K-Content News
- August 30, 2021
The Power behind K-pop
Emerging Fandom
ARMY, the fan group that follows BTS, one of the biggest boy bands in the world, is an essential part of the group’s culture. BTS and ARMY are like two peas in a pod: they’re together wherever they go. ARMY helped Western media notice BTS at a time when their focus wasn’t on Korean boy bands. Many people are curious about ARMY’s online and offline grassroots dimensions. Western media is mostly focused on ARMY’s fervor, loyalty, and origins. The unique culture of K-pop fandom emerged over 20 years. Their fervor was not self-destructive—it was self-sacrificing. They focused on the deep bond built between fans and artists. The fandom’s power grows with its size. Today, it’s the industry’s driving force. It’s not just a metaphor. According to Korea Customs Service’s data on current music album exports, Korean album exports in November 2020 amounted to 135 billion won, a 78.2% increase from November 2019. Countries that imported Korean albums also grew from 78 in 2017 to 114 in 2020. Exports kept growing in the first half of 2021. Hanteo Global published the 'K-pop Report in July 2021. It showed Korean album sales hit over 19.4 million copies in the first half of 2021, a 34.25% increase from 2020. Unprecedented album sales, increased global presence, and K-pop fervor helped the Korean music industry grow into a 7-trillion-won industry (based on 2019 statistics). It was all possible because of the global K-pop fandom.
United Fandom
Fandoms’ power isn’t exclusive to album sales. Their fearless devotion is changing the basic structure of the music industry. Fandoms are essential consumers of albums, concert tickets, merchandises, and other online products. Markets are increasingly becoming reliant on fandoms.
The effects of fandoms’ potential are coming to life in the combination of active fan communities and social media platforms that has produced the “Fan Community Service.” It became one of the driving forces behind the K-pop industry over the last few years. The figure at the head of this trend is ‹Lysn›, a fan community application launched by SM Entertainment in May 2020. ‹Lysn›’s motto is “a community filled with things I like” and one of the most popular service is ‹DearU Bubble›. This service’s theme is “Private message between me and my most beloved artist.” The service has been designed to allow fans and artists a direct line of communication. During the second quarter of 2020, when the app debuted, it scored more than 4.2 billion won in sales. SM Entertainment turned a profit in 2020 thanks to the successes of both ‹Lysn› and ‹Bubble›. Online communications between fans and artists is an emerging field. Platforms attempting to produce content on fan community services are also emerging. Hybe’s ‹Weverse› and NCSOFT’s ‹Universe› are perhaps the most popular. These platforms are attempting to build an expanded fan community based on communications with artists. ‹Weverse› managed to get more than 20 million members thanks to big names under Hybe’s management, like BTS, Seventeen, and NU’EST. Blackpink is scheduled to join in August, and Western artists like Gracie Abrams, Jeremy Zucker, and PRETTYMUCH are also on the app. Users bond over their mutual passion for artists and use the platform’s exclusive content. ‹Weverse› is special because it curates aggregate content—which is divided into blogs, V Live, and YouTube—in a single platform. It also allows users to reserve concert tickets, watch performances, purchase merchandise, and read professional columns about artists.
NCSOFT’s ‹Universe› might resemble ‹Weverse› on the outside, but its goal is slightly different. ‹Universe›’s main products are “Universe Music,” a music marketplace for ‹Universe› artists; “Universe Original,” original shows for ‹Universe›; and several game-like events based on NCSOFT’s artificial intelligence (AI) technology. ‹Universe› provides a fan community with communication lines to their artists. However, it’s also trying to produce all kinds of products based on artists’ relationships with their fanbases. ‹Universe›’s edge is its diversity of artists. Male artists with big fandoms (including MONSTA X, The Boyz, Kang Daniel), female groups (including OH MY GIRL, and (G)I-DLE), and up-and-coming artists (including ATEEZ and Cravity), as well as many other artists, are part of the app. ‹Universe› announced its launch with a free online concert ‹UNI-CON›.
Growing Fandom
This globalization is being driven by the fandom. The K-pop fandom is the reason the world became fascinated with K-pop—and it’s constantly growing. In 2021, there are more than 100 million K-pop fans worldwide. The fandom is estimated to have an economic effect valued at 8 trillion won. As a result, the term “fandustry” was coined, combining “fan” and “industry.” The term seeks to explain a trend that will keep growing despite the COVID-19 pandemic. This new phenomenon cannot produce infinite profits. The most important dimension of fandustry is, obviously, the people. In the entertainment industry, both creators and consumers are focused on people. There’s simultaneously an infinite capacity for possibility and for risk. A fandom can grow and crumble in the wink of an eye. People of different ages, nationalities, and cultures have different tastes—and these differences cause many problems. For example, popular paid subscription services struggle with problems such as delegating more work for artists to make profit for themselves and issues caused by direct communication between artists and fans. These problems are both national and international. The K-pop fandom is massive and fueled by passion. It therefore needs to be handled with care. The fandustry will consume people if companies don’t take care of them—we need to take care of people to make the sector thrive.
1) Korea Foundation (2021) ‹Global Hallyu 2020›
‹Lysn› ⒸDear U
‹DearU Bubble› ⒸDear U
‹Weverse› ⒸHybe
‹Universe Online Concert› ⒸNCSOFT
‹Universe Original› ⒸNCSOFT
