Meager music show appearance fees have become a hot topic in the K-pop world lately. More and more idols are coming out to reveal how little music shows pay and no longer have the same promotional impact.
The latest K-pop idol to talk about it is soloist and former SECRET NUMBER member, Denise.
Denise debuted with SECRET NUMBER in 2020 and left the group in September 2022 due to contractual issues with Vine Entertainment.
Last year, she debuted as a soloist with darling and is currently quite active on TikTok posting skincare and makeup videos as well as revealing some juicy gossip about the K-pop world.
In one of her recent videos, he addressed a fan question who asked if she was really paid $36 for a music show appearance. She dropped a bombshell saying, “When I was there, the lowest one I was being paid was $44-$45, and yes, this is how much you’re getting paid as a group.”
That’s not the most shocking part, the $44 they received for a performance at music shows was getting split between members. This means If a group has more members, they will get even less than $10 each despite the blood, sweat, and tears they put into their performance.
Denise shared, “So these idols are not going on music promotion shows to earn money, they are literally just going on to do what the show says, promote their music.”
Lastly, She revealed that idols do not get much out of music show appearances and the amount of money spent on outfits, doing hair and makeup, set, and more is way more than the earnings.
