Last September, New Mexico State University student Tatum-Miranda Betancourt and her friend Roxy Nieto created the university’s K-pop Club, the “KCLUB”, out of their love for Korean popular music.
Betancourt, the club’s president, and Nieto invented the club to provide a space for students to get together and celebrate K-pop and the culture of the music genre. Over the past year, the club has become more than just a group of K-pop fans.
“When we first started it was sort of a high turnover, so now we are getting to actual core members, and there are a lot of us,” Betancourt said. “Our goal is to just find friendship and community and to appreciate other cultures as well.”
Alexandra Garcia, another club officer, and Betancourt said they strive to be more involved on campus this semester and focus on creating visibility for the diverse community present at NMSU.
“We want to collaborate with more student organizations,” Betancourt said. “If there is one thing about K-pop fans, is that they are diverse; I think our group totally reflects that. It shows that the love for K-pop transcends culture, and I think it is our mission this semester to spread the K-pop agenda. It’s good music; it’s just fun.”
During the club’s weekly meetings, members partake in various activities, such as bead crafts and game nights. To continue to encourage members’ creativity, they want to partner with local Korean businesses by making unique cup sleeves, usually with a K-pop band member featured on them, to be included with the drinks that customers purchase. They have also started dance workshops to perform and compete at dance events.
“We have started expanding and networking, and we just want to make sure everyone feels that it is a safe space,” Garcia said.
Gain Park, NMSU professor in the Department of Journalism and Media Studies is the faculty advisor for the KCLUB. Park said they have provided a variety of multicultural experiences, not only with Korean music.
“I think it’s meaningful to celebrate minority culture where we only have about 0.122% Asian student population in NMSU,” Park said. “The club provides an arena where students can openly talk about minority cultures and celebrate them together as well as introduce them to ‘muggles.’ In this sense, the club has been collaborating with the Japanese Culture Club and the International Club of NMSU. So, I think it’s not only about Korean music and performance, but it’s about expanding the range of representation of underrepresented culture.”
An NMSU student who has been a member of the organization since it evolved, Jared Alderman, has had a positive experience with the welcoming environment.
“It is just a good time, and the people are great,” Alderman said. “It is a chill atmosphere and I feel like it is a place where people of all cultures can just come and share this passion.”
Visit the KCLUB’s Instagram page, @KCLUBNMSU, for more information and updates.
