Fans Crying "Can't We Fan Sustainably?"... Is the Eco-Friendly Era Coming to K-Pop?

K-Pop Fans Demand 'Sustainable K-Pop'
Physical Album Recycling Difficult, Harmful Substances Released When Disposed
"Agencies' Marketing Encouraging Excessive Purchases of Photocards and Albums Must Change"
Some Industry Changes... Albums Without CDs, Soy Ink Printing, etc.

K-Pop for Planet representatives held a performance on April 21 in front of HYBE headquarters, BTS's agency, in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, urging the introduction of eco-friendly album options.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] The eco-friendly trend is blowing through the K-pop world as well. This comes as the perception that marketing by entertainment agencies to increase physical album sales creates unnecessary waste has widely spread among K-pop fans. They are calling for a "sustainable K-pop" and urging self-reflection across the entire K-pop industry.

Although it is an era where music is mostly enjoyed through digital tracks instead of physical albums, physical album sales have actually increased. Based on the top 400 domestic releases last year, the total domestic and international sales of physical albums reached 57,089,160 copies, a 37% increase compared to the previous year.

Many fans purchase physical albums to obtain goods such as photocards and photobooks. Entertainment agencies release one album in various versions or produce multiple types of photocards to stimulate fans' collecting desires. Since goods are randomly included in albums, buyers cannot choose which ones they get, and to obtain desired goods, they must purchase more albums. Opportunities to participate in fan sign events are also only given to those who purchase albums, so the more albums fans buy, the higher their chances of winning. Within famous idol groups, there is even a term called "fanssa-cut" (the average purchase amount required to attend a fan sign event), indicating that fans must buy a certain number of albums to attend.

Ultimately, fans end up buying dozens of albums not to listen to music but to get goods or fan sign event entry tickets. This is why the so-called "album-kkang" phenomenon occurs, where fans take out the goods and throw away the CDs after buying multiple albums. According to the "2020 Music Industry White Paper" by the Korea Creative Content Agency, only 11.5% of respondents said they used albums to listen to music last year.

A 25-year-old fan of BTS named A said, "Many people buy multiple albums to collect photocards randomly included in each album by member." He added, "From the company's perspective, it is a way to increase album sales, but in reality, since the other contents are the same, making fans buy multiple albums because of goods like photocards is a commercial tactic and a waste of resources."

Even aside from the agencies' tactics, there are factors that encourage excessive album purchases. One is the competition between groups over album sales. Especially the first-week album sales (sales during the first week after release) serve as a matter of pride for idol groups and an indicator of fandom size and loyalty, so fans buy albums competitively.

Introduction of the contents of BTS member J-Hope's solo album 'Jack In The Box,' which will be released on the 15th. It includes a card holder, photo card, and QR card. By scanning the QR code with the dedicated app, you can enjoy all the songs and the photobook. Photo by Weverse Shop capture

Some K-pop fans are urging the entertainment industry to change in an eco-friendly way. The climate action platform "K-pop for Planet," composed of K-pop fans, held a performance on April 21 in front of HYBE in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, demanding measures to prevent K-pop albums from becoming plastic waste. They raised their voices against agencies excessively selling albums and producing waste.

K-pop for Planet also claims that albums are harmful to the environment because they cannot be recycled. Albums are packaged in transparent polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which releases toxic substances such as hydrogen chloride gas when incinerated, making disposal environmentally harmful. South Korea lacks facilities to handle the toxic substances generated during PVC recycling, making recycling practically difficult. Coated paper used for photocards and photobooks must be separated from vinyl before disposal, but the separation process is cumbersome, so they are often discarded together and fail to be recycled.

They especially emphasize the need for a change in the attitude of entertainment agencies. According to a survey conducted by "K-pop for Planet" in June and July last year among K-pop fans about "the main agents to lead changes in the K-pop market in response to the climate crisis," entertainment agencies ranked first (95.6%), followed by fandoms (59.4%) and artists (39.5%).

Some agencies are responding to fans' calls for eco-friendliness. BTS member J-Hope's solo album "Jack In The Box," releasing on the 15th, contains no CD. It consists of a QR card, card holder, photocard, etc., and by scanning the QR code through an app, fans can access all album tracks and photo content online. Also, the boy group SF9's new album "THE WAVE OF9," releasing on the 13th, is made with eco-friendly materials such as soy ink and water-based coating. Additionally, singer Chungha's first full-length album "Querencia," released in January, used recycled paper and reduced the laminating (coating) process.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.