Virtual concert

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A virtual concert, or also called V-concert or virtual live, refers to a performance in which the virtual avatars of performers are projected onto a stage in the form of three-dimensional images. V-concerts enjoy a huge amount of popularity especially in South Korea, where performances by groups such as Girls' Generation have attracted thousands of fans.[1]

More recently, virtual concerts have often taken place in video games and virtual worlds. Games like Fortnite Battle Royale and Minecraft have been used by artists as venues to reach wider audiences and offer interactive experiences for attendees.[2][3]

History[]

Early beginnings[]

Within the K-pop music industry, V-concerts were first introduced by several South Korean record labels such as SM Entertainment and YG Entertainment. In 1998, SM Entertainment attempted to kick start its first holographic debut with H.O.T. (a now-defunct boy band), but failed to do so.[4]

Revival of V-concerts and planned expansion[]

On January 5, 2013, a breakthrough occurred after SM Entertainment held a V-concert in Gangnam District with life-sized images of Girls’ Generation projected onto the stage, attracting thousands of K-pop fans.[1]

After its first V-concert featuring Psy's "Gangnam Style" took off at the COEX Convention & Exhibition Center in May 2013, the South Korean record label YG Entertainment announced that it plans to establish 20 venues for virtual performances of its K-pop singers by the year 2015 in North America, Europe, China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Thailand.[5]

On July 20, 2013, YG Entertainment launched a permanent virtual concert at the Everland theme park in Yongin, South Korea. Under the slogan "K-Pop Hologram: YG at Everland", virtual performances include Psy's "Gentleman" and "Gangnam Style" as well as virtual concerts by Big Bang and 2NE1.[6]

The first virtual concert in Germany was launched on smartphone on August 5, 2013, based on a May 9, 2009 performance at the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.[7] Visitors of the memorial can install a smartphone app to attend the virtual concert. Each instrument had a geographic coordinate assigned to it at the time of recording, so visitors can hear the concert as if it were being played live. The user's position is determined by their smartphone's GPS system.[8]

Concerts in video games and virtual worlds[]

Since the mid-2000s, virtual concerts have also been held in virtual worlds instead of physical locations. The first major band to perform live in a virtual world was Duran Duran, who performed in Second Life in 2006.[9][10] In the same year, Phil Collins appeared in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories performing his single "In The Air Tonight"; the concert is accessible as part of the game.[11]

In January 2019, a virtual music festival called Fire Festival (named as a play on the infamous 2017 Fyre Festival) was held on a dedicated Minecraft server. Organized by Canadian producer , the event was held in support of LGBT suicide prevention organization The Trevor Project.[12] The following month, on February 2, EDM producer Marshmello held a ten-minute concert on the main map of third-person shooter Fortnite Battle Royale. The concert was viewable to anyone playing the game during that time.[13]

Virtual concerts grew in popularity through 2020 and 2021 due to restrictions set by the COVID-19 pandemic that made it difficult to hold traditional concerts.[3] More concerts were held in Fortnite featuring artists including Travis Scott,[2] BTS,[14] Diplo,[15] and Ariana Grande[16] as interactive experiences. Fortnite would continue to host virtual concerts on a smaller and more social-oriented side map called "Party Royale."[17] On April 16, 2020, American singer-songwriter Soccer Mommy collaborated with a Club Penguin private server to host an in-game concert for her album Color Theory.[18]

Many virtual performances have begun experimenting with virtual and augmented reality. TheWaveVR, a dedicated platform for virtual reality concerts, launched in 2017. Artists who have performed on the platform include Imogen Heap,[19] The Glitch Mob, and Kill the Noise; the service shut down in 2021.[20] In August 2020, Canadian singer the Weeknd collaborated with social media platform TikTok to hold an interactive augmented reality live stream titled "The Weeknd Experience" on various dates, with the first occurring on August 7, 2020.[21]

Production costs[]

A virtual K-pop music video costs over US$180,000 and is about two to three times more expensive than a normal K-pop video.[22]

