(G)I-DLE's Soyeon recently shared some insights on idol income and royalties.
On July 16th, the YouTube channel Mimiminu posted a video titled "It took 3 years to clear the debt. Singing Queencard in a living room karaoke in front of (G)I-DLE's Jeon Soyeon."
In the video, YouTuber Mimiminu asked Soyeon about idol income. Soyeon said, "Singers earn a lot when their songs and albums do well. Good songs also mean higher advertising fees."
Soyeon explained the impact of chart rankings, saying, "Being in the top 100 makes a huge difference. If a song is in the top 1000, you can at least make a living. If it's in the top 100, you can live comfortably."
When asked about having number one hits, Soyeon said, "Even if a song is number one, it doesn't bring in a lot of money. 'LATATA' was in the top 20, and the revenue felt similar to what it would be now if it was number one. Sometimes it even felt like more. Since you only get 1,000 KRW (about $1) per play, it doesn't feel like a pension."
Soyeon addressed the idea that celebrities live comfortably on royalties, saying, "Royalties are divided among company revenue, distributor revenue, and co-writers. So, only about 3% comes to me."
She added, "Every company has different contracts. Some require you to pay off debts, some clear your debts, and some even gift you your debut album. In our case, we had to pay off our debts. It took three years to clear the costs of being a trainee and debuting, even though we were successful from the start."
Soyeon also revealed that her earnings could vary greatly, from making 1 billion KRW (about $1 million) in a month to as little as 100,000 KRW (about $100).
(G)I-DLE, with Soyeon as a member, made a comeback on the 8th with their new song "Klaxon."
Source: [1]