S7 · E6
August 28 · 1 hr 8 min
KB
Kpop Bookshelf
Mina
Exploring Korean Pop Culture Through Books!
This podcast will discuss books written about Korean society or set in Korea to help give a better understanding when consuming KPop culture such as KPop music and K Dramas! Each episode will be about a different book.
- 20 episodes
- Avg 48 min
- English
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S7 · E5July 8 · 28 minA Comeback so BAD, it's Good! - An Atiny Rambling about ATEEZ's BAD
Mina rambles on about ATEEZ's newest song BAD from Golden Hour Part 5 Online Atiny's reactions to BAD Latin/US Fusion Pop Music from the 1990s K-Pop/Latin Fusion Music from the late 2010s Super Junior's Lo Siento KARD (RIP) Getting into music genres Drumming and the perception of rhythm in different cultures The chase and pure male idol Racism and Classism among kpop fans Chase Infiniti for the win! Chase on Hey Tablo! Chase on MMTG HOW WAS THE SHOW - viral Atiny moment Chase Infiniti being one of the best kpop fans (in Mina's opinion)
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S7 · E4June 7 · 1 hr 2 minQueerness in Kpop in 2026 - The Evolution of Queer Representation and Storytelling
Mina is joined by K^2 after 4 years to discuss LGBTQIA+ representation in Kpop today. LINKS: DDing Dong Dding Dong - Donate K-Pop Star Holland Explains Why He Had To Come Out [British Vogue] K-pop singer Bain of Just B comes out during US concert [BBC] 25 years apart, one fight: Queer icons on shattering Korea's closet [Korea Times] 2AM's Jo Kwon Shares Thoughts On Gender And More [Soompi] Landmark ruling finds South Korea military illegally discharged a transgender soldier [NPR] OnlyOneOf evokes LGBTQ+ and Latin pride [AMNY] Discovering Love and Affirmation in OnlyOneOf [Fandomentals] 'Genderless' K-pop band XLOV breaks boundaries by being themselves [Korea Joongang] XLOV’s WUMUTI on the group’s genderless concept [X] XLOV interview XG's Cocona Came Out as Nonbinary, and Fans Are Seeing Themselves in His Scars [teenvogue] XG changes name after a singer came out as transmasculine, nonbinary [OUT] Interview: JUSTB on Finding Their Unique Sound and Carving Their Space in the K-Pop Industry [Broadway World] “It’s Written On My Skin” The Ephemeral She As An Allegory For The Other Self: On Park Seonghwa Of ATEEZ’s “Skin” MV [Her Campus]
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S7 · E3May 13 · 50 minFrom the TOP with a Bang! Another Dimension and Bangchella
A fangirl yap about T.O.P., formerly of BIGBANG, and his new, independent album, Another Dimension! Mina goes through her fangirl journey of spending ten years wondering what the heck T.O.P. was up to after he enlisted (hint: he was in a little, obscure TV show). And a mini-review of BIGBANG at Coachella! Their set charmed newbies and left fans emotional. LINKS: Full set of links at www.kpopbookshelf.com/blog/ow3isg6ssflc42hj57bt2hhcy126y0
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S7 · E2April 21 · 58 minThe Weaponization of Deep Fakes on Women and Girls in South Korea
Mina & Ru look at the spate of deep fake photo and video sexual crimes that took over Korean middle schools, high schools, and universities in late 2024. The progression of online sex crimes in Korea over the last decade is discussed alongside the secondary victimization that occurs when the plight of victims is minimized or dismissed due to the images being faked. Celebrities, including K-pop idols and K drama actors are also affected by the impact of emerging technology on these situations, which is not at all unique to South Korea. Content warning of discussions of sexual assault and violence. Listener discretion is advised. LINKS: “My Life is Not Your Porn” Digital Sex Crimes in South Korea [Human Rights Watch] Cyber Hell: Exposing an Internet Horror [trailer for the documentary on Netflix] Inside the deepfake porn crisis engulfing Korean schools [BBC] On Telegram, countless chat rooms dedicated to degrading deepfakes of female acquaintances [Hankyoreh] Cho Ju-bin: South Korea chatroom sex abuse suspect named after outcry [BBC] Everything You Need to Know About the Nth Room Case in ‘Cyber Hell’ [Netflix] On Telegram, countless chat rooms dedicated to degrading deepfakes of female acquaintances [Hankyoreh] 4 middle schoolers booked for producing deepfake porn of classmates [Korea Herald] South Korea crusades against online pornography [USA Today] Adolescents 80% of 474 suspects arrested for deepfake porn this year [Korea JoongAng Daily] In South Korea, deepfake porn wrecks women’s lives and deepens gender conflict [AP] UK iPhone users face over-18 age check to use services after update [Guardian] South Korea’s ‘world-first’ AI laws face pushback amid bid to become leading tech power [Guardian]
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S7 · E1April 14 · 1 hr 22 minCall Me By Y/N? - Covering the Book Y/N by Esther Yi
Kathy from @mia2k podcast joined Mina back in 2023 to discuss the book Y/N by Esther Yi. They did NOT anticipate the way this book would make them feel (spoiler alert - not great)! Kathy and Mina are clueless about fan fiction, apologies for their deep lack of knowledge! Some topics explored in this episode: The line between a fan's infatuation with their idol and actual love and affection Ageism in Kpop Fandoms How chill of a friend BamBam from GOT7 would be The tricky thing of trusting a stranger just because they, too, are a fellow fan A huge thanks to Kathy for making it through this book!
