YG Entertainment opens a fan-centric cultural space in a virtual world to invite fans from all over the world

[Courtesy of YG Entertainment]

SEOUL – South Korean entertainment powerhouse YG Entertainment has opened a digital clone of ‘the SamE’, a fan-centric cultural space designed to deliver special treats to fans around the world who visit a shopping and cultural district near the company headquarters in West Seoul.

The SamE, located right next to the YG building, has a cafe, a merchandise store and a small showroom. It offered visitors a unique experience of K-pop culture. Lucky visitors may be lucky enough to enjoy their drinks and activities in “the same” space as popular K-pop stars.

YG opened the cultural space in June 2021, but it has been largely unused for about five months due to strict social distancing guidelines. Using Zepeto, a metaverse platform operated by South Korean web services giant Naver, YG has opened up the digital version of SamE to invite fans around the world who can stroll through its cafe and store. merchandise or enjoy music videos from YG artists such as BLACKPINK.

A metaverse is a virtual world accessible using a smartphone, PC or virtual reality headset. Each user is represented by a personalized character called an “avatar”. In the metaverse version of SamE, users can purchase special outfits that BLACKPINK wore at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2019, an annual music and arts festival held in the United States.

“We will provide differentiated services to our global fans using a metaverse platform that follows the big trend in the no-one-on-one era,” YG said in a November 9 statement.