Most (perhaps all?) media companies in Korea that hire foreigners only hire foreigners who are already here. And some only hire foreigners that are on residency (three-year) visas, or F-series visas, because they can’t afford to sponsor work visas or don’t have enough work to hire them full-time - which you have to be a full-time worker to get visa sponsorship.

In terms of finding jobs, some places do advertise openings online, though they often take recommendations from people already working there. Where I am at currently, most of my jobs come from recommendations - but I’ve been working here for nearly 11 years and have made those contacts. It’s not impossible to come here and start fresh, but you’ll have to do a lot of digging around. Seoul Global Center sometimes posts new job openings. Craigslist Seoul is another place to find work. Facebook groups like AAJA (Asian American Journalism Association) will also post a lot of job openings and you don’t have to be Asian American to join the Seoul group. I believe I saw some intern spots open at Soompi recently (but that could have been last month... I can’t remember exactly when I saw it...). 

Best thing is to start looking around and get some experience in. Try writing for blogs or websites in your free time to build up a writing profile and such so you have something to show potential employers. Or even start your own blog - anything to get a byline. It might take some time, but with some work and effort, it’s possible to break into entertainment media over here.

Gah, so sorry. I think this one has been here awhile. I think there is one club that I know of, Club Heavy. Outside that, I’m not sure...

If you have a Korean credit card or account, you can use the Korean site. But only the English site (last I knew... I haven’t bought tickets on the Korean site since August) allowed you to use foreign credit cards.

Hmm, you could always go walk around Hongdae and approach the guys who do busking or the cypher in the park. Any sort of small underground show, the artists are usually very approachable and eager to work on collaborations. 

If there is someone in particular you want to work with, social media is always a good way to go as well. Especially the younger and lesser known folks are typically good about replying there.

Hope this helps!

Ooo, that I do not. I asked my friend who used to live in Daejeon and he said that all the hip-hop clubs he used to go to had closed when he went to visit this summer and he wasn’t sure where the new ones were - if there were some.

A decent amount of foreigners live there, so I would think that there must be at least one or two. I just don’t know what or where they are... Sorry!

I do believe that shows go on there. I don’t know how often (surely there’s some sort of underground scene there), but I have seen some artists do tours down in Daejeon.

Thanks so much! I’m glad that you enjoy it! And I apologize that it’s been forever since I’ve updated or wrote anything. Life has been super busy at my day job and ever since I took over as music editor at the magazine, I haven’t had much time to work on the blog.

Hmm, usually the bigger groups/companies will have someone in the crew who is a designer that does most of their work. Or they use friends of theirs that they know personally. At least, this is what I’ve noticed with the groups that I’m familiar with. I don’t know about AOMG, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they had a designer in house. Even clubs like In2Deep has a bartender/staff member who is designer. 

I wouldn’t know how to get your foot in the door, but I do know that it probably wouldn’t be enough for a full time job. You’d have to have a main job to make money and then work on design on the side - at least until you’re able to build up a decent client list. That is if you want to freelance. You might be able to get on with a company, but again, I don’t really know much about the design industry.

My friends that I know who are freelance designers here usually make their money designing event posters for bars and clubs but it’s not a whole lot, to be honest. Just because there are a lot of freelance designers to compete with. I’m currently working with two different designers on two different events and they are charging 50-80,000 won for a poster, Facebook banner and other miscellaneous design work just because there is always someone charging cheaper. When I asked for recommendations, I got a list of about 10 in a matter of 5 minutes.

Again - I’m not a designer so I don’t know all the details, so take this with a grain of salt. I hope it helps somewhat... 

Yes, there are, but I haven’t had time to update the show list in a few weeks due to covering music festivals and conventions and taking on the cover story for the magazine’s latest issue. Apologies! I’ll just to update it next week after I cover and write my article on Comic Con Seoul. You can always check out Hiphopplaya.com for a list of upcoming shows as well.

It’s a little tricky to get into the scene without being here, though I’m sure you could reach out to other MCs and producers through social media and give it a go. I know of a French group that works with Korean producers and singers a fair amount, however, they come to Korea a couple times a year to work in the studio here and network. 

Off the top of my head, I would suggest talking to Onesun at In2Deep. If he can’t get you in at his club, he is friends with all the club owners in Hongdae and could point you in the right direction. Cream might also be a good club to check with as well. Hope that helps!

I haven’t listened to their latest stuff, but I enjoyed “Trip,” their first EP after military service back in 2013. I’m not sure what they are up to, but I noticed Sleepy had done some TV appearances (I think... just saw it in passing).