I mean it is not about them "relying" on them, the audience willing to stream them is just not there, plain and simple. Kpop is not really taking over the world aside from a couple groups, let's be honest
The last part you just said is something many don’t understand or even speak about 😬
I think alot of fans forget, the companies main goal is to make money. Artist in the west make alot of their money from touring even if they do well digitally.
Digital/ streaming success is nice, but if it doesnt lead to more money (commercials/sales) than its useless.
Physical sales bring more money in.
Believe I know damn well kpop labels main goal is money but I’m speaking base on exactly what they keep talking: taking over globally.
How do they expect to reach that solely with physical sales? It doesn’t makes sense.
Yes it does.
Why? Very simple, on global charts you basically will NEVER have longevity with solely physical sales nowadays, not even the biggest fandoms are able to keep their faves for so long with physicals, it is impossible.
We are in the streaming era like it or not. Even in Japan (the second biggest music market) that have such a big physical sales market in their Hot 100 charts we have songs with physical release that reach top 10 and the follow week either drop 10-20 spots or just free fall if they don’t have enough streams and digital sales, we have many examples of that and oh surprise! It’s mostly the ones with big fandoms including kpop Japanese singles.
Just to take a look at Billboard 200, the albums in the top 10 are basically staying that high thanks to SEAs (Stream Equivalent Album). Every single time I see a kpop group debut more than 75% (sometimes even 90% it is that bad) of their total units are from physical sales having poor SEA and TEA (Track Equivalent Album) EVERY SINGLE TIME.
Kpop labels need a reality check because they really only seem to care about fans buying and buying albums and if they want 4th gen or whatever to take over specially US with physical sales dying and streaming taking over is not going to happen.
Bc most of the sales are by fans who pre-order before knowing the content.
Yes that was one of my 1 point and the most common one in fact.
The initial sales are always the highest for every album not only in kpop, but the front-loaded sales are more visible in kpop since we have Gaon chart to check each month the amount the albums “sold”.
We all know Gaon are shipments not actual sales, many of those albums are unsold and in the boxes at stores.
I have different points of the possible reasons behind:
1. Labels do most of the shipments in the first months due to the preorders and demand is higher through this period, therefore they have many unsold albums and shipping more will look like what it is: “overshipment”
2. Most kpop groups have small gaps between album releases which deflect the focus of fans into a new project abandoning the previous one so if stores ain’t seeing the album having good sales they ain’t going to ask for more to sell just as simple as that.
3. The fans that actual buy the albums most of the time will do it just upon the release so keeping shipping an album that will barely get sold is kinda useless.
4. The most used by fandoms: the label is just not shipping the albums, honestly with this I ain’t going to lie it sounds most of the time as an excuse. If there is a HIGH demand for the album the label will ship them, do I believe some labels just dont even try? Yes I do but like I previously said if many stores are seeing the HIGH demand the label will ship them.
4. I have no idea about business but I just can’t imagine a label starting a whole album production just for 1000 copies for example. So when I say HIGH demand in the point 3 I’m talking about at least 10k for an album that the production stopped months or years ago.
What do you guys think?
I didn’t know SG WANNABE were consider as idol group.
BLACKPINK is really high despite not releasing music in 2021, i didn’t expect Red Velvet to be that low 😪
for real no shit sherlock this happens in the west too, Justin Bieber or Ariana Grande will always do bigger numbers than indie artists
Kpop stans often act like if they live in a different reality it’s quite embarrassing.
Isn’t Niziu a jpop group?
well the only thing common amongst the over 500K GG is
big 3 and/or survival group right?
Yes...
Not in a specific order:
1. Chinese bars
2. Members that shine individually
3. Big label
4. Catchy music
5. “Quality” music
6. Popularity
7. Supportive fandom
8. A massive hit
It already is. It's just a question of how it will perform in the long run.
Yeah I mean in the long run because gg big hits like this trend to not have such a insane run.
HYBE is the only label I’m seeing right now not messing up with either that happen to be the biggest and second biggest music markets in the world.
JYP is right behind them but with the big sabotage they are doing with TWICE they are just plain stupid, the girls rising and reaching new peaks in the US but their new Japanese projects getting lesser sales and this is not happening after the new steps TWICE is taking in the US but something that has started since 2019.
YG is kinda doing good with Treasure but still lack of effort with their other acts, SM think is all about dropping stuff and move on and that applies to many other labels currently.
Display MoreWeek 51, 2021
My Universe - 56
Savage - 82
ASAP - 84
Dun Dun Dance - 129
Permission to Dance - 168
Next Level - 211
Life Goes On - 223
Savage Love (BTS Remix) - 253
Butter - 362
Lovesick Girls - 459
Rollin' - 484
Boy with Luv - 785
Spring Day - 973
Dynamite - 977
Do you think NL will have amazing longevity?
idk I know there were people who hated Next Level, but I remember a lot of support for the song as well. Probably more love for Next Level in the beginning than Savage.
After NL success and Aespa obvious increase of popularity it ain’t a surprise their next song got less love because their amount of haters multiple by a ton.
It just a given after getting big, it happens with everything and everybody.
I don't think people who hated these songs changed their opinion. I still hate Next Level and Money and I am sure the people who hated PTD still hate it.
That’s why we talk about the overall reception because individually even the most loved song ever has haters.
Eleven - Ive is a recent case, till now I don't like it too much. Asap is another case that doesn't changed my opinion. And Dalla Dalla, I warmed to Dalla Dalla after some years, and now I like it.
Eleven is a super recent example, even from the teaser many were already hating the song 🥴
Now that is killing on SK charts is getting praise.
People often talk about success stans but that doesn’t only applies to artist but also with songs and it happens A LOT within the music industry.
From hate to love:
A recent example is Next Level by Aespa with the non conventional structure of the song the first response of kpop stans were bad, many calling it a bad version of “I got a boy’ by SNSD, after it became a big hit in SK they gave a “chance” and like it.
MONEY by Lisa is another one that got tons of trash because of the lyrics even here that is not as toxic as other kpop communities but after it blew up no one seems to care about lyrics anymore and just enjoy the damn song as it should be from day one.
From love to hate:
This one is harder because it basically plays the factor of a song either being overplayed or just “terrorizing” the charts for so long in some stans standards. Outside kpop songs like Despacito and Closer are big examples.
In kpop I find hard to give examples so help me with that one, I have some in mind but I don’t know if they were initially loved.
