The regime in Pyongyang has released a new song praising the country's leader.
A North Korean propaganda song praising the country's dictator Kim Jong Un has become a surprise hit on TikTok.
According to the newspaper Telegraph It shows people all over the world listening to the pop song “Friendly Father”.
Users even created remixes of the song, and posted new versions on TikTok.
The regime released this song last April, and it is the latest in a series of pop songs released by the authoritarian regime over the past fifty years.
– The song is stuck in my mind, written by a Tik Tok user under one of the videos.
– When will the song be on Spotify, writes another.
People recognize the song musically
The Telegraph spoke to a North Korea analyst based at Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul, South Korea. He says songs from North Korea are often ridiculed if they go viral.
This is one of the first, if not the only, times I've heard of a North Korean song going viral, with people from around the world expressing their appreciation for it, musically, says Peter Moody.
Different life, different country
Japan occupied Korea from 1910 to 1945. After expelling the Japanese occupiers, the country split into two parts. North Korea, which was supported by the Soviet Union at the time, among others, and South Korea, which was supported by the United States.
Since then, the two countries have become like polar opposites. While South Korea has become one of the largest economies in the world, North Korea is a very poor country.
The country imposes strict sanctions on it. They do not trade with Western countries and there is no cooperation with Western countries either.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been the country's leader since the death of his father. The country is a dictatorship and the people there live very different lives than most places in the world.
The country has many rules that citizens must follow. If not, they may face severe punishments or even death.
“Coffee trailblazer. Certified pop culture lover. Infuriatingly humble gamer.”
