K-pop is Oscar-approved.

Earlier this year, for the first time in Oscar history, a K-pop song took home a statuette for original song, when “Golden,” from the Netflix animated 2025 film “KPop Demon Hunters,” performed by the group HUNTR/X, snagged the honors.

It was inevitable, since K-pop, or Korean popular music, which emerged out of South Korea in the early 2000s, hit the American mainstream with Psy’s 2012 hit “Gangnam Style” and went gangbusters.

The new tour, “Forever K-Pop – A Celebration Concert,” will feature K-pop hits, including “Golden,” on Tuesday at the Pikes Peak Center.

Emily Anne Goes, a Filipino actor, singer,and dancer based in New York City, is part of a cast of four women, one of whom is a DJ, and two men.

“It’s (K-pop) insanely impressive,” said Goes, a musical theater performer. “The stamina that it takes to sing and dance that K-pop idols are doing is crazy. Nobody on Broadway is doing the work they’re doing. On Broadway, if you’re singing lead, you can just focus on singing. But if you’re dancing, you’re part of the ensemble. In K-pop, you’re expected to sing and dance and have solos and go for hours.”

What is K-pop?

It’s performance-centered music presented by idols, according to Stephanie Choi, a professor of ethnomusicology at the University of Colorado in Boulder. The group of performers is selected and rigorously trained by entertainment companies, often starting in their early teens, she told CU Boulder Today earlier this year.

The music is a blend of pop, hip-hop, R&B and electronic dance music, paired with synchronized choreography, and high-production music videos.

Part of the appeal for fans is watching the idols grow and often take off on solo careers.

“There are lots of social functions in music,” Choi said. “It could be for entertainment. It could be for ritual. It could also be for community building. K-pop culture makes you want to be part of the community.”

Goes appreciates the culture, intricate choreography and music.

“It’s not the same as American pop, although because of globalization, everything is connected to everything,” Goes said. “One characteristic is that people are featured throughout the song in different ways. You won’t hear the same chorus sung by the same person. Groups have specific singers and rappers that excel because that’s their strength. It’s a nice balance of impressive singing and produced music.”

The set list

Among the show’s two 45-minute acts will be the songs “Golden,” “Takedown” and “Soda Pop” from “KPop Demon Hunters”; Katseye’s “Debut”; “Seven” by Jung Kook featuring Latto; BTS’ “Butter”; BLACKPINK’s “Ddu-Du Ddu-Du”; NewJeans’ “Supershy”; and “Maniac” by Stray Kids.

Growing up K-pop

Goes spent her formative years watching the Disney Channel and singers Miley Cyrus and Selena Gomez, and was also influenced by the 2023 Netflix reality show “The Debut: Dream Academy,” which chronicled the making of the girl group Katseye.

“It’s been fun to see the children reacting to the show,” she said. “Singing the hits like ‘Golden’ and barely being able to hear myself because the kids are screaming at the top of their lungs.”

The making of a K-pop star – training from a young age to potentially become a pop star – reminds her of training for musical theater.

“I’ve been training since I was 8,” she said. “I could see the similarities between being a musical theater performer in the U.S. and wanting to be a K-pop idol in Korea.”

IF YOU GO

What: “Forever K-Pop – A Celebration Concert”

When: 7 p.m. Tuesday

Where: Pikes Peak Center, 190 S. Cascade Ave.

Price: $32-$217; pikespeakcenter.com, axs.com