MTV EXIT (End Exploitation and Trafficking), a campaign to promote freedom and respect for human life, will return to Vietnam after two years. It is estimated that 2.5 million people worldwide are currently victims of human trafficking and that more than half of them originate from Asia and the Pacific.

Often, the victims are young. For example Vietnamese men, women, and girls are trafficked for sexual and labor exploitation in other Asian countries like Malaysia and South Korea; they are smuggled into Arab nations, on to Eastern Europe and all the way up to Sweden and the UK while some even go to Trinidad and Tobago and Costa Rica.

In 2010, the total number of Vietnamese working overseas in 40 countries and territories is estimated to be around 500,000, and most of them work in construction, fishing, agriculture, mining, logging, and manufacturing sectors. Many state-affiliated and private labor export companies force these migrants to sign contracts in languages they do not understand and charge these migrants high fee in excess of those allowed by law which forces them into extreme debt from which they cannot escape.

In both sex trafficking and labor trafficking, debt bondage, confiscation of identity and travel documents, and threats of deportation are commonly utilized to intimidate victims.

Therefore, the MTV campaign in Vietnam includes a nation-wide initiative against human trafficking, featuring a series of events, TV shows, and the very first multi-media exhibition on human trafficking as part of MTV EXIT Youth Sessions. The exhibition will highlight innovative ways of discussing this issue. It will be divided into a series of different experiences, such as video, music, photography, and interactive activities for young people. The flagship event will be a massive live concert at Hanoi’s My Dinh Stadium on May 26, featuring performances by famous Vietnamese singers along with Canadian modern-rock sensation, Simple Plan.

This will be Simple Plan’s first-ever live performance in Vietnam. Simple Plan‘s members have established “The Simple Plan Foundation”- to support a variety of worthycauses, including various cancer charities.

“Over our career, it’s always been very important for us to get involved socially and support causes that are close to our hearts. We started the Simple Plan Foundation with the goal of helping young people in need,” said Chuck Comeau, the drummer of Simple Plan. “Teaming up with MTV EXIT to raise global awareness around the issue of human trafficking is exactly what our mission is all about.

Human trafficking is a horrible crime with devastating consequences for so many young people and their families. We are proud to stand together with MTV EXIT and their partners in the fight against exploitation. We can’t wait to play in Vietnam for the first time and are looking forward to informing our fans on how they can get involved and help out.”

The organizer of the live concert hope it will be successful as MTV EXIT’s 2010 concert tour in Vietnam, where 80,000 Vietnamese music fans attended four concerts across the country, including performances by K-pop band Super Junior.

To find out more about human trafficking and exploitation in Asia, visit www.mtvexit.org or follow MTV EXIT on the following social media platforms: Twitter @mtvexit and www.facebook.com/mtvexit

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What do the following boy bands have in common: Backstreet Boys, NSYNC, and New Kids on the Block? All of them have at least five members. These three will forever be remembered, even if boy bands rarely exist in American music. However, on the other side of the world, boy bands are high in demand in countries like South Korea. They are so popular that one boy band was nominated to be in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the boy band with the highest number of members: lucky 13! This group is no other than Super Junior!

In 2005, under SM Entertainment, Super Junior debuted with twelve members: Leader Leeteuk, Heechul, Han Geng, Yesung, Kangin, Shindong, Sungmin, Eunhyuk, Donghae, Siwon, Ryeowook, and Kibum. SM’s original plan was to create a rotating project called Super Junior 05 where the members would “graduate” and new members would be added. However, in May 2006 before the release of their second album, a thirteenth member, Kyuhyun, was added and the project was abandoned. The thirteen members became Super Junior.

On May 25, 2006, Super Junior released their single “U” online for free download. With over 400,000 downloads within five hours of release, the single had crashed the server. The single became one of Korea’s most popular songs of the year, yielding #1 spots for five consecutive weeks on two of Korea’s top music programs. By the end of the year, Super Junior had collected over seven awards, including “Best New Group of 2006.”

Under the main group, there are four sub groups: Super Junior K.R.Y., Super Junior-T, Super Junior-Happy, and Super Junior-M. The first sub group, debuting in late 2006, consists of three members: Kyuhyun, Ryeowook, and Yesung, and they mostly sing ballads. The members of Super Junior-T sing trot songs, while Super Junior-Happy’s music style involves the common style of contemporary dance music and bubblegum pop. Finally Super Junior-M (M stands for Mandarin) targets the Chinese music market, but not limited to only China. Only K.R.Y. and Super Junior-M are still active, as well as the parent group Super Junior. In fact, on February 28, 2011, Super Junior-M released their latest EP “Perfection.”

After their second album, “Don’t Don,” Super Junior released their third album “Sorry, Sorry” in 2009, with their title track of the same name. About 150,000 copies of “Sorry, Sorry” were pre-ordered, and 30,000 copies sold after release, making it the biggest opening day for the group. The album debuted #1 on Hot Tracks Gayo Best 5 by the third week.

This album was also the first Korean-language album to sell over 215,000 copies in 2009. The following year, the group released their fourth album, “Bonamana” on May 13, 2010 with 200,000 pre-ordered copies and over 36,000 copies sold on the first day of release. According to the South Korean album chart Gaon, a cumulative total of almost 300,000 copies of all versions were sold, awarding the album “Best Selling Album of 2010.” The group has also headlined three tours and has been affiliated with three tours with their company’s other artists. The group, along with a few other SM artists, just completed a two-day concert event in Paris on June 10 and 11 as part of the SMTown Live ’10 World Tour.

