HOLOGRAMS, the next big thing in music?

**ghosthunter** · July 22nd, 2013 12:06 PM

The next big thing in Korea's music industry: Holograms

In South Korea, a country where a massive entertainment industry resides alongside high-tech gadgets, it's inevitable that a fusion between the two will occur.

Success Museum Entertainment (SM) and Yang Goon Entertainment (YG), two of the leading talent agencies in South Korea are taking their stereoscopic visions to the next level. They aim to globalize Korean pop culture with the use of advanced 3D projectors to create realistic holographic images of their artists. As a fan of KPop myself, their efforts are welcome, but is this the right way to go?

There are several reasons the companies utilize holograms for globalization. With the idols' hectic schedules and huge costs required to send them to different countries, entertainment agencies consider this holographic solution to be an answer. This was theorized to be a more economical and efficient method of bringing stars to their fans in different parts of the world.

SM has plans of opening a concert hall named "V-Theater" specifically for virtual performances in August. It will eventually become a tourist attraction with plans for expansion already in the works. YG, on the other hand, has already established K-Pop Hologram: YG at the Everland theme park in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, where the holographic footage of world-famous star PSY was displayed earlier this month.

SM has been said to have experimented with this technology for the past decade, but the company only found success in January this year with a Girls' Generation showcase in Gangnam as well as a virtual exhibition held last August in COEX.

Hence, the quality of live music is in question. If the artists themselves aren't even around for performances, can it truly be considered quality live entertainment? It may gain popularity amongst some, but I personally feel that time will wear this fad out. Hardcore fans will possibly look at this in a negative light, dismissing it as some sort of money-making scheme. It doesn't really matter how much a ticket would amount to, but I wouldn't pay to see projections of my idols on stage.

While it is innovative, holographic technology has been used before to revive music legends who have passed. Stereoscopic versions of rapper Tupac and Elvis Presley were created over the last few years and are more significant as the artists are no longer around. Vocaloid Hatsune Miku, a holographic idol, has also gained vast popularity in Japan.

It is fine to 'raise' the dead and have a CGI character perform in projected glory, but having the chance to breathe the same air as my idols brings a completely different sense of intimacy that can never be achieved by watching a holographic concert.

source: The next big thing in Korea's music industry: Holograms - Crave - Cool Tech & Gadgets - CNET Asia