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Singer Lim Youngwoong is performing on stage at the 'IM HERO' nationwide tour concert held at Kintex Exhibition Hall 1, Hall 1 in January last year. Photo by Mulgogi Music

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Singer Lim Youngwoong has decided to release his second full album, 'IM HERO 2,' without a physical CD (physical album). His agency, Fish Music, stated, "This is the artist's own will, considering environmental protection." It is extremely rare in the K-pop industry for a million-selling artist to release a full album without a physical CD. This decision is expected to mark a significant turning point regarding issues of fandom-driven consumption and resource waste.

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K-pop CDs are being consumed more as 'goods'?such as photocards, lottery tickets, and unreleased image books?rather than for music listening. According to the '2024 Music Industry White Paper' released by the Korea Creative Content Agency on August 5, only 8.1% of all CD buyers actually play the CD to listen to music. Over 90% purchase CDs for fansign event entries or to collect bonus items. The purchase rate is particularly high among teenagers and people in their 60s.

Fans often purchase excessive duplicate albums out of 'fan spirit,' wishing for their favorite artist's success. Kim Nayeon, a campaigner from the climate crisis response group 'Kpop4Planet,' said, "Fan spirit is complex. While fans keep buying albums to support their artists, there is also a growing awareness that change is needed." Entertainment agencies are aware of this issue, but since it is directly tied to profits, it is difficult for them to take action.

According to a survey by Kpop4Planet, 36.5% of fans bought duplicate albums to collect photocards, and 27.7% did so to enter fansign events. Many did not even open the albums, instead giving them away or discarding them. Idol fan Jo Eunji (20) said, "I bought 50 albums to enter a private fansign event, but never opened a single CD." On secondhand trading apps, unopened new albums like these are commonly traded.

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Some fans purchase hundreds of albums to enter fan sign events and collect photocards. In the process, some have gone into debt or received fines for unauthorized CD disposal. DALL·E3

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In 2017 in Japan, a man who bought 585 CDs to obtain voting rights for the girl group AKB48 illegally dumped them in a mountain and was fined. In Korea as well, it is common for fans to purchase dozens of albums and then return only the CDs to the agency. On social networking services (SNS), photos certifying that "dozens of unopened CDs were sent back to the agency" are frequently shared, sparking controversy.

Fans also face significant financial burdens. Boy group fan Yoon Hyebin (22) said, "I even went into credit card debt to buy hundreds of albums for a video call fansign entry. In the end, I couldn't even open the CDs and had to throw them away," revealing both psychological and financial stress. Some fans try to recoup part of their costs through secondhand sales, but demand in the used market is not high.

An entertainment agency official commented, "This is a decision possible only because it's Lim Youngwoong," adding, "In reality, giving up on releasing CDs is not easy." This is especially true for small and medium-sized agencies, for whom album sales are crucial. He explained, "CD sales revenue and initial sales figures are important for future marketing, so it's not easy to give them up," but also said, "We will consider internal alternatives in response to the continued concerns raised by the fandom."

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Image to aid understanding of the article. Pixabay

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The disposal of waste such as CDs and DVDs ultimately falls to local governments. According to the Ministry of Environment, the cost of processing such waste is about 180,000 to 200,000 won per ton, and this amount is increasing every year. According to data received by Park Hongbae, a member of the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee from the Ministry of Environment, the amount of plastic used by domestic agencies for album, packaging, and goods production increased from about 573 tons in 2019 to about 2,264 tons in 2023?nearly a fourfold increase. According to Seoul City's "non-recyclable items" standards, CDs must be disposed of as general waste in standard garbage bags.

According to research by Keele University in the UK, producing one CD emits about 500g of carbon, which is about ten times the amount emitted by one hour of streaming. CDs made of polycarbonate take a million years to decompose naturally. Based on the first-week sales of aespa's 2023 album 'MY WORLD' (1.69 million copies), the carbon emissions amount to about 845 tons?equivalent to a passenger plane circling the Earth 74 times.

According to the Circle Chart of the Korea Music Content Association, domestic album sales in 2023 reached 98.37 million copies, more than double the 42.64 million in 2020. However, this figure is a 17.4% decrease from 119.08 million in 2022. Circle Chart analyzed that "negative perceptions of excessive album promotion strategies had an impact."

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Kpop4Planet officials are performing in front of HYBE headquarters, BTS's agency, in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on April 21, 2022, urging the introduction of eco-friendly album options. Photo by Yonhap News

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Some domestic agencies have released digital platform albums containing QR codes instead of CDs, but these account for less than 10% of total sales. Campaigner Kim noted, "At first, it was seen as a positive attempt, but even digital albums ended up encouraging duplicate purchases by producing various photocards and covers," adding, "The marketing structure that encourages continuous purchasing itself must be changed."

The Japanese, North American, and European markets have already shifted to a digital focus. In Japan, QR code-based albums are mainstream, and in the US and Europe, the industry is being reorganized around concert content. Global record labels such as Universal Music and Warner Music have already announced plans to reduce CD production and lower carbon emissions.

SM Entertainment was the only domestic agency to disclose greenhouse gas emissions from album production in its ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) report released in June this year. YG Entertainment also announced that it would measure and disclose such data in the future. In contrast, HYBE and JYP Entertainment did not include such information in their reports. Campaigner Kim emphasized, "Entertainment agencies must measure and disclose the carbon emissions generated by CD releases, and go beyond mere disclosure to make substantial efforts to reduce them."

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Singer Lim Youngwoong is posing at the large-scale solo concert 'Lim Youngwoong Recital' held last January at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul. Instagram capture

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K-pop stars are also delivering messages about environmental protection. BTS member RM said in a UN speech, "We won't wait for someone else to save the Earth," and BLACKPINK stated in a campaign video, "The Earth is our future."

Pop culture critic Park Hyunmin said, "Lim Youngwoong's decision is a meaningful attempt to change the existing practices that have encouraged overproduction and duplicate purchases," adding, "It is an important turning point for shifting consumption patterns and the chart-centered system." He further stated, "As fan perception changes and technological and environmental alternatives exist, structural reform is entirely possible if accompanied by systemic change. Agencies, the government, and fandom?all stakeholders in production, counting, and consumption?must share responsibility for practical structural improvement and eco-friendly transformation."