K-drama dating shows and their music: OSTs, remakes, and copyright explained

Korean reality dating shows are quietly becoming one of the most active spaces for music licensing and OST releases.

JTBC's 연애전쟁 dropped its second OST, 연애, recently. The track is a reinterpretation of Kim Hyun-cheol's (김현철) 1999 original, now rendered by Paul Blanco (폴 블랑코), born in 1997.

Tving's 환승연애4, released earlier this year, went a different route. A 2022 track by singer 그리즐리 — with one of the longest song titles in recent memory — was remade by singer 민수 and released as an OST. Last year's Tving original 환승연애, 또 다른 시작 leaned even further back, featuring 변진섭's 1989 classic 숙녀에게 alongside participants born in 1998 and 1999 (which means they were born a full decade after the song came out).

Netflix's 모태솔로지만 연애는 하고 싶어 included a scene where a 1998-born participant sings 흰눈, a 2006 release by singer 이루.

The 2023 first-love reality show 소년 소녀 연애하다 packed in the widest catalog. 너에게 난 나에게 넌, 사랑하면 할수록, Delispice's 고백, 황치열's 매일 듣는 노래, and DAY6's 예뻤어 all appeared across the run.

Netflix's 연애실험실 used VICTON's 2022 track 스투피드 어클락 as its opening theme. The show marks the Netflix debut of PD 이진주, known in the industry as a repeat hit-maker in the reality dating format.

The column is written by Kim Ji-wook (김지욱), CEO of Major Seven ENM (㈜메이저세븐이엔엠) and holder of a master's degree from Sogang University's Graduate School of Media. His music copyright work spans JTBC's 싱어게인, Netflix's 은중과 상연, tvN's 태풍상사 and 폭군의 셰프, SBS's 우리들의 발라드, and Mnet's 보이즈플래닛.