K-pop in Colombia: Inside a global phenomenon

Bogotá, Colombia (CNN) — Music cuts and restarts inside a dance studio in the country’s capital, as dancers count out loud, refining precise transitions late into the night.

V14 is one of many dance studios in the city known for training urban styles like Reggaeton. But tonight, the choreography filling the room comes from halfway across the world.

Empire, a seven-member co-ed dance group, is rehearsing K-pop routines, part of a growing movement of Colombian dancers who are training, competing and building communities around Korean pop music.

Across Latin America, that connection has expanded rapidly, even though it originates thousands of miles away.

“We as Latin people love to party, we love to enjoy music,” said Johanna Valentina Espinosa, Empire’s leader, who performs under the name Vay. “K-pop brings that feeling of friendship and enjoying things together.”

From fandom to participation

K-pop has been present in Colombia and across Latin America for over a decade, with concerts by acts like ATEEZ and NCT 127 drawing thousands of fans in Bogotá. This year, the country is set to welcome boy group phenomenon BTS for the first time, a milestone moment for local fans and a sign of how far the region has moved from the margins of global K-pop tours.

On the ground, social media has helped the genre’s fandom evolve into an organized, visible cultural scene. Colombian K-pop dancers are no longer only consuming the genre, they are actively participating in it.

Events like the K-Pop World Festival, supported by Korean embassies worldwide, have helped provide structure and visibility for local performers.

In Colombia, the annual competition draws dancers from across the country and serves as a meeting point for the broader K-pop community. While only a small number of teams advance internationally to the final in South Korea, the event reinforces connections between fans, performers and cultural institutions.

Cultural exchange and diplomacy

It is part of a wider effort by the Embassy of the Republic of Korea to promote Korean culture through music, film, television, fashion and food as part of Hallyu, or the “Korean Wave.”

“Hallyu is more than a cultural asset,” said Kyungho Park, Second Secretary at the South Korean embassy in Colombia. “It is a strategic asset that enhances Korea’s national image and promotes people-to-people exchange.”

That influence often extends beyond entertainment. Sofía Alfonso Gaitán from the embassy’s Culture, Education and International Cooperation section noted that many participants in K-pop competitions later apply for scholarships to study abroad, turning dance covers into long-term aspirations.

A regional network

On the rooftop of the Plaza Claro shopping mall, members of the all-male group Double Blade rehearse formations against the city skyline, drawing curious onlookers. Similar scenes play out across the city, where public space has become an essential part of the K-pop dance culture.

“We’re a very new group, less than six months together, and we’re already competing with groups that have many years of experience,” said Leonardo Gómez, also known by his stage name Drako, the leader of Double Blade. “I feel very proud of my group because they are very hardworking people.”

For many dancers across the world, K-pop became more than a hobby during the pandemic years. With studios closed and events canceled, social media became their stage and community.

“I think K-pop is getting really popular in Colombia because after the pandemic, a lot of things changed and the K-pop wave grew a lot,” said Juan Pablo García or Jwamp, a member of Double Blade. “The dance community became a very important foundation for K-pop to grow here.”

Others say the genre’s appeal goes beyond catchy songs or difficult choreography.

“It’s not just the music or the dance, it’s the whole K-pop system that helped it grow in Colombia,” said Jorge David Galviz or Danny, another member of Double Blade. “The people who built the community and created bonds were the foundation of this culture here.”

Korean, with a Latin twist

Members of Empire say they are aware of stereotypes that sometimes surround K-pop, especially the idea that it shouldn’t be taken seriously, but they push back against that perception.

“There’s a stigma that K-pop isn’t taken seriously,” said Juliana León Monroy, member of Empire. “But we treat it like any other form of art.”

Some dancers say they’ve also been encouraged by seeing Latin artists gain visibility within the K-pop industry itself. One example they point to is Santos Bravos, a Latin boy group developed under BTS’s label HYBE as part of a broader push to expand K-pop’s global reach.

“Seeing groups like Santos Bravos makes a difference,” one dancer said. “It shows that there’s space for Latin artists in this world too.”

Alongside them is global girl group KATSEYE, whose Grammy nomination this year drew new attention to how K-pop–trained acts are breaking into the global mainstream.

Both groups will also perform at the 15th edition of Festival Estéreo Picnic in Bogotá in March of this year. The festival, one of the largest music events in Latin America, headlined by Tyler The Creator and Sabrina Carpenter, is known for bringing together international and Latin artists across genres.

Latin America’s growing visibility

Latin America’s importance within K-pop’s global expansion is becoming increasingly clear. Major promotion companies such as Studio PAV, which operates offices in Bogotá and Mexico City alongside hubs in Seoul and the United States, point to a region that is now firmly on the global touring map.

That shift is now being reflected on major stages.

“The fact that a group as big and well-known as BTS is coming shows how music can break barriers,” Espinosa said. “It opens the door for more people to discover the culture or finally see their favorite artists.”

The group’s return to touring has also had regional political resonance. In Mexico, BTS concert tickets sold out in less than an hour, prompting Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum to publicly advocate for additional dates. Her remarks circulated widely, underscoring the cultural reach and economic significance of K-pop across Latin America.

For young people across Bogotá and Latin America who have poured their energy into K-pop, from dancing to community building, the announcement signals that the culture they built locally is now being recognized globally.

The-CNN-Wire
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