As the K-Pop market continues to expand, those involved in its production and performance are also reaping significant profits.
Numerous agencies have given birth to countless excellent artists, placing the K-Pop industry at the center of the global market. Consequently, generating revenues in the hundreds of millions or even billions has long become the norm.
So, what is the total monthly revenue of a song that ranks first on the music charts, and what is the level of copyright fees associated with it?
For example, the OST "Golden" from the Netflix animated film, which has been sweeping various domestic music charts including Melon, has approximately 390,000 listeners per day. The industry typically analyzes that listeners play a song more than three times, resulting in about 1.2 million streams per day.
Based on this, when combining streaming figures and other revenue items related to the song, the industry estimates that approximately 1 billion won in sales is achieved. While there may be variations for each song, for a hit song like "Golden," the monthly revenue is reported to be at least 500 to 1 billion won. Within that, the lyricist and composer receive 10.5%, the arranger 2%, and the performers (singers and musicians) 2% of the earnings.
In fact, it has been confirmed that a person who wrote the lyrics for a hit song by a top trot singer in Korea received about 60 million won in just one month. Moreover, this amount has been maintained for about three years, generating quite a high income.
It's not just the top spot. According to industry analysis, typically, entering the top 100, top 50, and top 10 generates sales of about 30 million won, 60 to 70 million won, and over 200 million won, respectively. Considering that popular songs of a certain level tend to stay on the charts for over a year once they enter, these figures have been confirmed.
In light of this, the copyright fees for those who write and compose popular songs can amount to hundreds of millions or even billions. This is because they do not just work on a single song. The value of producers who participate in the album work of various artists skyrockets.
Bumju, a producer affiliated with Pledis Entertainment, has focused on the music of the group Seventeen and has generated tremendous profits. Ultimately, he secured the copyright fees in the field of songwriting and composition for the public sector in 2023-2024.
[Ji Seung-hoon, Star Today Reporter]
