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SEVENTEEN (세븐틴) is a 13 member Korean boy band under Pledis Entertainment. They are split into 3 teams, the Hip Hop unit (S.coups, Wonwoo, Mingyu, Vernon), the Vocal unit (Jeonghan, Joshua, Woozi...
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June 3, 2022
On May 20, Harry Styles released his new album Harry’s House, debuting at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart. This is his third studio album in which all thirteen songs are in the top 30...
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May 26, 2022
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May 27, 2022
It’s been one year since the young pop-star, Olivia Rodrigo, released her first music album “Sour”. Since her debut, Olivia Rodrigo has won 3 Grammy Awards and named Women of the Year in 2022.
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March 31, 2022
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April 11, 2022
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April 6, 2022
The first theatre production highlighting the global takeover of the K-Pop industry will be making its Broadway debut later this year, with its opening night scheduled for November 20, while...
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April 6, 2022
Over the past month, singer Ed Sheeran has been battling a copyright trial, accusing him of plagiarizing his 2017 hit song, “Shape of You” the song’s resemblance to their song, “Oh Why” Sami Chokri...
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If you’ve been on social media for the past few months, odds are you’ve probably heard of the iconic viral hit, “Leave The Door Open” by Silk Sonic on just about every corner of the internet.
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April 2, 2022
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April 1, 2022
Queendom returned for its long awaited second season (hosted by Girls Generation’s Tayeon) and here’s all you need to know: Queendom is a South Korean reality-survival show in which six girl groups...
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April 7, 2022
Bobby Shmurda has finally been released from his deal with Epic Records following his own plea for his release on social media stating, “I did six years in jail trying to get off this label before...
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Photo Source: News24
As virtual technology continues to evolve and we move towards the metaverse future, the K-pop industry has begun delving into all the possibilities. Virtual/ AI groups and performers are becoming increasingly popular and widespread in the K-pop industry. In this article, we’ll dive into a few virtual groups that have debuted in recent years.
AESPA
In November 2020, SM Entertainment debuted Aespa, the first K-pop group with their own AI avatars. The group debuted with the single “Black Mamba” and has released three albums since. Having popularized the metaverse concept in K-pop, the group consists of four members and their virtual counterparts (“aes”). These online avatars have been created from the data that the members have uploaded online, being the reflection of Aepsa.
ETERN!TY
Created by Pulse9’s technology, the group, consisting of 11 members, made their debut in March 2021 with their first single, “I’m Real.” The company started by generating female faces using Deep Real AI, based on the traits: cute, sexy, innocent, and intelligent. Based on fan votes, the winning characters were designed and have been projected onto the faces of actual girls. However, the voices of the members are the voices of the actual singers.
MAVE
MAVE is a four-member girl group, entirely composed of AI members, under Metaverse Entertainment. The group debuted with their single album, “Pandora’s Box” in January 2023. The group’s name means “make a new wave,” as it hopes to create a new wave of K-pop that includes virtual idols. The group is formed through a collaboration between Kakao, an internet company, and Netmarble, a mobile game company.
PLAVE
In March 2023, PLAVE made their debut under Kakao’s VLAST with the single album “Asterum.” Unlike other virtual artists, PLAVE uses computer graphics to create manhwa-style characters in place of the real bodies. Each track on their album was written and composed by the members themselves.
FE:VERSE
FE:VERSE is a virtual 5-member girl group formed by the winners of Kakao’s survival show, GIRL’S RE:VERSE. The group debuted with “CHO” in May 2023. Although the members are virtual, they are played by idols from other K-pop groups.
