{"id":92990,"date":"2024-07-19T21:03:17","date_gmt":"2024-07-20T01:03:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/2024\/07\/19\/ariana-grande-to-join-hybes-superfan-platform-weverse-this-weekend\/"},"modified":"2024-07-19T21:03:17","modified_gmt":"2024-07-20T01:03:17","slug":"ariana-grande-to-join-hybes-superfan-platform-weverse-this-weekend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cyberlego.com\/web\/2024\/07\/19\/ariana-grande-to-join-hybes-superfan-platform-weverse-this-weekend\/","title":{"rendered":"Ariana Grande to Join HYBE\u2019s Superfan Platform Weverse This\u00a0Weekend"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n
\n

\n\tIn a move that highlights her selective engagement with social media, Ariana Grande<\/a>, who deactivated her Twitter account years ago but remains the seventh-most-followed person on Instagram, is set to join HYBE\u2019s superfan platform, Weverse.<\/p>\n

\n\tWeverse Company tells Billboard<\/em> that the chart-topping star will join the platform on Sunday (July 21), adding to a roster that includes BTS, BLACKPINK, JVKE, NCT 127, (G)I-DLE, Lauv, YOASOBI, Conan Gray, AKB48 and thuy. In joining the platform, Grande will have the ability to post messages and content to her own dedicated community, hold livestreams for members, read personalized fan letters, upload exclusive media content, share disappearing messages, and utilize the popular Weverse Shop, which sold more than 18 million<\/a> pieces of merchandise last year to fans in more than 198 countries. <\/strong><\/p>\n

\n
\n

\n

\t\t\t\t\tRelated\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n

\n

\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Joon<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n
\n

\n

\t\t\t\t\tAfter Building Up With K-Pop Stars Like BTS & Seventeen, HYBE’s Weverse Is Focusing Its Superfan\u2026\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n

\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

\n\tThe announcement marks a significant moment for both Grande and Weverse, opening up a new way for the singer to deepen her connection with fans while showing a commitment to her continued business relationship<\/a> with HYBE and HYBE America CEO (and Grande\u2019s former manager) Scooter Braun<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\n\tSince opening in June 2019 with Billboard 200<\/a> chart-toppers TOMORROW X TOGETHER as its first artist, Weverse now hosts 146 artists from countries including South Korea, Japan and the U.S. Its biggest artist community, for BTS, boasts 26 million members, while the ENHYPEN community has 9.8 million. Today, HYBE reports over 155 million lifetime downloads and an average of 10 million monthly active users across 245 countries and regions, with 90% of its user base now coming from outside Korea. Despite Warner Music Group (WMG) announcing plans for its own superfan app<\/a> \u2014 as well as WMG and Sony investing early in rival superfan platform Fave \u2014 Weverse says its start with K-pop artists delivered important insights to entice top Western stars like Grande to join.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWhat\u2019s lucky for us has been that K-pop idols are the types of artists that have a very strong core fanbase,\u201d Joon Choi<\/strong>, president of Weverse Company, tells Billboard<\/em> of the company\u2019s half-decade of growth that now includes investment from Universal Music Group<\/a>. \u201cAs a platform and a business, we had already enjoyed the competitive edge or advantage of being there first and being there early to observe what superfans actually want.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWhile artists can use Weverse to access first-party data for content delivery, promotion and to stay connected to international fans, the platform has expanded opportunities in live music with not only event streaming but its Weverse Con Festival and a Weverse by Fans tool through which fans can develop their own merch.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe were there earlier and we have a long experience of observing the demands of our fans,\u201d Choi adds. \u201cThat\u2019s why we were able to create this one-stop fan service that includes merch development, merch selling, communities, videos, live streaming and even magazines\u2026I do see the growth of startups or services that are entering this particular [superfan] market and that\u2019s good. The more competition in the market is actually better for us because being the only player in that particular market sector makes us nervous.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\n

\n

\t\t\t\t\tRelated\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n

\n

\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"SM<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n
\n

