Shopping area in Seoul in winter at night. Lots of bright signs, bright windows, and the steam of shoppers' breath.

The Idol

Right now—in the 2020s—it’s K-Pop. Before that—at least in Asia—it was J-Pop. While there might be superficial similarities to manufactured pop stars and boy- and girl-bands in North America and Europe, the term Idol has particular significance when applied to the star system in Korea and Japan. These stars are not only trained in music and dance performance, but cultivate an image of accessibility and even connection—an intentional para-social relationship that is based on the idea that the Idol is just like you, they are your avatar in the world of superstardom, and that they rely on you to support and protect them. That probably isn’t true of every Idol and Idol group, nor is it necessarily intentional, but it kind of helps identify and categorize a particular approach and style.

And this is definitely not intended to denigrate the Idols. They are amazing performers—singers, dancers, and actors all in one. They work insanely hard and undergo incredible stress in pursuit of their art. Maybe they are doing it for the money or the adulation, but aren’t we all? Pick any singer-songwriter of note. They could have stayed in the coffeeshop or the club but they instead sought the limelight. We want to share our art with the world (man, can I relate to that!) and maybe bring some joy. I would expect that most Idols are no different. Money is how the world shows it cares.

My understanding of the Idol phenomenon owes very much Dr. Patrick W. Galbraith of Senshu University. You can find his earlier work at Academia.edu and ResearchGate. He was also recently on the Decoder Ring podcast.

This is kind of envisioned as a cyberpunk story—like William Gibson’s Idoru—but would totally work in the modern-era, going back to the 1970s in Japan or the early 2000s in South Korea.

Story

The Idol got their first contract—with The Band—when they were 16. They’ve been in the biz more than a decade, and now they want to do something for themselves. Their legal team found a way to get out of their extremely unfair contract with ParentCorp (not its real name), and the final court case has happened—they’re free! As they begin shopping for a new corporate home (you don’t get to release hit songs without a corporation), they’ve noticed a persistent fan that is different than the other stalkers they have encountered (lots of those). Their head of security says they are paranoid, and they are turning to the one person they trust—one of the PCs. The player can decide on the nature of the relationship.

Places

The Palace: The Idol has been at this for more than a decade, and while their contract was extremely unfair (they didn’t even own rights to their own likeness) they’ve become exceptionally wealthy—the corporation got a heck of a lot more. It is a kind of a fortress with mil-spec security. But the Idol is wondering just how secure it all is. The systems don’t seem to be working entirely as advertised. The Idol doesn’t know, but The Fan has an inside connection—either having breached the system or actually having an agent inside.

The Club: The only public place the Idol feels safe is in The Musician’s club—that’s not because it’s secure. The Club has significant security, but there’s always a lot of people in attendance. If the opponent is determined and willing to accept risk . . .

People

The Musician: This signer-songwriter made is big. They had a poor impression of Idols until they actually met some. At one industry event, The Musician met The Idol and they became close friends. They have very different background and styles, but The Musician is a true friend and will put themself (and their wealth and property) at risk for their friend.

The Fan: Yeah, this isn’t a stalker. They’re a corporate agent. They’re job is to monitor The Idol, collect intelligence on their contract negotiations—the stuff that doesn’t reach the scream stream—and if it looks like The Idol will sign with a corporation that ParentCorp doesn’t control, see to it that The Idol suffers a terrible accident—like an overdose. ParentCorp will use The Idol as an example to the others on its roster.

Events

The Intrusion: The PCs notice The Fan at a public event. It’s clear that The Fan is not working alone. There’s identifiable communications with at least three others (could be radio, hand signals, actual contact). That’s NOT stalker behaviour. The Fan realizes they’ve been identified. They disappear—along with their accomplices. Defcon one million!

Breach: The Fan gains access to The Palace and is intent on setting up a secondary surveillance system—though they have control of The Palace’s security. They also want to facilitate further access in case they need to remove The Idol.

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