Company from SeoulShare throughout Muzikey’s August 2025 present / Courtesy of Muzikey
Custom collides with tomorrow at KOTE in central Seoul’s Insa-dong neighborhood on Saturday, Jan. 31, the place performers will discover conventional Korean music, or gugak, together with the vocal narrative fashion often known as pansori.
On the bottom ground, two DJs will play distinct units, one mixing conventional motifs with modern beats, the opposite layering trendy vitality over historical melodies. In the meantime, the members of Bikabi, a troupe of international pansori singers, will lead an interactive pansori jam within the basement.
Tab Jones, a producer and DJ from New Jersey, will share the turntables with DJ Rio Anderson, former guitarist of Kontrajelly, who will reinterpret Korean conventional music, weaving collectively samples collected from digital percussion and performances by masters of conventional music.
DJ Rio Anderson / Courtesy of DJ Rio Anderson
“Greater than only a style, the philosophy and craftsmanship behind gugak are what made Korean music what it’s as we speak,” mentioned Cindy Kwak, founder and CEO of Muzikey, the organizer behind the occasion together with COO and co-founder Garry Kwon.
“Whereas the trendy trade is commonly monetized and mass-produced, we imagine the authenticity of those sounds is its true power. We’re transferring past EDM (digital dance music) to indicate that these conventional roots will be reinterpreted as a residing, respiration experimental sound that resonates emotionally with a contemporary viewers.”
Tab Jones / Courtesy of Tab Jones
Muzikey is a stay present administration platform meant to assist musicians and organizers placed on their very own occasions. It permits customers to simply promote tickets, handle promotion instruments and deal with the complete course of from ticketing to entry by way of a digital system.
The occasion is being introduced by way of Muzikey’s signature music celebration model, GA:RAK, which Kwak mentioned is called after a standard phrase for rhythm.
“In our heritage, ‘garak’ is the philosophy that when particular person rhythms collect, they remodel right into a single track,” she mentioned. “We’re making use of that to individuals — bringing world audiences collectively to discover a shared rhythm by way of music and interplay.”
Whereas the center of the music is Korean, this occasion was particularly designed for a worldwide viewers. Kwak mentioned the inspiration for this efficiency got here from brainstorming and talking with international guests.
A poster for the GA:RAK occasion occurring at KOTE in central Seoul’s Insa-dong on Jan. 31 / Courtesy of Muzikey
“We realized they’re deeply interested in the true tales and roots of Korean tradition slightly than simply standardized leisure,” Kwak mentioned.
“We’ve curated the expertise to be ‘glocal’ — combining native authenticity with world requirements. To make conventional music approachable, we aren’t presenting it in a museum fashion. As an alternative, we layer gayageum and different conventional instrument sounds over acquainted techno and home beats. By integrating conventional sounds into a contemporary DJ set, we offer a classy Korean-style celebration that feels each recent and accessible to these listening to these devices for the primary time.”
The occasion runs from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Jan. 31. Early fowl tickets, accessible by way of Jan. 20, are priced at 29,000 gained ($20); tickets bought afterward value 34,000 gained and embody one welcome drink and finger meals. Go to muzikey.com for extra data and to order tickets.
