[비즈한국] Last April, South Korea was buzzing with excitement over the concert by the world-renowned band Coldplay. Beyond the buzz of it being the largest-ever concert tour in Korea, there is something else Coldplay left behind. Coldplay distributes LED wristbands to the audience upon entry and collects them after the show, revealing the return rates for cities around the world to encourage friendly competition. Previously, Tokyo, Japan held the top spot with a 97% return rate, but South Korea reached 99% during this tour, claiming the number one position.
This is not just a simple event. In 2019, Coldplay suspended their world tour due to concerns over carbon emissions. The reason was to stop touring until they could create an eco-friendly, carbon-neutral tour and ensure that all touring activities contribute positively to the environment.
Global artists including Coldplay, Billie Eilish, and Massive Attack are continuing to make various attempts such as using renewable energy, reducing waste, and managing audience travel under the banner of 'carbon-neutral concerts.' So, what about K-pop, which is leading the global music market?
According to the recent report 'Low-Carbon Concerts, A New Stage to Save K-Pop' published by the environmental organization 'Kpop4Planet,' created by K-pop fans, YG Entertainment is the most systematic among the five major domestic entertainment companies (CJ ENM, HYBE352820, JYP, SM, YG) in attempting low-carbon concerts. Kpop4Planet analyzed the carbon emission areas of live performances by dividing them into four categories: energy, transportation, waste, and food.
According to the report, YG has quantitatively measured carbon emissions since BLACKPINK’s ‘BORN PINK’ Seoul concert and was the first in the industry to publish a ‘Sustainable Performance Report,’ disclosing greenhouse gas emission data for each concert. They also pledged to transition all concerts to sustainable performances by 2030. However, direct carbon reduction activities were not clearly evident.
In the case of SM Entertainment041510, they collaborated with the Asian Forest Cooperation Organization (AFoCO) to calculate the travel and accommodation of artists, staff, and audiences, as well as waste and electricity usage. However, the specific emission data, which is the result of these measurements, was not disclosed.
HYBE is the only entertainment company among them to operate shuttle buses for some concerts and deploy some electric vehicles. However, it was assessed that there is an absence of greenhouse gas emission measurement or carbon management activities for their concerts.
JYP Entertainment has replaced 100% of the electricity used in its headquarters building with renewable energy, but its efforts to reduce carbon emissions in the concert sector are not clear.
CJ ENM hosts the annual K-pop festival ‘KCON’ and the global K-pop awards ‘MAMA AWARDS.’ While they have set goals as part of their company-wide ESG management, such as expanding investment in eco-friendly infrastructure by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, concrete plans for the concert sector are lacking.
Kpop4Planet pointed out that more than 70% of the entire music industry’s emissions come from concerts, emphasizing the need for practical reduction efforts such as using renewable energy batteries at concerts. According to the report, the Portola festival in the U.S. has realized a 100% battery-powered stage, and Billie Eilish produces concert power herself using solar panels. Coldplay uses solar panels and installs bicycle generators to build an audience-participatory energy system.
The report assessed that while some companies have started reducing waste, such as by upcycling banners or producing eco-friendly merchandise, concrete reduction targets or the use of renewable energy are not clear. However, it evaluated the move to start measuring and disclosing carbon emissions as a positive development.
Kpop4Planet suggested that K-pop should take 'carbon responsibility' matching its global influence, proposing five tasks: △measuring and planning the reduction of carbon emissions throughout the entire concert process, △using renewable energy, △spreading artists' messages about the climate crisis, △minimizing concert venue waste, and △reducing carbon emissions during travel.
Kim Na-yeon, a campaigner at Kpop4Planet, stated, "Low-carbon concerts are both a crisis and an opportunity to not only reduce K-pop's carbon footprint but also to drive major change by leveraging its powerful cultural influence."