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| BLACKPINK in collaboration with PUBG MOBILE (from left to right; JENNIE, LISA, ROSÉ, JISOO) |
Foremost appearing in science fiction literature, the wording of the term Metaverse ('Meta' from Aristotle's metaphysics and 'universe' understood as sharable space) is no longer a dream, but rather a reality that is slowly expanding in the sphere of South Korean music.
Although a completely virtual world, an augmented reality where people can share the same place with avatars is expensive, the main country that wants to firmly introduce the Metaverse into everyday life is South Korea itself.
At the end of the year 2020, S.M Entertainment introduced a new female group: aespa who also possess an avatar version of themselves, thus interacting with the real and virtual worlds.
Therefore, taking a close look at their music videos, there is aespa (KARINA, WINTER, GISELLE, and NINGNING) side by side with their AI copies in a parallel world, fighting the evil entity Black Mamba who wants to destroy Navis, a mysterious girl whom the group tries to defend.
But not only has S.M Entertainment thought of combining these two different but also related realities with the advent of the Web 3.0 revolution; a second female group recently landed in the scene, introduced by Metaverse Entertainment under the name MAVE: (MARTY: TYRA: ZENA: and SIU:) has, however, crossed boundaries. We are no longer talking about female artists in the flesh, but rather avatars performing amazing choreography and marvelous effects.
Their successful song ‘Pandora’ went viral on TikTok after its release.
They also participate in music shows such as ‘Show! Music Core’ and ‘Inkigayo’ like other groups, dance and sing their song. The official social accounts update daily photos and videos with the members.
In addition, many record companies are working on future projects that aim to unite artists and fans more with virtual spaces and concerts such as the one made by BLACKPINK for the collaboration with the PUBG MOBILE game broadcast directly in the app, allowing users to attend a virtual show with their avatar and have the chance to get closer to their favorite artists and have interactive performances.
Thus, we have to look forward to seeing how much Metaverse can efficiently change our lifestyle and give a better experience with the fans-idols communications.
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