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April 7 · 6 minComeback Announcement: Putting the K-Pop Back into K-Pop Bookshelf!
Mina explains where the K-Pop Bookshelf podcast has been after an absence of over a year! Hint: Fangirling got in the way! New episodes begin dropping soon!! https://www.kpopbookshelf.com/ Instagram: @kpopbookshelf
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Oct 30, 2024 · 2 hr 15 minDesTINY in the Desert - Our Trip to CHELLATEEZ! (Bonus Episode)
Bonus Episode! My ATINY friend, Ru, and I reminisce about our trip to Coachella to see the first kpop boy group to play there, ATEEZ! We discuss our planning, our adventures in surviving people who don't know how to mosh, ATEEZ's career and their set on Weekend 1. We then go off on a tangent about ATEEZ's Towards the Light: Will to Power tour stop in NYC at Citi Field and our thoughts on Seonghwa's emotional ment. Then we get back on track about Coachella and contemplate whether we would ever go back again. TIMESTAMPS: -00:00:00-00:18:35 Intro, Basic info about Coachella, Background on ATEEZ -00:18:36-00:53:00-Coachella festival and planning -00:53:01-00:58:39 -Day 1 of Coachella -00:58:40-01:16:54- Content warning: Near crowd crush experience -01:17:00-01:19:18 - Coachella weather -01:19:19-01:36:46 - ATEEZ's set on weekend 1 -01:36:47-01:47:13 - Towards the Light in New York Citi Field and reaction to Seonghwa's ment -01:47:14-01:51:18 - After ATEEZ's set -01:51:19-01:54:18- Is ATEEZ behind us right now? -01:54:19-01:59:33 - Coachella Day 2 and Day 3 impressions (FLO, Taking Back Sunday, Tiger JK, Yoon Mirae, Bibi, Jackson Wang, Atarashi Gakko, Yoasobi, Number i, the Rose, and more) -01:59:34-end - Conclusion and would we go to Coachella again LINKS: ATEEZ in COACHELLA #1 | "Say My Name" https://youtu.be/QneendaO8U8?si=Iuo8efLFcCLWgyZB ATEEZ in COACHELLA #2 | "ARRIBA" https://youtu.be/tiFZsr6-pyw?si=Tvq4pgPJoIS3mGVq
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S6 · E6Oct 1, 2024 · 28 minTruth and Reconciliation - The Investigation Into Adoptee's Human Rights in South Korea
Season 6 Episode 6 We look at the latest news surrounding Korean inter-country adoption, including the preliminary findings from Korea's Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The commission is investigating whether certain Korean inter-country adoptions were handled appropriately in response to questions filed by Korean adoptees. LINKS: South Korea's Adoption Reckoning (full documentary) | FRONTLINE + AssociatedPress [YouTube] South Korea was the world’s biggest ‘baby exporter.’ New evidence shows some mothers were forced to give up children [CNN] South Korea reveals new evidence of ‘violent and systemic’ forced adoption abroad [Guardian] South Korean truth commission says it found more evidence of forced adoptions in the 1980s [AP] Adoptees from Korea left ‘stateless’, and searching for their roots [Hankyoreh] Almost 10% of Korean adoptees may be stateless [The Korea Herald] South Korean adoption fraud rocks Denmark as victims demand answers [Daily Sabah] “We have a right to know our history”: Fraudulent records keep Korean adoptees from the truth [Hankyoreh] All records must be unsealed for Korean adoptees who want it, argue experts [Hankyoreh] Korean truth commission to investigate hundreds of possibly fraudulent overseas adoptions [Hankyoreh] Adoption agency found liable for human rights abuses for first time in S. Korea [Hankyoreh] Adam Crapser’s Bizarre Deportation Odyssey [The New York Times Magazine] Adam Crapser vs. Republic of Korea [The Korea Times] South Korea grants extension to truth commission as investigators examine foreign adoption cases [AP] Seoul Searching [ABC] Representatives Smith and Bacon and Senators Hirono and Collins Lead Bipartisan, Bicameral Legislation to Close Loophole and Grant Citizenship to International Adoptees [AdamSmith.house.gov] Congress Introduces the Adoptee Citizenship Act of 2024 [Adoptees United]
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S6 · E5May 14, 2024 · 28 min"Somehow I will find a way to help you" - Many Lives Intertwined by Hyun Sook Han
Season 6 Episode 5 We cover the book Many Lives Intertwined by Hyun Sook Han Mrs. Han was a strong-willed, very honest social worker in both Korea and the United States as well as an adoptive mother. We will learn more about the Korean adoption process in the 1950s-1960s, including the adoption of mixed race Korean children, from the social worker perspective. LINKS Hyun Sook Han, Korean Social Worker and Adoption Pioneer, Dies at 83 [New York Times]
