Advertisement
VR and AR
TechTech Trends

Dismissal of a ByteDance-owned virtual singer prompts backlash, claims of abuse, signalling challenges for booming industry

  • Fans of the five-member girl group A-Soul were angered after the dismissal of the character Carol, leading to allegations of worker abuse
  • Virtual idols are cheaper to create than turning a real person into a star, but they are still animated by real performers behind the screen

Reading Time:4 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
0
A-Soul virtual idol Carol was dismissed this month from the five-member girl group developed by ByteDance’s gaming unit Nuverse and Chinese artist agency YH Entertainment Group. Photo: Handout
Iris Deng
China’s booming virtual idol industry faced an outcry from fans this month after the abrupt retirement of a member in a popular virtual group of singers and dancers backed by ByteDance, a testament to the immense popularity of these digital icons and the risks that accompany these characters’ ties to real people.

A-Soul, a five-member girl group developed by ByteDance’s gaming unit Nuverse and Chinese artist agency YH Entertainment Group, triggered the fan revolt when it dismissed the virtual idol Carol without prior warning, citing “health and education reasons” for the unidentified real person behind the character.

“My world just collapsed,” said Henry Hu, a university student in Guangxi province and a fan of Carol. “I never thought it would happen.”

Virtual performers powered by a combination of artificial intelligence and real performers have become increasingly popular among China’s young consumers, who tune in online and sometimes spend thousands of yuan on their favourite avatars. Chinese gaming studios, video websites and online shops have all rushed to produce their own idols.

A-Soul has been among the most popular of these virtual pop groups. The band has won millions of fans over the past two years on ByteDance’s Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, and Bilibili, a video streaming site popular for China’s Generation Z.

Carol’s dismissal with the departure of her unknown actress was such a surprise to viewers that it quickly turned into a backlash, leading to accusations of inhumane working conditions for the former employee whose voice and movements brought the character to life. The revolt escalated to the point that some fans even reported the alleged abuses to Chinese labour authorities. The local labour authorities in Hangzhou conducted an investigation and said they found no evidence of forced employment or dismissal.

A-Soul’s production team also denied accusations that the artists behind the group’s characters were underpaid or forced to work long hours. But the team admitted that Carol performed until midnight in two recent sessions.

“There were no incidents of ‘bullying’ or ‘suppression’ based on our investigation,” the A-Soul project team said in a statement.

Advertisement