The Kpop industry is changing strongly, giving more creative liberties to Kpop artists, who now suffer less from the “7-year curse”.
Big entertainment agencies have held the reins of the Kpop industry for decades. This is apparent in the 1990s, when there have been glaring conflicts between Kpop idols and their management.
In particular, Kpop agencies would closely monitor every procedure, from talent recruitment to training and debuting, from promotion to music production, from staging performances to building their artists’ images.
In most cases, the company takes care of everything, leaving no chances for Kpop idols to participate in production. As a result, these idols hold no control over their own releases.
However, things started to change in recent years, with Kpop groups taking more active roles in music production. Members of BTS, SEVENTEEN and (G)-IDLE are some prime examples.
During their time under JYP, 7 members of GOT7 all discovered their own creative directions. However, they have to face several limitations, and would often voice these publicly.
In 2019, Jay B expressed his satisfaction with the final outcome of their single “Eclipse”, basically disagreeing with JYP’s direction. Now that they have all left, GOT7 can decide everything themselves, and all the tracks on their new album “GOT7” were self-produced by members.
Got7 and JYP’s amicable split is just the latest instance of shifts in the Kpop industry during the last years. Another example would be Infinite, who still performed together after leaving Woollim Entertainment, though they haven’t released any new albums.
In addition, the girl group SNSD has announced their upcoming album with the full lineup ahead of their 15th anniversary in August. This is a feat, considering that 3 out 8 remaining members. have left SM Entertainment.
Despite the fact that SM is still working on the album, SNSD is no longer under the company’s full management. Choi Sooyoung, one of three members that left SM, recently drew the attention of Korean audiences when she wore a hat with the words “I don’t work here” outside the company headquarters.
As can be seen, Kpop artists are gradually becoming copyright holders after their original management contract ends.
In the past, the Kpop industry was famous for its “seven-year curse”. Contracts between management companies and Korean idols usually last for 7 years. Therefore, after the contract expires, if the stars do not renew their contracts, most of the groups that fall will disband, or some members will leave. SCMP believes that thanks to this new change, perhaps the “7-year curse” in Kpop can come to an end.
Source: SCMP