\n

\t\t\t\t\tSM Entertainment Artists to Join HYBE\u2019s Weverse Platform Under New\u00a0Partnership\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n

\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

\n\tNew competitors or not, Weverse continues to expand; currently, the company boasts a total of 400 employees in South Korea, 60 in Tokyo, and 20 in Santa Monica, Calif. (with the target to grow to 30 this year). And with a major star like Grande, there\u2019s a slew of Arianators that could soon be joining the platform. Still, the executive admits he doesn\u2019t know what to expect from the Eternal Sunshine<\/em> singer once she officially joins. As he puts it, \u201cIt is totally up to the artists.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tRead on for more insights from Joon about Grande\u2019s big move and what lies in store for Weverse\u2019s future.<\/p>\n

\n\tWeverse is adding new artists all the time, but Ariana Grande is a huge name with a worldwide fanbase. What have the weeks been like leading up to this announcement?<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tI just traveled a lot; I\u2019ve been a globetrotter. We have offices in Santa Monica and Tokyo, and in each office location our leaders are currently meeting and contacting many artists and labels, so I believe our platform and business are becoming truly international and crossing borders. As we do that, we have opportunities to engage with and work with big artists, but also rising stars, so these opportunities are being created.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the past, Weverse or artists have held special events or activities to begin their time on the platform. Will Ariana have a welcome party?<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tMy simple answer to that question is that it is totally up to the artists. So, although we do have sessions where we offer guidelines or guidance in terms of how to better utilize the platform to cultivate the superfan culture or fandom, we do not necessarily engage too much [in terms of] planning activities or what\u2019s going on the Weverse platform. I know that this might not be the direct answer that you\u2019re looking for, but we have artists onboarded onto Weverse with a very good understanding of the difference between Weverse and other social media platforms.<\/p>\n

\n\tWhat opportunities do you see for Weverse in welcoming Ariana Grade, and what opportunities are now open to Ariana?<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tWeverse is definitely a distinct platform, different from other social media platforms, so I\u2019m also very curious how it will be utilized by artists like Ariana Grande. It really depends on each artist or label whether they discuss details about how they want to or plan to utilize Weverse. But in this particular case, we don\u2019t know yet \u2014 that\u2019s something that I\u2019m closely watching.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

\n

\t\t\t\t\tRelated\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n

\n

\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Audience<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n
\n

\n

\t\t\t\t\tEveryone Wants to Reach Superfans. It Won\u2019t Be\u00a0Easy\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n

\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

\n\tBut I would like to add that when I look at Weverse from my perspective as the leader of this business, it\u2019s important to have enough resources and big enough clusters of a particular genre, specific country or culture. So, that\u2019s why we\u2019ve been working hard to onboard many artists. During the first half of this year alone, we have onboarded Nightly, thuy, Lauv, Umi, Conan Gray and JVKE. And then we have Ariana Grande. But Gracie Abrams has been very active as well; she\u2019s good. So, when you see Weverse as a platform and in terms of the growth of our platform, it is very important that we have thriving clusters of certain music genres, countries or cultures to generate a network effect as well.<\/p>\n

\n\tWeverse does a lot of business selling music, albums and merchandise via Weverse Shop<\/a>, but Ariana isn\u2019t only involved in music: she has R.E.M Beauty and perfumes; she\u2019s in movies and television. Does she give you opportunities to expand into new commerce markets?<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tI can\u2019t comment on an artist\u2019s existing merchandise lines or albums since there must be agreements or contracts in terms of production and distribution in place. How merchandise is developed and sold through Weverse really varies by each artist. But a feature that we have on Weverse, Weverse by Fans, has been very effective and is gaining a lot of attention from artists because it is based on fan demand. Also, Weverse by Fans doesn\u2019t require a minimum quantity of manufacturing goods for production. So, as soon as there\u2019s enough demand for a certain type of merch, we can immediately produce and sell those.<\/p>\n

\n
\n