On September 12 and 13, PLAVE kicked off their first overseas tour, becoming the first virtual idol group to perform at a stadium. Then, on October 17, Ailee unveiled her very own VTuber model on CHZZK, a streaming service operated by Naver. Late last year, VTuber group StelLive came out swinging when they held, and sold out, their first concert, “2025 THE 1ST STELLIVE FESTIVAL ‘STAR TRAIL.’” Meanwhile, MW:MEU, who debuted this April, put out a music video for “With U,” the lead single off their first mini album. As of October 23, the video had 1.3 million views.
We’ve officially entered the virtual age. The door was kicked wide open back in April 2019, when Korea’s first virtual artist, APOKI, debuted. ISEGYE IDOL, RE:REVOLUTION, PLAVE and others followed in quick succession, each one another major success. As the virtual artist craze swept Korea, even Japan—the birthplace of the first VTuber, Kizuna AI—started paying attention. Case in point: hololive production has already held three official collaboration events in Korea this year alone. NIJISANJI, which previously separately included VTubers NIJISANJI KR, has also shown continual interest in the Korean market with regular live viewings.
Now, let’s dive right into five virtual artists ready to captivate you with deep lore, unbelievable performances, and an amazing range of personalities.
Hebi.
Hebi. debuted last year under 3Y Corporation, home to YouTuber Egg Kim and the band QWER. She’s an exciting and enticing virtual singer with an incredible voice. She’s no newcomer, though. Hebi.’s been an utaite since 2020. She started a YouTube account and began making a name for herself with a cover of “Henceforth.” She posted infrequently but steadily until taking a nearly four-year hiatus. Then, out of nowhere in February 2025, she stunned everyone by returning with a new virtual model and a cover of “Night Sky Patrol of Tomorrow.”
Hebi.’s strength lies in her clear and radiant but extremely powerful vocals. Fittingly for a singer who can move effortlessly between genres, the credits on her songs are stacked with big names. On “Chroma,” her debut release and first mini album, CHO WON SANG from the band LUCY and Lee Dohun from can’t be blue were credited on lyrics, composition, and arrangement, and they’ve been working with her since.
Notably, Hebi.’s songs following her hiatus clearly reference her own experiences. On “EVER,” released ahead of her debut, she sang about the light she found while in despair. Then there’s “Be I,” which she named her favorite song at her first fan concert, “FROM HERE,” in March. Lines like “I hope at least you’re beautiful / Shine bright again / This place is still alive because of you … You’re still a memory I can’t forget” convey how she can only “Be I” when the listener is there as well.
3SKM
3SKM is a VTuber unit under NIJISANJI made up of Kitami Yusei, Sakaki Ness, and Kaisei. The three debuted together in March 2024 and perform under a name that alludes to the Japanese word “sansukumi,” which describes a three-way power struggle, like rock paper scissors.
Their YouTube channel has its own unique description of the setup. “In Virtual Yokohama, where various cultures intertwine, Kitami, a sorcerer, Kaisei, a locksmith, and Sakaki, a butler, all make a living in their own way,” it reads. “After meeting through a certain incident, the three of them seem to be hanging out with their own objectives in mind.” The three stream on their own channels, then team up as 3SKM to stream and do cover songs together. Sakaki Ness is a strong enough singer to take on the Hikaru Utada song “First Love” and also directs the other two when they’re singing. Kitami Yusei cut his teeth in a band at school and boasts his own powerful voice to match. Kaisei was a drummer in school, and he played drums alongside Kitami Yusei’s vocals at the 3D live performance “Keep It Real.” on November 29, 2025.
After releasing four digital singles, 3SKM put out their first mini album, “Nighthawks,” earlier this year in April. According to “Billboard JAPAN,” it sold 53,534 copies in its first week. In August, they held their first live concert, “One-Off,” at Yokohama BUNTAI. In Korea, theater chain Megabox provided an exclusive live viewing experience. They then joined Weverse on September 2 and have been regularly interacting with their Korean fans. So what’s next for 3SKM? Here’s hoping Korea gets front-row seats to a live show featuring Sakaki Ness, Kaisei, and Kitami Yusei—who’s particularly fond of K-pop.
OWIS
On January 10, barely a week into 2026, a video titled “only when i sleep” showed up on YouTube. The channel, named OWIS after the initials of that title, belonged to all my anecdotes, a company founded by creative director Lee Hae-in, an alum of “Produce 101” and “Idol School.” And that was how OWIS began.