Presently, the group is down to ten members in the parent group and twelve members, including the two members from Super Junior M. This is due to one member, Kangin, serving his mandatory two years service in the military, Kibum who is pursuing his acting career, and Han Geng who left the company, under a lawsuit.

However, this has not stopped the members from continuing to produce new songs, especially with a fifth album soon to be released. The members are also radio show hosts, MCs on different shows and continue to be guest stars on variety shows. They are still an amusement to watch, each not afraid to show their comedic and silly sides.

The group recently finished their Super Show 3 tour across Asia. During the middle of each concert, one member would turn into “Lady Hee,” as a parody of Lady Gaga and would sing “Poker Face.” Right after Lady Hee would exit, three more members, dressed in one piece black leotards and girl wigs, would start singing and dancing to “Single Ladies” by Beyonce. At the end of this comedic feat, the trio would meet up with Lady Hee to sing and dance to “Crazy in Love” by Beyonce. This just proves that the boys are not afraid of dressing up as girls and creating laughter and amusement for their fans.

Most of all, they still have one of the largest fan-bases across the globe, and that is a feat! While it may be easy to read about this group, it is much more enjoyable to look them up and listen to their music. Just because a listener doesn’t understand Korean, doesn’t mean he or she can’t enjoy the different styles that this group conveys. So check them out, you won’t be disappointed.

Image Courtesy: http://sjfantasy.files.wordpress.com

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Lately, American music can be described in one word: baroque. The simple eight notes Pachelbel’s melody can be found in many popular songs, such as Avril Lavigne’s “Skater Boy” or Aerosmith’s “Crying.”

Radios today play popular songs that include two main themes: a dancing rhythm and some guy trying to seduce a girl. Artists including Usher, Lil Wayne, Taio Cruz, and Flo-Rida have engaging songs with upbeat rhythms, perfect for dancing. However, when listening to the lyrics, the same songs are just like the rest, talking about sexual exploitations of women. There is no creativity or uniqueness. Enter Korean Wave.

Korean Wave, aka Hallyu, refers to the spread of Korean culture across the globe from Europe to Latin America, entertaining society through movies, music, and food. Though North American Hallyu is fairly recent, Koreans are no strangers in Hollywood. In fact, many Hollywood producers have been requesting Korean and Korean-Americans to star in their movies. In May 2009, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, starring Korean actor Daniel Henney, appeared in theaters. Later in the summer, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra was released in August, starring Byeong-Heon Lee. Finally in November, actor and singer Rain was the lead role in Ninja Assassin.

Aside from film entertainment, Hallyu has also impacted music. The three top entertainment agencies in Korea, SM, JYP, and YG have produced many popular artists. Artists such as Wonder Girls, Big Bang, Super Junior, and 2PM have made swept various music charts in the US. In fact, in 2009, Wonder Girls were the first Korean singers to place on US Billboard’s Hot 100 charts with their song “Nobody.” Hallyu has not gone unnoticed by US music producers. Korean artists are collaborating with many well-known producers including Kayne West, Teddy Riley, DJ Diplo, Rodney Jerkins, and Will.i.am.

Why exactly is K-pop so popular? For one thing, the music is addicting and fresh. Each artist has their own unique style of music, from girly to eye-catching, shirt ripping. The lyrics have more meaning than “getting the girl.” There are many genres from ballads to hip hop to rock. Korean artists sing with feelings, pouring into their music, about love, heartbreak, friendship, and happiness. However, there is more to just music that makes k-pop entertaining. There are variety shows that the artists appear as guests as well as dramas and movies. The entertainment companies select individuals who have raw talent and individuality that can be shaped to not only become singers but also radio show hosts, actors, dancers, and models.

With the Korean Wave hitting the US, one would think there would be more artists trying to make a break in the American music market and yet only a handful have attempted. The earliest artist to debut in US was Se7en, in March 2008 with his single “Girls” featuring Lil Kim. Shortly after, Queen of K-pop BoA debuted in October 2008 with her hit single “Eat You Up.” The summer of 2009 was a major moment in K-pop when Wonder Girls were chosen to be one of the opening acts for the Jonas Brothers World Tour. In 2011, the trio JYJ is headlining their second world tour hitting major cities including Los Angeles, New York City, and San Jose.

Besides touring the US, there have been several artists that have made a different splash: US iTunes Chart. Between 2010 and 2011 there have been four major artists to make a mark on iTunes Chart. In March 2010, music group Epik High became the first Korean to debut #1 in the Hip-hop album chart with their album Epilogue beating out performers such as Ludacris, Kayne West, Jay-Z, Beastie Boys, and Black Eyed Peas. Four months later, solo artist Taeyang placed #3, becoming the first Korean artist to place under R&B/Soul album category. Continuing to September, 2NE1’s new album To Anyone debuted #2, beating previous artist. The shocking news is that this group did not have any overseas promotions! Lastly, in February of 2011, Big Bang made a record in the top 10 based solely on their pre-orders. Not only that but they are the only non-English language album to ever chart in the top 100.

I guess what I am trying to say is the K-pop genre is vibrant and continue to make their way to the US market. With fans all over the world, the US is no exception. As Hallyu continues to spread across the globe, expect to see more Korean artists making indents in the US market. The music is fun, great workout songs, and is more relatable. For those who are interested in this genre, a few artists to look into are TVXQ, Super Junior, Big Bang, SNSD, and Epik High.

Image Courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/bokamokacoka/

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