AI K-Pop Makes K-Bops
Striking concert visuals paired with vibrant song and dance have helped make K-pop, or Korean popular music, a dominant industry across the globe since its first appearance in the early 1990s. Album concepts for K-pop groups range from having dreamy and ethereal undercurrents to dark and eerie ambience. Keeping up with concept lore and discussing experimental themes online is a crucial part of the fan experience, especially for those enjoying content internationally. Since 2023, projects that consist of interlacing artificial intelligence (AI) with human idols have emerged, pushing aesthetics and fan-idol interactions to the next level.
Entertainment companies have already begun creating idol groups with AI; the widely popular girl group Aespa has both physical members and virtual counterparts from a fictional universe called KWANGYA. SUPERKIND is a boy group with five physical members and five AI members that are being periodically revealed. One of the most recent AI K-pop bands to debut is MAVE, a group with all four members having AI-generated facial features. Although the main concept for the band is AI and virtual life that transcends limits of the physical world, every aspect of the band is managed by human beings. Staff behind the scenes are responsible for animating the choreography, rendering the models and visual effects and there are anonymous human singers creating all of the vocals, ultimately bringing the AI members to life in videos that are shared on social media (KProfiles). MAVE was introduced to the public under Metaverse Entertainment, a company specializing in shared 3D virtual spaces, with their debut single album “Pandora’s Box” available on streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. In relation to the appeal of these bands, senior William Sun remarks on how their relevance may stay long-term.
“Virtual K-pop bands definitely have the potential to be further explored by entertainment companies,” Sun said. “I do not think they are just an experimental afterthought, but a refreshing addition to the industry in general.”
Since its release on Jan. 25, under the K-pop distribution YouTube channel 1theK, the music video for “Pandora” has reached over 16 million views. The album “Pandora’s Box” focuses on the idea of humans discovering newfound hope and escapism in the virtual world of Idypia (Allkpop). The overall aesthetics of the video pay homage to the cyberpunk genre, or a futuristic dystopia with its neon palette and highly urbanized environment. Mainly positive and excited feedback found in the music video comment section reflects on the project’s success and overall enjoyment from viewers worldwide. Due to its leap towards an experience held entirely in the metaverse, many K-pop fans are excited for what else MAVE and similar upcoming groups have to offer. Junior Fariya Atiqee explains how past music videos from virtual bands such as K/DA and True Damage of Riot Games may determine the further success of virtual bands in the K-pop industry.
“It is really easy for [AI groups] to enter into mainstream if they market correctly, since they are not real humans,” Atiqee said. “Though they lack the ability to achieve a parasocial relationship, AI groups have a chance with previous successes like [virtual band] K/DA in the past.”
Widely seen as the 3D version of the Internet, the metaverse can open up possibilities for new ways of marketing and fan-idol interactions in the K-pop industry. Metaverse technology and virtual entertainment spaces in general have already been utilized by artists within the K-pop industry, such as Blackpink holding a virtual concert in the video game PUBG Mobile as well as BTS performing virtually in Minecraft (MUSE by Clio). With K-pop being an industry that caters mostly to international audiences with a strong online presence, the consistent quality content and interactive community building that comes with metaverse technology can be effective tools that further enhance the viewer experience in regards to music videos, performances, livestreams and social media content. Physical K-pop idols are unlikely to be overshadowed by these new concepts due to their continuous success worldwide and the amount of effort they put into their live performances. However, junior Karen Ngamary fears that human idols may lose opportunities to AI, considering how idols still face bitter online criticism for their looks.
“Considering how harsh and competitive the K-pop industry is, I would not be surprised if several talented artists got denied from companies simply because they did not have the ideal look that the company was looking for,” Ngamary said. “With AI, all you really need is the vocals and maybe someone to base the idol off of. I think it [would] be much easier for AI groups to debut because they do not have to go through as much training as non-AI idols.”
AI has the capacity to change the K-pop industry in terms of how an idol group is expected to produce and perform, as well as lessening the pressure for staff and the idols themselves. Considering the high standards in regards to idol auditions now, introducing virtual idols in the place of physical idols leaves out the worry of putting human mental and physical health in jeopardy (The Asian Articles). Many fans already enjoy animated idols with shining vocals and the artist collaborations that often come with them. With upcoming virtual idol groups, bands that already participate in metaverse open spaces and AI idol projects that have yet to be announced, digitally enhanced idol experiences will likely hold a permanent place in Korean pop culture.
