Scandal-free virtual singers carve out niche in music industry

Virtual influencer Rozy / Courtesy of Sidus Studio X

By Dong Sun-hwa

Human-like features of virtual singers often evoke a sense of uneasiness in many people, but their number is growing as more companies seek to carve out a niche using their competitive edges.

Rozy, the first virtual influencer in Korea devised by content creation group Sidus Studio X, is set to kick-start a new career as a singer later this month, the company said Friday. Her debut track will be produced by Jung Jae-won of indie band Vanilla Acoustic, who was behind the success of indie band BOL4's songs like, “Leo" (2020). Sidus partnered with production company MUSIC VINE for this project.

Sidus breathed new life into Rozy by combining different faces preferred by Millennials and Generation Z ― better known as the MZ generation ― using artificial intelligence (AI). The virtual star was first known to the public through a TV commercial for insurance company Shinhan Life last year, which aimed to grab the attention of the MZ generation.

The company's experimental attempt turned out to be a success, with the commercial featuring Rozy exceeding 11 million views on YouTube as of Sunday. Rozy, who has more than 110,000 followers on her Instagram, recently made headlines by making an appearance on tvN's ongoing series “Dr. Park's Clinic” that stars actor Lee Seo-jin.

Since the birth of Korea's first cyber singer Adam in 1998, a plethora of virtual humans like Rozy has been seeking to expand their presence in the music scene. Today, a growing number of companies are showing their interest in creating virtual stars, who can work 24/7 without falling ill. Since their creators have full control over them, they are free from scandals, too.

Virtual influencer Reah Keem, left, and singer-songwriter Yoon Jong-shin / Courtesy of Mystic Story

Tech behemoth LG Electronics also joined the race, bringing virtual influencer Reah Keem to life. In January, it inked a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with music label Mystic Story in a bid to promote Keem's singing debut. Mystic's founder Yoon Jong-shin, a singer-songwriter/producer who dropped a string of hits including, “Like it” (2017), is poised to produce Keem's debut album, which will soon hit store shelves.

“We will give Keem our unwavering support so that she can become a global star leading the metaverse market,” Mystic said in a statement.

Keem, which was also created through computer graphics and AI, made her first public appearance during the 2021 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), one of the world's largest tech fairs. Clad in a pink hoodie, the virtual human introduced LG's new products using fluent English.

“Virtual humans can work at the crack of dawn, but they do not become ill,” producer Yoon said on KBS Cool FM's “Park Myung-soo's Radio Show” on Jan. 17. “I believe they can have their own market.”

As of Sunday, Keem has more than 15,000 followers on her Instagram.

Virtual singer Yuna / Courtesy of Humap Contents

Entertainment company Humap Contents debuted its first virtual singer Yuna last year. Yuna, who debuted with the track, “Kiss Me,” released a new song titled, “Lonely” in January and is planning to hold a metaverse concert in March.

“Among other factors, the COVID-19 pandemic has led people to look for a more entertaining digital experience,” Kang Shin-kyu, a researcher at Korea Broadcast Advertising Corporation (KOBACO), said in an interview with The Korea Times last year. “Thus, the number of virtual stars is likely to increase at least for a while."