Millions of people around the world absolutely adore K-Pop. Groups such as BTS, Blackpink and Twice fill entire arenas in record time and regularly top the international charts. But what do things actually look like behind the scenes? Is the life led by the idols really quite so glamorous as it first seems?
What actually is “K-Pop”?
K-Pop (short for “Korean Pop” or “Korean Popular Music”) is a catch-all term used to refer to Korean-language pop music, which features elements of hip-hop, R&B, techno and electro.
The musical genre was born in the early 1990s in South Korea, when boyband Seo Taiji And Boys appeared on a casting show in 1992. With their unusual mix of Korean-language lyrics, rap, rock and techno, they touched a raw nerve with the youth (even if the jury on the night was less impressed). Either way, a new musical direction had been born.
K-Pop eventually enjoyed its international breakthrough in 2012 with the viral hit “Gangnam Style” by rapper Psy. As at June 2025, the song had been viewed 5.6 billion (!) times on YouTube, and made stars out of those involved with audiences beyond Asia for the first time. Today, K-Pop is one of the most important global pop culture phenomena.
Pressure to succeed, adhesion contracts and exploitation
Pressure to succeed is enormous in South Korea, and often begins early on in children’s schooling. Small wonder, then, that this mentality also plays a role in the country’s music industry. While many young people may dream of becoming a K-Pop idol, however, in reality it is anything but an easy life. Because even if they do get the opportunity to become a member of a girl- or boyband, they will need to endure trainee programmes lasting several years. These usually begin at the age of ten or eleven. Reference is repeatedly made to “adhesion contracts”, which impinge hugely on the private lives of the child talents. Many stars are practically the property of their agents.
Lee Jong-im, an expert in pop culture and author, describes the dark side of K-Pop in her book Idol Trainees’ Sweat and Tears: amongst other things, she describes up-and-coming K-Pop stars often having to train for up to 13 hours a day, usually until late into the night. Their daily lesson plan consists not just of dance and singing, but also of language courses. The young talents live in residential homes, which are usually owned by the agencies themselves. A normal social life, or time for school? It’s not going to happen.
As well as this, it is standard practice for agencies to keep their young stars on a diet. Euodias, who himself underwent training as a K-Pop idol, explains to the BBC:
“Everyone there was constantly obsessed with their weight. Nobody was allowed to be heavier than 47 kg, irrespective of their age or height.”
At the weekly weigh-in, the trainees’ bodies were analysed by the trainers and their weight announced in the room in front of everyone present. If a trainee had gained weight, their food was supposed to be rationed; sometimes they are said to have had entire meals taken away. “Overweight” trainees would be given nothing but water. As well as this, many were said to have been forced to have cosmetic operations, because “more beautiful” stars could market themselves better.
Love affairs are also said to have been contractually regulated. Kim Min Syk, himself the owner of a K-Pop agency, says this:
“One of our girl bands’ contracts stated that they weren’t allowed to meet boys, but it’s very difficult to stop them doing so, because they’re just going to try it anyway. So then you have to control them, and that costs a lot of money. Bigger agencies even let their managers sleep in the same room as them, so they don’t get up to anything.”
Alcohol and cigarettes are also strictly forbidden.
Reports of sexual exploitation and abuse of power also shock the public repeatedly. In 2018, for instance, Lee Seok-cheol, star of the South Korean band Eastlight, made headlines when, at a press conference, he accused his agency of having hit him and other band members with baseball bats and metal scrubbing brushes.
Even this is not enough, however; financial dependency represents another problem. Many idols have to repay the costs of their training as soon as they have made it into a boy- or girl group. That means that when they start out their career, they are already in debt. It’s then practically impossible to get out.
Deaths on the K-Pop scene
The constant pressure to have to be a “perfect” idol is a heavy weight on the shoulders of many young artists. Hate comments on the internet, permanently being watched over by the agencies and the feeling of never being good enough leave deep scars. Again and again, this leads to the Korean music world being forced to lament tragic losses: in 2017, the death of Kim Jong-hyun, frontman of the successful boyband Shinee, shook the music world. He was just 27 years old. Two years later, the singers Sulli and Goo Hara also lost their lives. Both were under huge public pressure, and had continually been the object of online hate.
In 2020, this was followed by the news of the death of the 28-year-old singer Kim Jeong-hwan, known as Yohan. In 2023, Moonbin died, at just 25. In November the same year, the singer Kim Na-hee died. In April 2024, Park Bo-ram passed away at just 20. In March 2025, K-Pop star Wheesung was discovered dead in his flat.
There are countless other young people whose stories remain untold. One thing is for sure, however: something urgently has to change on the scene. Agencies are responsible for ensuring their artists are viewed as people, whose wellbeing has to take priority over commercial interests. It remains to be seen, however, whether anything will change in the coming years.
If you are experiencing a psychological crisis, don’t delay in seeking help:
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- Police: 133
- Ambulance: 144
Translated by Tim Lywood
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