Video comparing the choreography of NewJeans and ILLIT / Captured from YouTube

The K-pop industry is currently embroiled in debates over authenticity due to the growing similarity among idol groups.

Notable controversies rattling the market include Ador CEO Min Hee-jin's claims that HYBE's girl group ILLIT copied NewJeans, the debate over Le Sserafim's live performance abilities, and a handwritten "dating apology" letter from aespa member Karina.

These issues highlight a fundamental challenge facing the K-pop industry: the pursuit of genuine creativity, authentic performance, and sincere public apologies. They reflect broader concerns about originality, artistic integrity, and transparency within the industry.

As idol groups proliferate, their similarities have become more pronounced, prompting fans to scrutinize vocal abilities as they would under a microscope.

In response, K-pop agencies have embraced "authentic marketing," which emphasizes the genuineness of their artists, sometimes to the extent of compelling idols to apologize for personal relationships.

The industry's expansion across multiple labels has triggered a push for increased sales at the expense of content diversity and uniqueness. This issue is especially apparent as K-pop gains global prominence with leading acts like BTS and BLACKPINK, prompting discussions about authenticity in a market that values cultural and product diversity.

NewJeans, top, debuted in 2022 under HYBE's label Ador, and ILLIT, debuted in 2024 under another label, Belift Lab / Courtesy of Ador and Belift Lab

ILLIT's 'Magnetic' vs NewJeans' 'Ditto'

On platforms like YouTube, videos comparing the choreography of ILLIT and NewJeans have brought attention to this issue. Both groups belong to subsidiaries under HYBE. Observers have noted similarities in their dance moves, such as those seen in ILLIT's "Magnetic" (2024) and NewJeans' "Ditto" (2022) music videos.

Although the release of "Magnetic" was initially perceived by fans as an homage to their senior label mates NewJeans, Ador's CEO disagreed.

She criticized the production, pointing out that HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk, who produced ILLIT's debut album, was replicating NewJeans' cultural achievements across choreography and costumes. Min argued that when production formulas become homogenized, uniqueness is reduced to a mere commodity, leading to destructive competition within the same company.

HYBE, which oversees 11 labels including Bighit Music, Belift Lab, and Source Music, with more than half involved in K-pop, is at the forefront of this industry-wide issue.

The conflict at HYBE over allegations of copying, which grabbed headlines, signifies a growing awareness among K-pop producers regarding systemic issues and crises within the industry.

Experts believe that as K-pop agencies become deeply embedded in the stock market, there's an increasing trend toward a specific, profitable music style.

Lee Dong-jun, a visiting researcher at Seoul National University's Asia Research Institute, who earned his doctoral degrees with a thesis on K-pop, said, "While YG Entertainment adopted a sub-label strategy as a means of organizational decentralization, HYBE actively pursued mergers and acquisitions to create a multi-label system."

He pointed out that the diversity shown by HYBE's multi-label approach is closer to a "diversity of consumption, or product diversity, rather than cultural diversity."

He explains that the conflict between HYBE and Ador indicates that the K-pop industry, focusing solely on quantitative expansion using similar formulas for success, is reaching its limits.

Girl group Le Sserafim perform at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California, on April 13. Captured from YouTube

Live performance controversy

As K-pop idol groups become more homogenized, losing their unique characteristics, fans are increasingly yearning for authentic singers.

This backdrop fueled the vocal performance controversy surrounding Le Sserafim at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in the United States on April 13.

Culture critic Sung Min-seong says, "As it becomes harder to distinguish individual characteristics in music, style, or choreography, K-pop fandoms are increasingly seeking to affirm an idol group's identity through vocal talent."

He describes an irony where the authenticity of K-pop idols, who are produced within a thoroughly industrial system, is often judged based on their singing ability.

Both agencies and fandoms are battling for supremacy in the K-pop market over this designation of "authenticity."

Aespa member Karina, who acknowledged her relationship with actor Lee Jae-wook, subsequently posted a handwritten apology on social media (SNS) last month.

Shadow of 'authentic marketing'

As "authentic marketing" rises as a hot topic in the K-pop industry, agencies are intensifying their fandom platform businesses. HYBE's Weverse and SM's Bubble, which mediate communication between artists and fans for a fee, are prime examples.

Author Ahn Hee-je, who wrote about K-pop's consumer culture in the book, "Hesitant Love," points out, "K-pop agencies are increasingly trying to control fans' affection for artists directly through platforms, merchandise, and proprietary entertainment content, rather than solidifying fandom through their work. This tendency grows as content differentiation becomes more challenging."

However, the concept of "authentic marketing" has backfired on K-pop agencies. Some K-pop fans have demanded apologies by installing huge monitors on trucks flashing messages asking, "Why did you betray us?" after their favorite idols were revealed to be dating.

Aespa's member Karina, after acknowledging her relationship with actor Lee Jae-wook, posted a handwritten apology on social media last month. The fact that an adult has to publicly apologize for being in love starkly illustrates the undue pressure exerted by fans on K-pop idols.

This is viewed as a consequence of agencies placing excessive emphasis on the authenticity and sincerity of idols. In her thesis titled, "Handwritten Apologies of K-pop Idols," Kang Eun-kyo pointed out, "By promoting an idol's sincerity through handwritten apologies, agencies' 'authentic marketing' has led fans to expect such gestures as routine, thereby increasing the emotional burden on idols."

The overemphasis on proving sincerity has made it difficult for K-pop stars to date, a point highlighted by an international broadcaster when Karina publicly announced her breakup earlier this month.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, a sister publication of The Korea Times, was translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.