OWIS is the first virtual girl group from Lee, who successfully launched both KISS OF LIFE and CLOSE YOUR EYES in quick succession. Ki Huihyeon, known for her time with DIA and a fellow “Produce 101” contestant, handled the marketing, and the debut trailer got people talking before the group had even debuted, with appearances by Lee herself, Lee Ruri from I.B.I, Ryu Sujeong from Lovelyz, composer ADORA, and former NMIXX member JINI.
Building on the phrase “only when I sleep,” OWIS’ lore revolves around Archel, a place that transcends dreams and reality, and where the group members first meet each other while chasing their individual dreams. Serene, the leader, serves as executive producer, and Summer is their music producer. In one interview, Lee said, “I’ve played a lot of supporting roles, so I know what it’s like to want to be the main character. Artists, and staff members too, should be the main character in their own lives.” True to her words, she’s created a dream world where everyone gets to play the lead.
In the liner notes for the single “MUSEUM,” which Summer wrote the lyrics for, there’s a line that goes, “Dreams are like a museum where lost memories are stored.” In a July interview with “Dazed Korea,” member Haru was asked what kind of lingering dream she’d like to be. “A good dream that I don’t want to wake up from,” she responded. Why not dive right into the dreamlike world OWIS has constructed?
IRISÉ
IRISÉ is the second virtual girl group from PARABLE, the company behind ISEGYE IDOL’s debut in 2021. IRISÉ started out as a five-piece with members LUNÉ, SHANA, ZERØ, KIIRI, and TIZ. Unlike ISEGYE IDOL, which had no overarching lore, IRISÉ created unique backstories for each member of the group and released prologue videos one by one, then worked those ideas into the lyrics and music video for their debut song, “Wings.” They also posted short web novels about each member on the Naver web novel platform SERIES alongside videos of them reading each of their stories aloud. Their first EP, “IRIDESCENT,” released last June, included one solo track for each of the girls based on their lore, continuing the push to tie everything back to the fictional universe.
In January, LUNÉ, SHANA, and ZERØ departed from the group, and IRISÉ was reborn as a duo made up of KIIRI and TIZ. They kept at it, and their third digital single, “HEART CRUSH!,” released in August, hit one million views in six days and has been cruising along since. The pair absolutely shines together now. KIIRI, the main vocalist, also has production chops. TIZ, the main dancer, can rap like nobody’s business. On October 30, they released their fourth digital single, “TRAUMA,” featuring hololive EN VTuber Takanashi Kiara.
IRISÉ is taking flight anew—fitting for a group whose name was inspired by Iris, the goddess of the rainbow. And the rainbow trail KIIRI and TIZ are drawing across the sky is sure to keep shining brighter and more beautifully.
MiiWAN
“Even if they say there’s no amazing ending when a story’s still unfolding, I keep dreaming—a dazzling boy not yet finished.” MiiWAN is the most recent to debut among the virtual artist groups introduced here—a group of five boys singing about being incomplete but also beautifully complete, homonyms in Korean. The world first met the group in June this year, represented by ABYSS Company, home to artists like MeloMance. MiiWAN turned heads with animations produced for each member telling a story that’s appropriately unfinished, which were featured not only on YouTube but also Laftel, a streaming service that specializes in anime. Ryu Nakayama, director of “Chainsaw Man,” worked on the animations, and before debuting, the group launched a campaign with digital billboards in New York’s Times Square, Shibuya, and Myeongdong. Building on the concept of five incomplete boys collecting pieces to finish a puzzle together, the lead single, “MiiWAN,” ends with each of them striking a pose of the exact moment they get their pieces. It’s like the song says: “I’ll complete my missed wishes piece by piece with you by my side.” As for the name MiiWAN, take the first letter of each of the boys’ names—MA HAJIN, IM ON, WON JUYUL, AN SEOKWOO, NA ETHAN—then add in the fandom name (Middle.i), and all the pieces fall into place.
The group’s concept and narrative all fit together like a puzzle under the production of comic illustrator Lee Jongbeom. Add continuous communication with fans through Weverse and YouTube livestreams, and the group has made their way up each and every step a virtual artist group needs to climb. Now that they’ve reached the top of the stairs, the question is which piece they’ll be handed next, and what picture the finished puzzle will show.