From ISEGYE IDOL to PLAVE: Rise of Virtual Groups in K-pop Scene — Why Are They So Popular?
From having a sold-out concert in 8 minutes to selling 200k physical albums, virtual idol groups such as ISEGYE IDOL, PLAVE, MAVE and more are rising in the music scene.
What's the reason behind their popularity?
From ISEGYE IDOL to PLAVE: AI Groups Achieve Significant Records in K-pop Scene
Amid the popularity of fourth-gen groups such as NewJeans, RIIZE, IVE and more, the virtual groups who also debuted in the 2020s are experiencing rising fame among K-pop and music enthusiasts!
On September 27, the IT industry reported that ISEGYE IDOL, a six-member virtual girl group, held its first offline concert in Incheon on August 23. With their fame, all of the 10,000 tickets were sold out in just 8 minutes after the ticket pre-selling began.
In particular, the AI group was created through an audition project organized by the famous Twitch streamer, Woowakgood. The sextet debuted in December 2021 with their single, "RE: WIND," and upon its release, it immediately topped the Bugs real-time music chart.
ISEGYE IDOL also became the first Korean virtual idol to rank third on the Billboard Korean chart.
Another AI girl group that showed incredible performance on par with real K-pop acts is MAVE, which exceeded 25 million views upon the release of its debut song, "Pandora."
ALSO READ: Who Is MAVE:? Members Names, Visuals, Age & Concept Of Virtual K-pop Girl Group
Meanwhile, among virtual boy groups, PLAVE is creating a huge fandom comprised of not only K-pop fans but also cosplayers, anime, and webtoon enthusiasts.
They have gotten so big that their first EP, "ASTERUM: The Shape of Things to Come," dropped in August and recorded an initial sales of 200,000 copies. This is an extremely huge achievement for a rookie, not to mention that they are virtual idols.
On September 12, PLAVE also proved its influence in South Korea, after its successful pop-up store organized in Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul.
READ MORE: Who IS PLAVE? Webtoon-Drawn Virtual K-pop Group's Debut Date, Profiles, MORE!
On the first day of the pop-up store, fans' overnight "open run" occurred.
In addition, fandom activities as much as real human idols are actively taking place offline. In July, a birthday party for PLAVE member Bambi was held near Hongik University Station in Mapo-gu, Seoul.
Virtual Idols Perform Better than Real K-pop Groups + Reason Behind Their Popularity
With this, K-pop fans of real human idols would wonder what these AI groups have that they are rising in the music scene. They are not only consumed for watching and entertainment, but their supporters actually pay and spend a lot of money to buy their albums and content when they can't be touched in real life.
However, according to Chosun Biz, there are various reasons why fans prefer liking virtual groups rather than human singers.
First, because they are virtual humans, they don't physically age and can always maintain a certain appearance.
Another is that they are free from controversies about their private lives, such as school violence, dating rumors or DUI.
Lastly, virtual idols sometimes act more like a human when it comes to expressing their emotions and capturing the hearts of fans.
The IT industry official then hinted at the continuous rise of virtual idols in the music scene, saying:
"Although it costs an initial investment to create a virtual human idol, once you create a character, you can use it in a variety of ways regardless of time and place.
As it can appear in webtoons and games, the expansion of intellectual property (IP) is endless. For companies, we can continue to generate profits."
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Written by Eunice Dawson.