Criticism[]

V-concerts have been criticized by K-pop fans because singers do not appear in person and are only electronically projected onto a screen. Some claim that V-concerts could possibly endanger the quality of live music.[23]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b "Girls' Generation holds 'virtual concert' with Naver Music". Allkpop. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "Fortnite Becomes The COVID Concert Venue For Gen Z And Millennials | Magid". magid.com. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b "Fortnite Pandemic Rap Fest Shows Future of Gaming". Bloomberg.com. 7 May 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  4. ^ "Can holograms replace real K-pop stars?". The Korea Times. Retrieved 23 July 2013. SM has been experimenting with the holographic performances for more than a decade, although its first attempt to make H.O.T., a now-defunct boy band, a holographic debut failed in 1998.
  5. ^ "Can holograms replace real K-pop stars?". Retrieved 23 July 2013. NIK released its holographic images of Psy in World IT Show in COEX on May 23 before opening the exclusive theater for K-Pop Hologram-YG at Everland in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province this month. The Everland showcase will include the holographic performances of Psy’s “Gangnam Style” and “Gentleman” in July and add more holographic content from Big Bang and 2NE1 in September. After launching the Everland theater, it will establish some 20 venues for virtual performances of its K-pop singers in major theme parks or others in China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand and North American and Europe by 2015.
  6. ^ "YG Entertainment to launch K-Pop Hologram: YG at Everland tomorrow". Yahoo! Singapore. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  7. ^ virtuelleskonzert.com http://www.virtuelleskonzert.com. Retrieved 20 September 2021. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  8. ^ Virtuelles Konzert im Holocaust-Mahnmal.Archived 2013-10-29 at the Wayback Machine In: B.Z., 5. August 2013
  9. ^ Lombardi, Candace. "Duran Duran gets a Second Life". CNET. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
  10. ^ Correspondent, Nicole Martin, Digital and Media (2007-09-13). "Second Life hosts world's first virtual concert". Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2019-02-02.
  11. ^ "'GTA' Land Of Confusion: Why Is Phil Collins In 'Vice City Stories'?". MTV News. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
  12. ^ Yopko, Nick. "Over 50 Artists are Playing a Virtual Music Festival Inside Minecraft Tonight". EDM.com - The Latest Electronic Dance Music News, Reviews & Artists. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  13. ^ Slatt, Nick (2 February 2019). "Fortnite's Marshmello concert was a bizarre and exciting glimpse of the future". The Verge. Retrieved 2 February 2019.
  14. ^ Webster, Andrew (21 September 2020). "BTS is coming to Fortnite". The Verge. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  15. ^ "Fortnite, surfing and virtual burning man: Diplo's pandemic year". France 24. 9 August 2021.
  16. ^ Webster, Andrew (9 August 2021). "Ariana Grande's Fortnite tour was a moment years in the making". The Verge. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  17. ^ Webster, Andrew (8 September 2020). "Fortnite is launching a concert series it hopes will become a 'tour stop' for artists". The Verge. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  18. ^ "I was supposed to see Soccer Mommy live. Instead, I watched their concert on Club Penguin". The Diamondback. 18 April 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  19. ^ Deahl, Dani (23 August 2018). "Inside Imogen Heap's cutting-edge VR concert". The Verge. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
  20. ^ "Wave to Close its VR Concert App". VRFocus. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
  21. ^ Spangler, Todd (12 August 2020). "The Weeknd Virtual Concert on TikTok Drew Over 2M Viewers, Raised $350,000 for Equal Justice Initiative". Variety. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  22. ^ "K-pop to go virtual with hologram theater". JoongAng Ilbo. Retrieved 23 July 2013. Holograms have yet to fully catch on, so making them is still expensive; one hologram video costs about 200 million won ($183,908) to make, which is two or three times more than a run-of-the-mill K-pop video.
  23. ^ Siow, Shannon. "The next big thing in Korea's music industry: Holograms". CNET. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
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