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S6 · E4Feb 20, 2024 · 22 minShedding Light on the Stateless - Adoption of Korean Black Childern In The 1950s and 60s - A War Born Family By Kori Graves
Season 6 Episode 4 We cover the book A WAR BORN FAMILY: African American Adoption in the Wake of the Korean War by Kori A. Graves Dr. Graves explores the unique issues surrounding the adoption of Korean Black mixed race children during 1950s-60s from Korea to African American adoptive parents in pre-Civil Rights Era United States. We also take a brief look at the story of Milton Washington. Check out the links below! LINKS: Dr Kori A Graves Biography [Rutgers] A War Born Family - [NYU Press] World’s Largest ‘Baby Exporter’ Confronts Its Painful Past [New York Times] Jim Crow Laws [History. Com] Occupational Segregation in America [Center for American Progress] Black, Korean and searching for the American dream [BBC] Lives Less Ordinary -Black, Korean, stateless: A Slickyboy’s American dream, part 1 [BBC] Lives Less Ordinary - Black, Korean, stateless: a Slickyboy’s American dream, part 2 [BBC] Adapted Podcast - podcast about Korean adoptees The Janchi Show: Your New Favorite Korean Adoptee Podcast Kori Graves on Black Korean Adoptees - [Time To Say Goodbye Podcast]
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S6 · E3Dec 5, 2023 · 36 minMore Questions Than Answers - The Truth of Intercountry Korean Adoptions - Palimpsest by Lisa Wool-Rim Sjöblom
Season 6 Episode 3 In this episode, we discuss the book Palimpsest: Documents From a Korean Adoption by Lisa Wool-Rim Sjöblom. Lisa Wool-Rim Sjöblom is a Korean-Swedish adoptee who discovers some shocking truths about the circumstances surrounding her adoption. We explore some of the secrets of the Korean intercountry adoption and learn about why some adoptees and adoptee advocates are accusing the South Korean government and the government of the country they were raised in of not enough oversight over South Korean adoption practices of the late 20th century. LINKS: Legally 'orphaned' to be adopted transnationally [The Korea Times] Paper orphans [CBC] Dutch gov't broke law by destroying adoption files: Inspectorate [NL Times] South Korea’s truth commission to probe foreign adoptions [AP] When her mother came to see her, Holt lied and said she’d already been adopted [Hankyoreh] ‘Korea is hiding our past’: the adoptees searching for their families – and the truth [Guardian] All records must be unsealed for Korean adoptees who want it, argue experts [Hankyoreh]
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S6 · E2Nov 14, 2023 · 27 minPlanes Full of Babies - The Rise of Inter-country Adoption in Korea - From Orphan to Adoptee by SooJin Pate
Season 6 Episode 2 We discuss the book From Orphan to Adoptee: US Empire and Genealogies of Korean Adoption by SooJin Pate This book gives some background on how Korea came to be one of the countries to adopted out the most children to other countries. Learn about how the US government and Americans played a big part in this practice, which continues to this day. There is so much more to this book than discussed here, but hopefully you can some small additional insight into the early days of Korea inter-country adoption. LINKS: The Janchi Show - 004 // SooJin Pate + Choco-Pies! [The Janchi Show] Paper Orphans [CBC] Christianity and Korea - How did the religion become so apparently prevalent in South Korea? [The Diplomat]
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Sep 21, 2023 · 1 hr 24 minTo Ask Would Be To Know The Answer - All You Can Ever Know by Nicole Chung
Season 6 Episode 1 This season will be about Adoption from Korea. In this first episode, we discuss the book ALL YOU CAN EVER KNOW: A MEMOIR by Nicole Chung. We are joined by special guest and Korean American adoptee, Kim! LINKS: Kim’s Instagram Adapted Podcast
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Aug 27, 2023 · 25 minLet's KCON? Black Oceans, Hurricanes, and Hi Waves [Bonus Episode]
Bonus Episode with Teeny and JoJo where we talk about our experience at KCON LA 2023! Find out what ticketing was like, what interacting with artists was like, whether anyone actually experienced a black ocean, and how we dealt with natural disasters during a major Kpop convention!
