SUCHWITA is part of a trend sweeping the Korean YouTube landscape. Talk show series were one of the top five YouTube trends in the country for 2022 according to a report put out by YouTube Korea last December. Looking at the list of most popular videos and creators for 2022, three of the 10 most-viewed YouTube videos in the country came from talk shows as well, including an episode from Lee Young Ji’s series Nothing Much Prepared (fourth most viewed) and one from the second season of Meenoi’s Yorizori (tenth most viewed). Other shows like IU’s Palette, uploaded to the singer’s personal YouTube channel, and Lee Mujin Service also see high viewership on every episode. While it’s become increasingly rare to see music-centric talk shows on TV, the genre is flourishing on YouTube as musicians host their own series. In the case of Nothing Much Prepared, the videos they’ve posted in the two months leading up to July 21 (other than behind-the-scenes clips) averaged 9.4 million views each, while the most-viewed video from seasons one and two was the episode with BTS member Jin, with 20 million views. (July 25)

BANGTANTV now has over 75 million subscribers, and IU’s official channel has over 8.5 million. Lee Young Ji, the host of Nothing Much Prepared, has long had a strong presence on YouTube and social media as well. Guests who make an appearance on these so-called superhosts’ shows are able to reach a wider audience, gaining exposure to subscribers and other viewers of the channel, including fans of the host, who may in time become fans of the guest. A YouTube Short of a popular scene from an episode of Nothing Much Prepared where CHAERYEONG asks the host if she has “tried to finish the whole Pringles” can has amassed over 17.8 million views alone. When the musicians hosting these YouTube talk shows are this popular, it also means that their huge fan following—ditto that for their guests—repost key scenes from the shows, which in turn boosts both parties’ popularity. One fan-made Short clipped from an episode of Lee Mujin Service where BTOB member LEE CHANGSUB compares musical theater vocal techniques and those used in K-pop, was watched 4.8 million times. “In addition to our own Shorts, there are ‘fan-tubers’ who make Shorts out of funny scenes and conversations, and those videos have so many views,” said Choi Songyun, the producer for Lee Mujin Service. “We’re really thankful for that.” It’s for this reason that the series uses outtakes from the show and uploads them as Shorts that act as teasers for upcoming episodes. For example, a Short of NewJeans member HANNI singing “Through the Night” by IU that was uploaded before the full episode went live has over 1.4 million views. Choi emphasized the unique power that YouTube talk shows with musician hosts have, noting that “HANNI’s pre-release Short had a huge number of views, and it seems likely that the response to that alone had a major impact on the number of views the full episode got.” As these talk shows go on to become more and more like other K-pop content, they progressively make better use of the new media environment.

SUGA is personally involved in the process of selecting guests for SUCHWITA. “SUGA’s usually the first one to pitch ideas when choosing the guest,” Park explained. “For instance, he suggested that Shin Dong-Yeob should be invited to talk about himself for once, since Shin is usually the one playing the host. It was also his idea to have Lee Sung-min on for a chat since he’s one of SUGA’s favorite actors.” Lee Young Ji, too, explained to CHAERYEONG directly why she had her on as a guest for Nothing Much Prepared. When CHAERYEONG asked his question, Lee replied, “It was me who chose you to come here.” Not surprisingly, IU, long a g.o.d fan, likewise made her hopes of meeting the group members known time and time again. Leveraging their quick rise in influence and the style pioneered by YouTube videos from K-pop idols, these musician-run talk shows can book any guest they’re after. And by speaking with the people they genuinely want to talk with, the hosts are having a different kind of conversation not seen on conventional talk shows. In the Lee Sung-min episode of SUCHWITA, as the actor shared the story of his time in theater as a yet-unknown actor, SUGA took the conversation to a deeper place by touching on the performances he put on under challenging conditions before his debut. “SUGA can relate to a wide variety of things thanks to having a wide variety of experiences throughout his own life,” said Jung Jae Hoon, lead professional at the Original Contents 3 Studio that produces the series, “It’s a huge plus for the host to be able to relate with each guest that comes in, no matter who they are.” When musician Christopher was on Not Much Prepared as a guest, he started out with earphones on so he could receive live interpretation of the Korean being spoken to him. But after talking with host Lee Young Ji for only a brief while, he said, “I know why you get a lot of views. You know when you meet someone and you feel like, after five minutes, you met them before? … That’s what it feels like,” and he took the earphones out.

“Talk shows usually revolve around what the guest has to say,” said Park, “but the guests on SUCHWITA are people SUGA have always wanted to meet, so he ends up talking about himself a lot as well. This is something unique about the way we make the show,” revealing the biggest difference between traditional talk shows and those hosted by musicians. Shows like SUCHWITA, Nothing Much Prepared and Everyday Is Thursday Night all revolve around the hosts and their guests sharing a drink to keep things mellow and relaxed while they talk. Meenoi’s Yorizori has the host cooking while talking with guests to put them at ease and allow them to open up. As for Lee Mujin Service, one important aspect of the show is how Lee Mujin listens to his guests perform and forms a relationship with them by giving an unbiased review of their music. “I believe Mujin has a way of talking with people that’s different from veteran talk show hosts,” said Choi Inyeong, one of the show’s writers. “It feels like he’s representing all of Gen Z, too.” When it comes to these talk shows, the hosts are there for more than just listening to the guests—they’re also fellow musicians who can speak with their guests about music on a professional level, as well as a friend they can open up to.

That’s why SUGA envisioned his show as a way to meet and chat with lots of different people, and why it’s so notable that, when IU mentioned to guest JUKJAE on the first episode of her show that there wasn’t much space for musicians to perform, she added that she “could … invite all the musicians” to her show and make it a series that keeps welcoming musicians. With talk shows where guests can have meaningful conversations disappearing from TV airwaves, musician-hosted shows on YouTube are filling the gap, their hosts sharing stories with their guests as fellow music makers in the K-pop culture industry and as everyday people. And as the shows spread across the world in the wake of K-pop itself, more and more people are hearing what they have to say. Just think of how many people are exposed to the intimate thoughts of Lee Young Ji’s guests as they drink together on an episode of Nothing Much Prepared that goes on to be watched over 10 million times. In a time when the main source of entertainment is shifting from TV to YouTube, K-pop musicians have found a way to share about themselves and their music with countless people. In the midst of ongoing transition from legacy to new media, a new genre is emerging where talk shows and K-pop musicians come together.