Shamans go digital as young Koreans seek answers on jobs, marriage

A quick search for terms like "shaman" or "spiritual reading" on YouTube yields a wide variety of shaman-related content. Captured from YouTube

A popular shamanic YouTube channel with 195,000 subscribers went live on Sept. 25, where three shamans, known as "mudang" in Korean, sat before the camera, quickly responding to questions from viewers in real-time chat.

With minimal information such as lunar birthdates, age, gender or surname, they answered inquiries about marriage, moving, job changes and wealth.

Over the course of two hours, they performed fortune readings for more than 60 people without charging fees. Instead, their contact information was prominently displayed on the screen.

Fortune-telling, including spiritual readings, horoscope interpretations and tarot, is booming online, especially among the 20s and 30s age group.

While traditional fortune-telling hubs like the Miari neighborhood in Seoul's Seongbuk District have declined, online platforms have become the new destination for these services.

Video platforms like YouTube and TikTok have become the go-to spaces for shamans. Livestreaming is one of the main content formats, where shamans offer free readings to attract interest and then encourage viewers to pay for more in-depth consultations.

YouTube videos also serve as major advertising tools for fortune-telling businesses. "Few people walk into fortune-telling shops just by seeing a sign. Most of them contact us after seeing our ads on YouTube," said a shaman in Seongbuk District.

The demand for shamanic YouTube channels is so high that video production companies are benefiting.

A 60-year-old shaman who registered her fortune-telling business on Naver Maps said, "Video production companies call me several times a day asking me to make YouTube videos."

Interest in fortune-telling applications is also growing. According to Innoforest, a startup analysis company, the monthly unique visitors to the fortune-telling app Jeomsin more than doubled from 524,000 in March 2022 to 1,129,000 in August 2024.

Another popular fortune-telling app, Forceteller, also saw its visitors nearly double from 288,000 to 521,000 during the same period. The key driving force behind the popularity of these apps is women in their 20s and 30s.

Search results for spiritual reading on KakaoTalk Open Chat, left, and fortune-telling consultation services on Naver Expert website. Captured from KakaoTalk, Naver websites

As of August, over 54 percent of Forceteller's paid service users were women in their 20s, with another 29 percent in their 30s. Jeomsin's users also reflected a similar demographic.

Sim Kyung-jin, co-CEO of Innofrest and developer of Forceteller, said, "Young people, particularly women, use fortune-telling apps because they often feel both anxiety and hope for the future. They are drawn to apps that offer personalized readings."

Major platforms like Kakao and Naver are also cashing in on the fortune-telling trend. A simple search for "spiritual readings" on KakaoTalk revealed over 800 open chatrooms, most with titles like "Free Spiritual Readings," "Horoscopes," "Love Advice," or "Dream Interpretation."

These chatrooms typically lure participants with free consultations and then funnel them into paid services.

On Naver's Expert platform, there were 18,055 products and 4,549 professionals listed under fortune-telling, tarot and naming services — far outnumbering the 2,432 products and 927 experts in psychology, MBTI testing and art therapy categories.

This shows the rising importance of fortune-telling as a core service on major portals.

An advertisement from a YouTube production company is spotted at a shamanic ritual hall in Seongbuk District, Seoul, seemingly targeting shamans who visit the hall. Korea Times photo by Son Young-ha

Convenient but questionable service

The greatest advantage of online fortune-telling services is accessibility. When one participant in a KakaoTalk open chatroom asked whether they should continue with their major or pursue a new career path, they received an immediate response: "You won't be satisfied if you find a job in your current field."

There's no need to book an appointment or visit a fortune-teller in person — career advice is provided within seconds.

Kang, a 23-year-old college student who has used online fortune-telling services, said, "It's inconvenient to visit fortune-telling shops, and for the ones with good reputations, you have to wait a long time for an appointment. With online readings, I can keep the recordings or written interpretations forever, unlike in-person consultations, where I might forget what they said."

However, the inherent nature of fortune-telling makes it difficult to assess the professionalism or reliability of the service providers.

Even some shamans express concerns about the rise of online fortune-telling. A 30-something shaman in Bucheon City, Gyeonggi Province, said, "It's good that YouTube and other platforms have lowered the entry barrier, but there's no certification system for shamans, so the quality isn't guaranteed. Many of the YouTube videos are scripted or staged."

The surge in online advertising has also led to a rise in ritual costs. A shaman in Nonhyeondong, Gangnam, Seoul, said, "The cost of producing YouTube ads is astronomical, so we end up raising the fees for rituals and fortune readings to make up for the expenses."

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.