On June 13, Shinhwa became the number one searched word online. There were no breaking news or issues surrounding them, so why did that happen?
It was the day that Shinhwa's concert tickets for August 3 and 4 went on sale. In just 30 minutes, all 27,000 seats were reserved. The 15-year veterans accomplished the unprecedented feat.
There has been a recent trend in the industry: the 1st generation idol artists such as H.O.T and godare in demand once again.
Shinhwa, the only idol group the 90s that is still active, filled about 100,000 seats in their Asia Tour in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan in recent months.
H.O.T's Moon Hee Jun is a star among concert circles. Back in March, he filled 4,000 seats at a solo concert, and his upcoming concert on July 26-28 is 80% booked.
So what is the driving force behind their popularity despite the lack of hit songs or hot issues in the past decade?
It is the deep, loyal fan base that has stayed with them since the beginning of 'idols.'
Shinhwa boasts over 10,000 paid members in their fan club, while Moon Hee Jun has about 2,000 regular members. Plus, their fans, who were teenagers when the idols first debuted, are now economically comfortable 20s and 30s.
The long-lived success of the old-timers is great news for K-pop as it suggests to current idol artists an ideal path to pursue with sustainable music. With more successful cases, the quality of K-pop as a whole will only be improved as musicians and management companies look farther down the road, rather than profit margins for the next month or two.
kpopstarz
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