Liveness In K-Pop - Regina Manyara

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Source: Vlive
BTS Vlive

Couldry looks at the concept of liveness as one that is constructed by media claiming to present some sort of social reality shared among the members of a society (2003). In this way it can be argued that that “liveness” is not necessarily the presentations of an event in real-time, but rather “liveness” is “the guarantee of actual connectibility” (Couldry, 2003) be it with a particular social event or with people. 


This idea becomes more concrete when discussing the K-pop industry and its interaction with its fans. Much of what is seen on the surface of K-pop is the high-budget, high-quality music and music videos which are produced in an almost factory like manner. The artists, or idols themselves are made up in a way that presents them as these beautiful unattainable beings. All these elements reflect the structure and perfection driven nature of the K-pop industry, one that would otherwise cause quite a separation between the idols and fans if it weren’t for the use of “liveness”.


Another presence within this industry, which can be seen as the counter to the industry’s more processed nature is the use of live streams from the idols on apps like Vlive and most recently now shifting to Instagram as well. Like many other celebrity streams this is a way for idols to create a space in which they can connect directly with their fans, talking about their experiences as well as engaging with the fans through the comment section.  Compared to the quality of the industry’s music videos, these streams are of a lot lower quality which emphasises the separation between those controlled, structured videos and the more genuine, unscripted live streams. This is coupled with other such truth-telling tools like the idols appearing in more comfortable, laid-back clothes or even pyjamas and without any make up. 


Another facet of this is seen through variety shows. There are those run directly by the idols’ companies and added to Youtuber like Run BTS, 24/365 with Blackpink and NCT Daily. There are also those which air on TV like Weekly Idol, Running Man and Knowing Bros. Although these are TV and Youtube shows with a higher quality than the live streams, as well as containing a certain level of structure in terms of the flow of the show, the interactions between the idols and the hosts can be seen as unscripted. A natural flow of interactions is allowed to take place on this show which again provides a counter to the main side of K-pop with its controlled music and music videos. 


Weekly Idol

Knowing Bros
NCT Daily 









Run BTS


Although these examples scratch the surface of the content made to connect with the fans it is through these examples that K-pop presents “liveness” not just through its live streams but through the more unscripted, genuine interactions the idols have with each other and with the fans. It is through these interactions that the idols personalities can shine through therefore establishing a deeper connection with the fans. Therefore, this concept of “live content” becomes a media ritual in that it becomes as crucial to understanding the K-Pop world as watching the music videos and listening to the music, because it is through “liveness” that the authenticity of the industry can be found. 



Sources


Couldry, N. (2003). Media Rituals - A Critical Approach. Taylor & Francis Group.





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