Who is your favorite k-pop idol group? Have you ever voted for the group to help the members win No.1 of the week on k-pop chart shows? Well then, do you know how k-pop chart shows such as “M Countdown,” “Music Bank,” “Show! Music Core” and “Inkigayo” choose their No.1 of the week? Here's how the big 4 k-pop chart shows give marks to k-pop idols to choose their No.1 of the week.
Well, so, it’s that simple? No, it’s not. There is another thing affecting how the k-pop chart shows choose their No.1 of the week.
Broadcasting companies need to maintain good relations with big k-pop agencies because they need the agencies’ popular idols. However, at the same time, the broadcasting companies do not want to be defeated in the power struggle with k-pop agencies. Barely a decade ago broadcasting companies had absolute authority over k-pop agencies, but the agencies became much more powerful now. So, before determining their No.1 of the week, broadcasting companies have to do a lot of thinking about it because their choice could have a strong influence on their relationship with k-pop agencies.
Haven’t you thought it's a little strange that the ranking of k-pop music varies so much from a chart show to another? For example, singers who have a special bond with Mnet including those who have auditioned “Super Star K” usually rank high on “M Countdown,” while if an idol group refuses to appear in a k-pop chart show, they can’t win the show’s No.1 of the week no matter how popular their song is. And idol groups who give appropriate help to a certain broadcasting company by appearing in its various entertainment programs and dramas usually rank high on a k-pop chart show too.
Yeah, everything about the ranking of k-pop chart shows is closely related with the interests of broadcasting companies. All the broadcasting companies say their chart shows are so fair and unbiased, but it’s not true. Of course, I'm not saying k-pop chart shows are all absurd and not trustworthy at all, but I want you to know that there’s something extra about how k-pop chart shows choose their No.1 of the week.
