping across Korea.

Renewed interest in pop culture that entertained the nation twenty years ago is in full swing, particularly the music scene; MBC’s “Infinite Challenge,” one of the country’s most popular shows, recently broadcast a performance of the 90s’ top singers titled “Saturday, Saturday is for Singers.” The artists, including dance duo Turbo and girl band S.E.S, aired on Dec. 27 and Jan. 3, recording a whopping 22.2 percent of viewer’s ratings and captured the hearts of nostalgic fans. Called "Totoga" in Korean, the show also featured hip-hop duo Jinusean, techno singer Lee Jung-hyun and ballad singer Jo Sung-mo.

Cable network tvN’s “Reply 1994,” which was broadcast in 2013, was another show that provoked nostalgic feelings for video tapes, beepers and other features of that era.

The 90s boom is also evident in the local club scene. “In Between Night and Music” arrived about two years ago, and it has been one of the popular club nights with long queues in Gangnam and Hongdae, the country’s vibrant clubbing districts. DJs at the clubs play songs from 1990s and accept requests as well.

“It came as a sensation to me,” Kim Jong-wuk, a 28-year-old office worker, said. “I never thought 90s music would be so much fun at clubs because I’ve been more familiar with electro sounds. It’s amazing to see people here go absolutely crazy as if they were living in that decade.”

H.O.T., an idol group that gained huge popularity in the late 1990s. / Korea Times file

This cultural content is huge with those from Generation X but it’s also proven popular among younger Koreans. Generation X refers to those born from the late 1960s through the early 1980s.

Those in their 20s represented 51.2 percent of those who download 90s tracks performed on “Saturday, Saturday is for Singers,” according to KT’s music website Genie. People in their 30s and 40s accounted for 21 and 19.6 percent, respectively.

“I didn’t know anything about the songs in 1990s until I watched ‘Totoga,’” Lee Jin-ah, a 23-year-old student, said. “I think I prefer those songs over the recent ones, which I think are kind of repetitive. On the other hand, H.O.T.’s songs, to me at least, sound original.”

The 1990s was called a renaissance for the music industry, which means that songs and musicians from that era were characterized by their diversity and distinct personality. The most prominent feature of that period was the emergence of talented singer-songwriters who competed with one another to make touching songs. Different genres, other than love ballads, were all popular back then, such as Deuce’s “Look Back at Me,” Hyun Jin-young’s “You Are in My Unclear Memory,” Roo’Ra’s “The Angel who Lost Wings,” and Yoon Jong-shin’s “Reincarnation.” All these songs remind us of the 90s.

Some of those artists now work as producers, and others release albums intermittently.

Artists on the stae of "Saturday, Saturday is for Singers," broadcast on MBC's entertainment show "Infinite Challenge" on Dec. 27 and Jan. 3. The show recorded a 22.2 percent viewer ratig on the latter date. / Korea Times file

“There is not much of a cultural difference between this decade and the decade before, so those in their 20s and 30s can enjoy it together,” popular culture critic Ha Jae-geun said.

Before the Asian financial crisis in 1997, the country was experiencing unprecedented economic growth. A combination of an inexpensive and relatively educated labor force, an export oriented economy and falling barriers to international trade combined during this period to transform the country into an export powerhouse.

Given today’s economic stagnation, people are going retro because they are sentimental about the prosperous times. More and more people are also getting tired of the digitalized K-pop culture, critics say.

Looking back is evocative entertainment as we continue reminiscing about the glory days of music. There won’t be anything like the 90s again, but that doesn’t mean we have to end this nostalgia.