Expansion of Virtual Idol Market as They Move Beyond Animation Characters to Actual Music Activities

The surge in popularity of Netflix’s animation “KPop Demon Hunters” has driven a sharp increase in interest in virtual idols. The virtual groups featured in the film have evolved from mere characters to entities that engage in real music activities, establishing themselves as a distinct genre. The debut song of the male group “Lion Boys” in the series, titled “Soda Pop,” made it onto Spotify and Billboard charts. Kevin Woo, formerly a member of the K-pop boy band U-KISS, handled the vocals, with participation from professional composers such as Andrew Choi, Danny Jung, Samuel Lee, and Nekwave — artists known for writing songs for major K-pop groups. Their involvement demonstrates that virtual idols represent more than just entertainment; they operate in a space where collaborations with experts from the music industry take place. Among the virtual idols gaining renewed attention amid this trend is “PLAVE.” It reached number one on the Oricon chart shortly after its debut in Japan and became the first virtual idol in South Korea to achieve million-selling status. A new generation of virtual idols is also emerging. “Doctor Bbang Hoosu,” the protagonist from the original Korean animation “Doctor Bbang,” has drawn attention with its unique concept of an “idol trainee selling fish cakes.” Even before the animation aired, it released virtual live broadcasts and cover song content via YouTube. The group participated in writing its debut song itself and achieved high musical quality through collaboration with Big Hit’s composer El Capitan. It is currently aiming to expand globally through Netflix. “Cycode” is a five-member virtual entertainment team based on a workplace concept, ranging from managers to interns. It creates a niche worldview that appears cheerful on the surface but hides emotional deficiencies and internal contradictions. Its signature song “DECISION” dramatizes internal emotional conflicts, and its music video has accumulated approximately 370,000 views on YouTube. “Space” is a five-member virtual idol group composed of characters from a webtoon. Aside from the original character Seo Tae-il, all members are secondary male protagonists from a popular webtoon, and the group is characterized by self-production as members participate directly in song creation. Its debut song “Starlight” combines the exquisite artwork of the webtoon with outstanding musical quality. “David Bong” is a virtual idol featured on EBS, which revealed its actual training process with the goal of gathering 100 fans for a debut showcase in 100 days. The program showed the group receiving direct training from senior idols such as Jun.S, Son Dong-pyo, and Jo Kwon. It completed its successful debut on July 8 by releasing a digital single that included the title track produced by PANTAGON’s Hui. These virtual idols differ from traditional animation characters because they possess strong narratives and worlds, as well as actual debuts and music releases. Through the integration of K-pop fandom systems, collaborations with music industry experts, and various media platforms, they are establishing a new form of entertainment ecosystem.