Amber Liu Launches Her Own Korean Language Course In Collaboration With Drops

“I was always stressed out learning Korean.” – Amber

Still struggling to learn your joha from your johahae? Amber Liu of f(x) might have you covered with her brand new digital Korean course.

Language learning has been more popular than ever since pandemic lockdowns began, and for many learners, apps make everything so much easier. One app that’s been gaining a lot of attention lately is Drops. Available on iOS and Android, Drops claims to help users learn languages like Korean in just five minutes a day through “effortless, visual character” study.

Now, they’re partnering with Amber Liu to create an even better experience. On October 6, Drops launched the “Study with Amber” program—a 40-topic curriculum personally curated and voiced by the K-Pop star. Some of the topics Amber chose to feature include K-Pop, K-Drama, and Korean food.

| Drops

The course can be tailored to Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced levels, and everything is taught through quick, entertaining “games”.

Screenshot from “Study with Amber” on Drops | Drops

While some may find it surprising that a non-Korean idol has their own course in the language, who better to partner with Drops than someone who knows what it’s like to learn the language? Taiwanese American Amber had just a year and a half to learn Korean before debuting with f(x), and it wasn’t an easy feat.

Amber joined SM Entertainment in 2008 and debuted with “LA chA TA” in 2009. | SMTOWN/YouTube

I put a lot of pressure on myself, like “why can’t I remember this word? Why can’t I like get the simplest things?”.

— Amber Liu

Speaking on the course, Amber revealed that she was always “stressed out” learning Korean. Drops, she says, makes everything far more fun. Amber went on to explain that making things fun was the way she was able to grasp the language so quickly.

| @ajol_llama/Instagram

I think the reason why I was able to learn Korean so fast was because me and my friends who were not native Korean speakers started making it fun. It became something that was easier to retain rather than studying whole list of words.

— Amber Liu

It’s particularly fitting that Drops is partnering with a K-Pop idol, because the Korean wave is actually part of what’s making the app so popular. According to co-founder and CEO Daniel Farkas, K-Pop enthusiasts have made Korean the most popular language on Drops.

| EU-Startups

Amber Liu is the first celebrate to curate her own course through the app, but Farkas hinted that the approach could be scaled up to more artists and languages if “Study with Amber” gains popularity.

Source: Fast Company

f(x)