Skylar and the K-Pop Headteacher by Luan Goldie ~ Blog Tour

Skylar and the K-Pop Headteacher by Luan Goldie is brilliantly fun escapism. Full of unexpected hijinks and laugh-out-loud moments, it is also a story of empathy and discovering your true self.

Skylar and her best friend, Dana, LOVE K-Pop. When Skylar obsesses too much for her parents to deal with, the worst happens. They ban her favourite band, AZ8! She’s not allowed to watch their newest video or enter the competition to win concert tickets. Just when she thinks things can’t get any worse, an unexplicable electric event causes Skylar to swap bodies with their strict headteacher, Mrs Callus!

In true Freaky Friday style, two completely different people have to try new things and gain some respect if they even have a chance of getting back to normal. But what if Mrs Callus doesn’t want to switch back?

I’m delighted to share a guest post by author Luan Goldie with everything you need to know about K-pop!

A Beginners Guide to K-pop- For parents, teachers, and school librarians

by Luan Goldie

K-pop simply means Korean pop, popular music from South Korea. In 2023, four of the world’s top 10 best-selling acts fell into this category and if you’re around children, you’ve probably met a few K-pop Stans (fans). But what is K-pop?

More than Gangnam Style

Psy’s Gangnam Style is the song that made K-pop global. The video has over 5 billion views on YouTube and there’s even a golden statue of Psy’s hands in Seoul. But this song came out before most of our current K-Pop Stans were born, so while it’s legendary, it’s probably not what the kids are listening to now.

Not Just Pop

Unlike western pop music, K-pop goes across genres. So, while you’ll find lots of cheesy pop, there’s just as much hip-hop, EDM, RnB, trap, indie, soul etc. Some acts even manage to cram several genres into one song!

Members

Most K-pop acts are group affairs and big ones. Twice has 9 members, Seventeen has 13 (I know, strange) and NCT has up to 26 members! Learning everyone’s name is a challenge, especially when members use Korean names, stage names and nicknames.

Content

You’ll never be able to look at a music video the same way again once you indulge in K-pop. The production values, and budgets, are so high. I’d recommend Seventeen’s Super and BlackPink’s Kill This Love as a good place to start. Most acts also have their own reality shows, as well as dance practice videos and live broadcasts. In the book Skylar loves to watch her favourite band members do live broadcasts of boring things, such as eat noodles. In real life, BTS’s lead singer Jungkook Jeon once fell asleep on a live broadcast and almost 6 million people watched!

Don’t other K-pop

Even if you don’t fall in love with K-pop alongside the young people in your life, the most important thing is not to ‘other it’. Yes, it’s in a different language. Yes, it’s different from the pop we grew up with here in the UK. And yes, there are huge cultural differences, most notably around work ethic and gender roles. But think about the message you send if you, as I have seen adults do before, poke fun at these differences or dismiss the genre because of them.

Community

Following K-pop means joining a global community. Each act has its own named fandom, and fans connect with each other at school, clubs, online and specialised events such cup-sleeve parties, at bubble tea cafes. Some fans only listen to the music, while others will collect memorabilia. Whatever type of fan you chose to be, K-pop is about having fun.

Luan Goldie is the author of Skylar and the K-pop Headteacher, for middle grade readers. Her books for adults include Homecoming, These Streets and, Women’s Prize longlisted, Nightingale Point.

Skylar and the K-pop Headteacher by Luan Goldie (£7.99, Walker Books) available now.

Thank you to Walker Books for this fun book! Don’t miss the rest of the blog tour.