What is Weverse? Everything to know about the go-to source for the K-pop stan community
When BigHit Music, the South Korean music label behind BTS member Jimin’s solo career, wanted to announce the singer’s newest single, there was arguably only one platform to go to: Weverse, an app created by its parent company, Hybe Entertainment.
On Dec. 20, BigHit Music shared on the platform that BTS member Jimin would be releasing a “heartfelt song that encapsulates Jimin’s genuine feelings for ARMY,” the acronym — "Adorable Representative M.C. for Youth" — for BTS’s fanbase.
As the news spread across other social media platforms and music publications, it highlighted how much power and influence Weverse, which launched in 2019, has on fandoms.
What is Weverse?
Hybe, the billion-dollar music conglomerate also based in South Korea that’s behind some of today’s biggest musical acts, created the online “multiverse,” as Fast Company describes Weverse, for its fans. As Hybe CEO Park Ji-won told the outlet, the goal is to go beyond building a music platform and instead encourage an “intimacy” between musicians and their fans.
Weverse has been billing itself as the go-to destination for K-pop fans worldwide. There’s a “Feed” where users can look at content created by other fans and an “Artist” tab solely dedicated to what celebrities are posting. (Initially, all artists featured were under the South Korean label BigHit Music, which is owned by Hybe. As of September, artists from YG Entertainment, SM Entertainment and international artists from Universal Music Group have been added.) Official content from record labels is shared in the “Media” tab, where fans can also turn on push notifications for announcements from their favorite artists.
“The thing we're really digging into is the psychological mechanism of falling in love with something or someone,” Weverse president Joon Won Choi told Mashable in April. “When there's a fan that's passionate about something or someone, we understand what they want and provide them an all-in-one package.”
This understanding has translated into platform improvements, such as Weverse merging with its sister app, Weverse Shop, so that users don’t have to switch between platforms to buy exclusive artist merch.
There’s also Weverse DM, which launched in April, where artists can have conversations with paying fans via “direct message.” Choi confirmed to Mashable that the messages from artists are real and not AI-generated. (While it looks like a private conversation, Choi reiterated to Mashable that the messages are “not guaranteed to be personally directed to you.” Some Reddit users who have used the service claim that Weverse DM seems more comparable to a celebrity posting something on “Close Friends” rather than a personal conversation.)
Is joining Weverse worth it?
Compared to other K-pop-centric platforms competitors like Universe and Bubble, Weverse is free to use and download — it’s up to the specific musical groups and performers as to whether they want certain information or posts to be exclusive to paid subscribers. (Subscription costs depend on the artist; BTS’s, for example, costs around $22 (U.S.) annually.)
However, since Weverse users live everywhere and not just in Korea, there are plenty of situations where users will screenshot and upload exclusive content to either X or Reddit groups, sometimes with translations.
According to some Weverse users on Reddit, the major benefit of the platform is priority access for both merchandise and concert tickets.
How popular is Weverse?
The app has over 100 million downloads to date and continues to grow. In August, Hybe confirmed that Weverse had exceeded 10 million monthly users in July — surpassing the average of 9.5 million monthly active users it reported having from March through June. Hybe reported that this was a 58% increase year-over-year in individual users.
The presence certain big-name musical acts have on Weverse is comparable to other mainstream social media platforms. BTS is arguably the biggest K-pop group in the world, having sold over 1 million albums in the U.S. alone in 2023, despite being on a hiatus as the group commits to their military service. Across social media, BTS has over 45 million followers on X, formerly known as Twitter, 60 million on Instagram and 47 million on TikTok.
On V Live, the once-rival platform to Weverse that was acquired by Hybe last year, the group had over 35 million followers. Those millions will now transfer over to Weverse, where BTS already has 14 million followers. On Weverse, dedicated ARMY fans pay $22 yearly to get exclusive content.
In December, Weverse announced that BTS member Jungkook hosted the livestream with the most viewers in 2023 with over 16 million real-time viewers tuning in.
Weverse issues
Fandoms, both online and off, are not without their issues.
Dr. Laurel Williams, an associate psychiatry and behaviorial sciences professor at the Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, was quoted in an article about toxic fandoms as saying that really anyone can be susceptible to becoming unhealthily invested in celebrities.
Williams argued that there’s a line between being a fan and feeling like you’re “owed” something by the celebrity or know them on a personal level. While she said that understanding that social media can be disingenuous helps with disillusionment, what happens with an app feature like Weverse DM where it intentionally looks like a celebrity is trying to speak one-on-one?
In a Reddit post, one Weverse user questioned how K-pop artists didn’t “freak out” over some of the comments they get on livestreams.
“Why on earth are ppl SPAMMING asking him to show his body and repeating useless and lowkey creepy phrases,” the original post writer asked, referencing their experience watching V from BTS do a live video. “People [were] asking him to notice them or they will do xyz or attempting to use (badly spelt lmao) profanities if he didn’t notice them.”
“Weverse has more than 65 million users in 245 countries, so we have huge traffic coming through, and there are many, as you mentioned, comments containing racism, prejudices, or biases,” Choi told Mashable. “We have different [safety] measures and are trying to make it more comprehensive.”
Yahoo News has reached out to Hybe and Weverse for comment.
