BTS was “covered in” digital music fraud

Recently,  BTS  and Army went through an unprecedented controversy when a series of past scandals were re-opened. The incident originated from  a dispute between HYBE Group and Min Hee Jin . Even though they are unrelated, even all 7 members are on hiatus due to military service, but because they play a pivotal role in the group, BTS naturally becomes “bullet targets”. Antifan took advantage of the opportunity for HYBE and its affiliated music groups to be “examined” by the public, immediately pushing the storm towards the trump card BTS.

The most prominent issue in BTS’ controversy in recent days is the suspicion of digital music fraud. Noise spread from the verdict in which Big Hit was the victim in 2017. Accordingly, A – who was prosecuted for extortion related to illegal marketing activities for Big Hit – had to spend 1 year in prison for the crime. threatened company officials to appropriate 57 million won. A is known to have participated in fraudulent marketing for Big Hit and BTS. Despite being the victim, this case has caused BTS to be caught up in accusations of hiring a third party to cheat on their digital music achievements.

The incident was “dug up” and the public changed its direction to doubt BTS’s achievements. The group faced a series of malicious comments, and went as far as having their careers denied. The noise affected the reputation of the 7 boys, making the Army extremely unhappy. Fans tried their best to present counter-evidence and defend their idols. After a period of silence that made fans “boo”, HYBE recently denied all related allegations and used legal measures against posts attacking BTS.

However, the doubt has not yet been extinguished. On May 2, the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced its intention to investigate allegations of digital music fraud surrounding BTS. This information makes Kpop fans even more restless. After 8 years, the case was again overturned because of harsh public opinion. Many people filed a complaint to strip BTS of their certificates of merit because of this incident.

Knet suspects that SEVENTEEN manipulated album sales

Not only BTS has “three disasters”,  SEVENTEEN  is also questioned by Knet about their album sales achievements. On April 29, the million-selling boy group Pledis made a comeback with Best Album: 17 Is Right Here. On the first day of release, SEVENTEEN successfully sold more than 2 million copies even though Best Album is a collection version that is picky about buyers. Accordingly, the 13 boys became the first Kpop artists to have 3 consecutive albums selling 2 million copies on the first day. This achievement is considered an “unprecedented” milestone.

However, the high revenue has sparked controversy. A topic is going viral on forums in Korea, questioning SEVENTEEN’s popularity. The poster wrote: “With this kind of spread, they (SEVENTEEN) will be No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and be able to tour around the world in stadiums. It’s impossible to sell at this level only in Asia.

…In Western countries, how can SEVENTEEN sell on par with Taylor Swift? If you look at other countries or even Japan, it is strange for a group to sell so many copies. It’s strange that a group like SEVENTEEN can sell so much when they have never reached the level of popularity like EXO, BTS or Wanna One” . Doubt arises because SEVENTEEN is considered not to explode in the US or Europe. , the majority of fans are concentrated in Korea – China – Japan.

In the comments section, many people hypothesized whether SEVENTEEN’s performance data had been manipulated after coming under HYBE since 2021. “I can agree with this. When the news of HYBE’s acquisition was announced, put out, they started skyrocketing to 700k sales in the first week, but they didn’t have a single hit. After that, they just kept climbing, which is suspicious,” commented one internet user essay.

This controversy has faced opposition from the fan community. Defense arguments are given. Accordingly, album sales are compiled from distribution and retail sources and are “real money”, so it is difficult to determine whether there is any intervention or manipulation. Regarding SEVENTEEN not being famous, this is just a one-sided assessment from netizens.

In 2023, SEVENTEEN continuously creates revenue records as well as increases recognition. The group “sold” 5 million copies, reaching #2 Billboard 200 in both comebacks with FML and Seventeenth Heaven . In IFPI’s year-end statistics, SEVENTEEN surpassed Taylor Swift to lead the album achievements.

Shows sell tickets “as expensive as hot cakes”. Recently, SEVENTEEN filled 2 nights of Follow Again to Seoul at a stadium with a capacity of up to 60,000 spectators. It will even soon enter the “holy land” of Nissan, Japan. Asian fans, especially Korean – Chinese – Japanese fans have huge purchasing power. SEVENTEEN with the strength of many members, kick sale policies, and attractive incentives also makes fans not hesitate to “spend their money” to buy albums every comeback. It’s not difficult to understand when the group achieved record sales. Not to mention, in the international market, SEVENTEEN has also established a prominent fandom among the top 3rd generation Kpop groups.

Recently, the image of SEVENTEEN album boxes piled up on the streets of Japan was condemned for lack of environmental protection awareness, but it also partly shows that the group sells albums very well. Therefore, the suspicion that SEVENTEEN manipulated revenue figures is unfounded.