Coronavirus and K-pop in 2020: how BTS, Blackpink, NCT and the rest of the industry weathered the pandemic, and the risk of a pop infection cluster
- K-pop had a good year, despite the limitations caused by Covid-19 and the need for social distancing
- Albums sold in their millions, labels put on paid-for online concerts, and industry award events went ahead
The year started strongly for K-pop. The beginning of a new decade, it felt like anything could happen. Then the Covid-19 pandemic shut down much of the world, changing people’s lives.
Initially, South Korea had a successful response to the coronavirus, and things stabilised quickly for the K-pop industry after planned album releases and world tours were postponed or cancelled.
Paradoxically, 2020 turned out to be a major year for the Korean pop industry at a time when many others struggled.
Music of the moment
Some looked towards the future, and many shared the feelings of people around the world struggling with the impact of Covid-19, but they all provided solace to listeners.
Going digital
After an initial scramble that saw some artists touring internationally while countries were starting to shut down in March, including an Everglow tour in the US that rapidly instituted mask rules for audiences, the South Korean music industry quickly turned to online concerts.