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Aug 15, 2023 · 1 hr 37 minA Little Bit Biased: TFW You Love Your Oshi - Idol Burning by Rin Usami
Presenting Idol Book Club: A Little Bit Biased - a spinoff of our Idol Book Club series! This time, instead of focusing on books read by kpop idols, my friend, Ash, and I explore the act of being a fan through reading a Japanese book about a Jpop fan, IDOL, BURNING by Rin Usami. LINKS: Dictionary . com definition of Parasocial Relationship In Defense of Parasocial Relationships [TIME] Friend or Faux: Are Parasocial Relationships Healthy? [Cleveland Clinc]
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Jul 15, 2023 · 23 minPied Piper: My Reaction to Beyond the Story: 10-Year Record of BTS by BTS
For this bonus episode, I give you my initial impressions and first reaction to the book Beyond the Story: 10-Year Record of BTS by BTS and Myeongseok Kang. I have some thoughts about the structure of the book, a few random bones to pick with some of the topics, some newer things I learned, and what I see as parallels between The Beatles and BTS!
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S5 · E2Jul 5, 2023 · 23 minA Nation Built By Women - Flowers of Fire by Hawon Jung
Season 5 Episode 2 In our second episode about the book Flowers of Fire by Hawon Jung, we explore how the bodies of women and girls were used to build up the nation of South Korea. The government needed the physical labor in the form of factory girls to help gain economic strength, which helped usher in the "Miracle on the Han River." Comfort women were used not only during WWII, but after, as well, and it was the government who oversaw the system of comfort women working in camptowns. The government also needed women to give birth to babies, yet also controlled reproductive health access for women in more recent years. Mature themes will be discussed in this episode. Links: Factory Girl Literature by Ruth Barraclough [Book] Blood, puss and pitiful pay: Why Korean factory workers are calling it quits [Hankyoreh] A Brutal Sex Trade Built for American Soldiers [The New York Times] After 40 years in US camptown sex trade, S. Korean woman rejoices in court victory [Hankyoreh] Koreans & Camptowns: Reflections of a Mixed-Race Korean [Korean American Story.org] Polish Women Hold 'Black Monday' Strike To Protest Proposed Abortion Ban [NPR] Korea decriminalized abortion, but has anything actually changed? [Korean JoongAng Daily] Not illegal but not legal: The murky landscape of abortion in Korea [The Korea Herald]
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S5 · E1May 10, 2023 · 31 min#Me Too in Korea - Flowers of Fire by Hawon Jung
Season 5 Episode 1 - CONTENT NOTE: Discussions of sexual harrassment and assault This season we discuss the book Flowers of Fire by Hawon Jung Episode 1 is about the #MeToo cases in Korea of Seo Ji Hyun and Kim Ji Eun. We also discuss the concepts of Hoesik and Flower Snakes. Links: Hawon Jung: Bio [BenBella Books] KBS World Interview w/ Author Hawon Jung [KBS World] Anthony Rapp Opens Up About Kevin Spacey Lawsuit in First Comments Since Trial: ‘A Courtroom Is Not a Safe Space for Trauma’ [Variety] 4 women testified at Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial that they were sexually abused. Here’s what they said [CNN] Seo Ji-hyun, The South Korean Prosecutor Who Spoke Up & Sparked The Country's MeToo Movement | TIME [YouTube] Female prosecutor opens up about sexual harassment [The Korea Herald] 'Hoesik' can help blow off steam, or spark unfortunate events [The Korea Herald] Young South Koreans are fighting against the return of hoesik — 'compulsory' after-work and weekend gatherings — as COVID-19 restrictions ease [Insider] As South Korean government proposes flexible overtime rules, some fear workers may suffer [Reuters] This country wanted a 69-hour workweek. Millennials and Generation Z had other ideas [CNN] In the throes of South Korea’s #MeToo, it’s “very hard to speak up” [Mic] More women coming forward with stories of sexual abuse following Seo Ji-hyun’s allegations [Hankyoreh] Seoul's Mayor Championed Women's Rights. The #MeToo Allegations Against Him Have Bitterly Divided Korea [TIME] #MeToo: South Korea gives more jail time to harassers [USA Today] How #MeToo movement is pushing for revision of South Korea’s defamation law [The Korea Herald]
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Apr 6, 2023 · 56 minEverlasting Idols: Our Recap of the Documentary Super Junior: The Last Man Standing (Bonus Episode)
One of the representative kpop groups of the Hallyu Wave, Super Junior, had a documentary come out about them called Super Junior: The Last Man Standing! In this bonus episode, my friend, Ash, and I recap and talk about our impressions of the documentary as well as some of our own personal memories.