The K-Pop Model: Does it still work?

Magda Kanecka | January 2026

The K-pop model: what is it?

What first comes to mind when I think of the K-pop model in the music industry is my ever-long love for the world of K-pop. Having been a fan consistently since 2017, moving through my favourite groups year by year, I have witnessed my fair share of the industry's ups and downs.

K-pop labels are the promoting and managing companies of girl and boy groups. Many quote the big three labels within South Korea as being SM Entertainment, JYP Entertainment, and YG Entertainment, which are home to some of the most popular K-pop groups.

In recent years, since the global success of BTS, many instead quote the big four: the companies listed above, as well as HYBE (BTS’s label).

Those who wish to be in a K-pop group can sign up for idol training programmes. The average trainee period lasts between two and five years and may start at a very young pre-teen age; however, this can extend to longer periods, and it is not guaranteed that you will debut at all. For example, TWICE’s leader and vocalist Jihyo trained for 10 years before her debut.

Often, survival shows are designed to build up excitement and allow viewers to form a bond with the members they hope will debut. These shows consist of weekly missions where fans can vote for their favourite contestants, and the ones with the fewest votes get eliminated. Those who don’t make it into one group often end up in another – some of the most popular groups that formed from survival shows include TWICE, Stray Kids, and ENHYPEN.

Positions within K-pop groups include vocals, dancer, rapper, and visuals. Within this, groups often have a leader who speaks out at interviews and public events. While some groups, such as SEVENTEEN or NCT, have more members (13 and 26, respectively), most groups typically consist of 5-7 members.

Teaser concept photos and videos, as well as short snippets of songs or the leading music videos, are posted before a group debuts, and before most new releases by an established group, to build up excitement and anticipation among fans, as well as to drive up pre-order sales of albums to help groups chart higher.

Why has it worked before?

With the rise of K-pop’s popularity in the West in the late 2010s, it is clear that this model has not only been successful, but it has also been sufficient enough to expand globally.

Battles for chart performance have intensified competitions among fans to see whose group can chart the highest, and this was especially exciting when multiple popular groups had music being released close to one another.

Some of the most-streamed music videos to come from the K-pop world are Blackpink’s “DDU-DU DDU-DU” (2.3 billion views since 2018), Blackpink’s “Kill This Love” (2.1 billion views since 2019), BTS’ “Dynamite” (2 billion views since 2020), BTS’ “Boy With Luv” ft. Halsey (1.8 billion views since 2019) – one of my personal favourites from the list – and notably, PSY’s “Gangnam Style,” at a staggering 5.7 billion views at the time of writing since its release in 2012.

I remember exactly where I was when all of the named music videos came out, and re-watching them now, I can still see the effort that went into them. Visually, the idols look almost unattainable (more on this later), and the dancing is impressively highlighted. 

Often, music videos within K-pop are used to tell a story as part of a broader concept or theme of the release, with fans often theorising about the lore behind them. 

This works because it effectively drives up sales, creates competition, and appeals to fans, keeping them coming back to their favourite groups or idols. K-pop is now a multi-billion-dollar global phenomenon, worth an estimated $10-12 billion per year between 2020 and 2024, with this sum only increasing since.

The industry is driven by physical album sales, streaming revenue, and anticipation for world tours, while also subconsciously encouraging international fans to learn the language, visit Korea, and shop Korean brands, many of which partner with K-pop idols (such as IVE’s Wonyoung’s collaborations with skincare brand Innisfree since 2021). While it is clear that this model worked effectively when it was initially established within the industry, all of these aspects do not come without their own problems.

Common problems

Long workdays, little pay, being exposed to the public eye from a young age, extreme dieting, portraying harmful beauty standards, and bodily strain on the idols are some of the most crucial problems within the industry.

My personal favourite boy group, GOT7, has previously voiced concerns about their label, JYP Entertainment, before their departure from the company in 2021. These included a lack of appropriate promotional activities for their releases, a lack of creative freedom over their music, a lack of promotion for solo music, and JYPE’s inadequate handling of malicious and threatening online comments. 

On top of this, with three out of seven members of GOT7 originating from outside of Korea, the lack of overseas album availability was the cherry on top for the group, eventually leading them to leave their label and continue solo and group work under other labels in and out of Korea.

