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BTS, SEVENTEEN's HYBE leads Environmental Pollution list for excessive album marketing; know top 3 agencies
HYBE ranks no. 1 on the Environmental Pollution of the Year list, followed by many other companies. Read on for more details.
HYBE, the multinational K-pop company, is currently the leading talent agency in South Korea. However, with success comes the downsides, which affect the environment more than anything else. In a survey, HYBE takes the top spot on the Environmental Pollution list due to its excessive album promotion.
In January 2025, the Sustainable K-pop Awards 2024, presented by Kpop4Planet, a group of fans advocating for climate action, revealed the data of a survey conducted by over 10,040 global K-pop fans. In the Environmental Pollution of the Year list, HYBE took first place due to its marketing strategies, which are seen as contributing to the worsening climate crisis.
The prevalent practices of entertainment companies, such as including fan meeting entry tickets, random photo cards, and multiple album cover versions in releases, receive criticism. These tactics push fans to buy several physical copies, mainly to drive up first-week album sales, intensifying environmental concerns.Kpop4Planet noted that despite the widespread adoption of online music streaming, physical album sales in K-pop have continued to rise.
Moreover, YG, SM, and JYP Entertainment secured second, third, and fourth place in both categories. The online poll was conducted from November 16 to December 17 of the previous year.
Kpop4Planet organized a performance outside HYBE’s headquarters in Yongsan, Seoul, presenting trophies shaped like K-pop lightsticks to reflect the award results. The design held symbolic meaning, as lightsticks represent K-pop’s unity and enduring positive influence. The group announced plans to continue their campaign with fans, using the lightstick to symbolize determination to oppose environmentally harmful album marketing practices.
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