Technology is constantly evolving, and its impacts can be felt in nearly every corner of society, including the entertainment world. The increasing accessibility of advanced technology has completely rewritten the entertainment landscape. According to Playboard, as of May 9, 15 out of the 20 YouTube channels who earned the most money through super chats (viewer donations during streams) were “virtual YouTubers,” streamers who use software and computer graphics to generate a virtual avatar.
In the last few years, similar technology has also been increasingly applied to K-pop. One very similar example is APOKI, a cover artist who uses a virtual avatar that looks like a humanoid bunny who released a debut single in February. During the pandemic, an app called ZEPETO was used to create a 3D animated dance video for BLACKPINK and Selena Gomez’s song “Ice Cream,” allowing the artists to dance together virtually.
Admittedly, virtual artists and the use of AI in music aren’t anything spectacularly new. Gorillaz, an English virtual band consisting of four animated characters, was created in 1998. Hatsune Miku, an animated character for the Yamaha Vocaloid software voicebank, was created in 2007 by Crypton Future Media. K/DA, a virtual girl group consisting of four League of Legends characters, was introduced in 2018, with two of the members, Ahri and Akali, voiced by Miyeon and Soyeon, members of the K-pop girl group (G)I-DLE.
These virtual artists have had a lot of success. Gorillaz has a Grammy. Hatsune Miku has performed sold-out concerts worldwide and was scheduled to perform at Coachella 2020. K/DA frequently tops the music charts.
The aforementioned artists have been clearly virtual. They consist of animations and holograms that are clearly computer graphics. Even when they’re voiced by real artists, there’s a distinct disconnect between the character and a real person. But recently, some groups have been blurring the lines.
A four-member girl group called Aespa debuted under SM Entertainment in 2020 with the single “Black Mamba”. They did insanely well: “Black Mamba” broke the record for the most-viewed debut music video in 24 hours and won Rookie of the Year at the Seoul Music Awards. However, the most notable aspect of Aespa is its concept: each member of Aespa has an “æ” version, an avatar modeled off of the member and meant to serve as their virtual “other self”.
“That avatar will be able to do things you cannot directly do with your favorite celebrity,” said Lee Soo-Man, the founder of SM Entertainment.
This raised concerns with fans. Some argued that this could open up the door to pedophiles and “sasaengs”, obsessive fans who stalk and invade the privacy of public figures.
While Aespa raised concerns due to the fact that the avatars were based on real people, the avatars themselves still look very digital. However, that’s not the case with Eternity, an 11-member group of virtual idols created with Deep Real AI, a deepfake virtual imaging technology developed by the company Pulse9, which also happens to be the company behind Eternity. The group released a music video in March for their song “I’m Real”, and while static shots of the members look realistic, the video is a different story.
“Sorry, it’s the scariest thing [in] K-pop I have ever seen. No hate, but it’s so creepy,” YouTube user untitled said.
“We love idols for their emotions and personalities. How will we love someone who has no feelings?” user Human chanel jennie commented.
Virtual technology and artificial intelligence have certainly come a long way, and new uses for them are constantly being developed. Despite the concerns, it is very possible that we are just beginning to scratch the surface of the world of virtual artists. Maybe one day in the future, realistic-looking computer-generated idols will be commonplace. Only time will tell.

Graphic courtesy of SOOMPI.COM