All 12 members of my personal favourite girl group, LOONA, sued their agency, Blockberry Creative, in 2022, for breach of trust, unfair contract terms and unauthorised transfers to other agencies, along with failure to make payments for their work and perpetual debt. 

While all the members won their individual lawsuits, the company continued to appeal the convictions, and LOONA members were unable to continue promoting under their established name. Some of its members formed the groups Loossemble (5 members) and ARTMS (5 members), while the remaining two pursue solo activities.

Hit “Super Shy” and “OMG” girl group NewJeans lost a court battle against their label ADOR, whom they sued on the grounds of mistreatment, a hostile work environment, harassment, and breach of trust. The ruling rejected the group’s claims, finding insufficient grounds to terminate their contracts and citing a lack of evidence to support their claims. Their contracts remain valid until 2029 despite the group planning to appeal the verdict.

JYP Entertainment’s leading girl group TWICE’s members Jeongyeon, Chaeyoung, Mina, and Tzuyu, have all had to take mental or physical health breaks from promotional activities. While no legal battles have occurred in this case, the staggering health aspects, as well as the girls being subject to constant scrutiny over their bodies from the media from very young ages, often lead to extreme dieting and exhaustion. Unconfirmed rumoured claims of every idol weighing under 110 lbs (49 kgs) further reinforce these risks and how they can translate onto a young, impressionable audience.

The same can be said for BTS: while no legal action has been taken, the boy group has expressed mental and physical exhaustion, extreme dieting imposed by their label, as well as overworking under tight schedules, throughout their time as a group since their debut in 2013. Their label, HYBE, claims they continue to respond to concerns as they come.

Many cite the global girl group KATSEYE, who debuted through the survival show Dream Academy, to be fixing some of the issues of representation – with each member representative of a different country or region, from Korea, through India, to South America. 

Speaking to people from those demographics is a crucial point in determining the extent of this. British-Indian Journalist Asha Birdi said: “Lara Raj is the member of KATSEYE that sticks out to me when it comes to culture. She represents her desi heritage proudly, rocking jhumkas (earrings) and bindis in front of the world stage, and fuses this with Western aesthetics seamlessly.”

She added: “Representation matters because fans are diverse – why shouldn’t groups reflect that? However, if representation stops just at aesthetics, it becomes meaningless. Diverse groups must also champion diversity and stand up for the marginalised – and I’d like to see more of that!”

Concluding remarks: does it still work?

K-pop has changed – that much is clear. Global girl group KATSEYE was formed through a survival show between 2023-2024, with each member seeking to represent their individual, diverse background. Members vary in cultures and styles, and have more creative freedom than in the past. Notably, KATSEYE isn’t K-pop, but they have adopted the K-pop model in their formation and promotional activities.

In the Dream Academy Netflix documentary showing the formation of the global girl group, Son Sungdeuk, the choreographer and performance director of BTS, said: “Our only goal was to train very hard so that we could debut. 

My dream was to create the greatest artist imaginable.”

He added: “If Dream Academy goes well, I believe a new type of artist will emerge in the global and the US market.”

Bang Sihyuk, the founder of HYBE Entertainment, said in the eight-episode documentary that since BTS, he has never met any of the trainees within HYBE until KATSEYE came about – showing their willingness to make the group into something greater and fresher than before.

Perhaps the most straightforward conclusion to draw is that, while the model is effective, it has undergone significant evolution since its inception. With its expansion to the West, artists have become more comfortable speaking out against mistreatment or long schedules with little breaks – for many, the cost of fame is not greater than its byproduct. If anything, I think this is more beneficial for their long-term physical and mental well-being.

While physical album sales have dropped since their peak in 2023, concert revenue remains strong within the industry. This, however, makes sense considering our entry into the digital age – people consume fewer physical media because it is so easy to access on our mobile phones, with little to no effort and often at a lower cost.

The K-pop model is now more effective than ever, but within this, we must consider the evolution it has undergone over the past ±10 years. It will be even more interesting to see how it evolves further in the next few years, as groups like KATSEYE emerge into the industry.