Interview with Woo Jihye, YG Entertainment's Concert Production Lead [ 2019 Interview ]

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Concert Producer Woo Ji-hye has participated in numerous musical works such as Kinky Boots, Werther, and Phantom of the Opera through CJENM's musical marketing and production, and is currently the head of the production team at YG Entertainment's performance production office. She had this interviews having been in charge of producing tours and concerts for iKON, WINNER, and Epik High,etc. Here’s an abstract of her Q&A.

Differences between working for musicals and concerts. - The advantage of working in concerts compared to musicals is that the age demographic of the staff tends to be younger. Instead of directors, if you look at those involved in directing or staffing, they are generally on the younger side. While preparing for a musical requires long-term commitment and tension for almost a year, the real hardship for concerts lasts only about a week, making it less physically demanding than musicals. Additionally, due to the shorter duration, there seems to be less constant stress compared to musicals.

Furthermore, it may vary from company to company, but the company I work for doesn't frequently change the staff who have worked together once. This results in a good understanding of the company culture and each other, leading to smoother collaboration during work.

Regarding casting issues, casting is particularly challenging in the musical industry. This is often due to sales concerns. Currently, in my company, once ticket sales open, they sell out, so there's no need to worry about casting. On the other hand, if tickets for a musical don't sell, there's a need to hold events, revise marketing strategies, and consider many other factors. Concerts have less stress related to ticket sales, as typically around 70% of tickets are purchased by fans, making it easier to predict ticket sales when a specific artist holds a concert at a specific time. Therefore, there seems to be much less pressure on profits or sales in the concert industry.

Production design for Concerts: The stage size, shape, and positioning are generally more flexible, but there are conditions for it to look impressive in that space. Designers who make it difficult for the staff to work are typically those who are good at drawing but lack a systematic understanding. What I mean is, when drawing, they express their thoughts, but actually implementing them is a separate issue, so things often don't turn out as desired. It requires considering weight and often involves technically challenging implementations. Designers who lack this systematic understanding can make things difficult for the staff. While having many ideas is beneficial, having an overall understanding of devices and systems allows them to reference them when drawing.

Important Skills:” I think what's more important these days is language . I often go on concert tours, and I think my opportunities expand if I have language skills . It's good to have English as a basic skill, and if you're good at Chinese, you'll benefit a lot . In China, there are times when you have to use Chinese because English is not widely used in certain areas . Of course, even if you don't speak Chinese, you can use an interpreter, so it's not a big problem, but it would be even better if the staff is good at the language . And since I go on a lot of tours in Southeast Asia, I think it would be even more advantageous if I spoke a language that was a little unfamiliar to me.”

Proud concert work moment: “As I worked more and more, I realized where my fans were moved and liked . You also get to know the charms of artists . Meanwhile, on our US tour, there was a scene where we were spraying pollen, and at that moment, I suddenly felt moved . This must be the emotion that fans feel, but I never thought I would feel this much emotion at the concert I made . And later, the staff sent me the fans' reactions, and they recognized all the little things I was worried about, as if they had heard them from the side during our production meeting . I think I feel rewarded in that aspect. Also, we keep imagining things in our heads, but in fact, we can only find out whether this will be implemented properly on the actual stage by performing a concert . But I also feel proud when it turns out perfectly the way I wanted .”

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