When speaking about the "Hallyu" Wave, one must never forget the most prevalent characteristic of all: K-Pop music. Most people start off with the "good," but I think formatting this part of the series differently will be effective. So, let's get to the "bad" of K-Pop music.
1. The trainee experience is intense and extensive.
People scoff when I tell them that training to be a K-Pop singer is hard work. However, there are many first-hand accounts and stories about the horrors of "the trainee years" and what happens afterwards. Once a person signs a contract, s/he spends the next four-plus years living with colleagues, undergoing regular weight checks, having 10-plus hours of practice a day and carrying massive monetary costs into their potential careers as debt. Even then, training under a well-known entertainment company for a sum of time does not guarantee that you will make your debut; it's a toss-up of outcomes. Sometimes someone may leave one company to train underneath another or, in rare (and lucky) cases, idols have debuted a few months after joining (e.g. GOT7's Youngjae). Companies implement a dating ban and cellphone ban to ensure that trainees are only focused on their progress.
2. Often times, a K-Pop group does not get paid until their first #1 hit or later.
This is a controversial topic amongst fandoms and the public, more so because more singers have spoken about this through variety shows or radio shows. In extreme instances, a group's first payment may barely meet minimum wage or even be less than that. The group B.A.P sued their company, TS Entertainment, for severe "slave contracts" that instigated a one:nine artist-to-company ratio of payment, abusive conditions and lack of overall support and trust. Though both sides have recently reached some form of agreement/truce, there is no telling if TS will change their ways to any extent.
3. The health and safety of the artist/group is pushed to the back of the company's minds.
Image and appearance are heavily emphasized in South Korea, so companies force their artists (male and female, alike) to take any necessary measures to maintain a certain weight. Extreme dieting (sometimes to the point of a bodily shutdown) and rigorous exercise are part of a singer's everyday life. In more recent news, road managers (those who drive and/or accompany an artist from one scheduled event to another) have been caught illegally using sirens/lights on cars and speeding on the highways. Such a dangerous act cost two Ladies' Code members, EunB (age 22) and Ri-Se (age 23), their lives last September.
4. Idols are seen as money-makers, not humans.
With everything that I have already said, this one is kind of a no-brainer, but it's still worth mentioning. Many times, K-Pop singers have no authority or liberty in whatever they wear, sing about or dance to. All decisions are made by the CEO and brought down to instructors and outfit coordinators to enforce upon the group. It has only been within the last couple years that idols are turning into musical artists, wielding the power to write and produce music, as well as choreograph their own songs. The documentary "Nine Muses of Star Empire" is (in)famous for showing the shocking, harsh reality of the entertainment and music industry in the perspective of a girl group, both pre- and post-debut. Who knows? Perhaps everything caught on camera is only a fraction of what actually goes on behind the scenes. It is a hard-to-swallow and eye-opening film that, I believe, anyone should watch.
I could write more, but I feel like I have already exhausted whoever is reading this. I will send you off with a quote that appears in the documentary (it says a lot without having to say much at all):
"[B]efore debut, there was humanity among us. We had that then. We don’t have that anymore." - Se-Ra, now ex-leader of Nine Muses ("graduated" in June 2014)
