KPOPCHANNEL.TV introduces a new series of interviews with K-pop insiders, mostly tour promoters, producers or event organisers from around the world. You will get to know what usually happens behind the scenes as they spill some exclusive stories from their events. Please look forward to our next release. It can be a story from your country!
It is without a doubt that K-pop is a popular and an in-demand genre on some of the biggest music markets in the world, and the fans know that non-fans are missing out big time on amazing entertainment.
K-pop artists and even Hallyu stars have gone to successful world tours and fan-meetings overseas and overtime, more promoters or producers have been catching up.
For fans not only in Korea, but also from around the world; meeting their idols or witnessing their performances live is definitely a dream come true. This is why promoters, producers or organisers also become the new genies ready to grant the fans’ wishes!
Most people think that the entertainment agencies are the ones who arrange their artists’ tours, but it is actually up to the promoters to invite and arrange for the artists to come to their area or country. These promoters or producers bear most of the burdens before, during and after K-pop events, especially if it is a concert. They are mainly responsible for financial risks and all other risks that come to mind.
This is why we think that the fans should know more about what these hardworking people behind the scenes go through just to make their K-pop dreams come true.
This time, we had the opportunity to talk with a K-pop event promoter and organiser from Myanmar. She has taken her precious time to answer our questions which aim to help build a better understanding between the K-pop fans, especially the international fans and their promoters and producers.
Name: Khaing Khaing Moe Htet
Company: June July Moe Media Group (Myanmar)
Email address: [email protected]
A. ORGANISING EVENTS
1. When did you start being a promoter or event organiser?
I have worked as an assistant director with Korean directors for three years. I have also worked in the most famous TV channels in Myanmar (MRTV-4) and EBS (Korea). Those experiences helped me become an event organiser.
2. What types of events do you usually plan? Do you have a specialty? Why did you choose it?
I usually plan events which are related to Korean culture and Hallyu because I can speak Korean fluently and have a big Korean entertainment network of friends.
3. What do you look for in a client or a star of your show and how would you persuade a client of the value of your services?
First, I talk with fans to get information about which kind of star I should choose – according to their rank of popularity and possibility locally.
4. How do you choose event partners (e.g. caterers, logistics) when organising an event? What are your criteria to assess their eligibility/quality?
First, I make the partition for my role and for what I can manage. Then I find a partner who can support the other needs or role. I look at their business history like what kind of success they have made and their experiences.
5. How do you choose the location or venue for an event? What are your priorities after choosing a venue?
When I choose the location, I think about the following:
1. The capacity of the venue.
2. The weather and decide whether it will be indoor or outdoor.
3. A location where we can easily get permissions.
4. Rental fee for the location.
6. Have you ever had to plan more than one event simultaneously? How did you do it? What was the result?
I have started the company last year. Kpop Festival 2017 in Myanmar was my first one. The show was a big success in Myanmar.
7. How many events do you plan per year?
I am planning to make at least two events per year.
8. Describe a time when you went over budget. What went wrong and what did you do to fix it?
I did the event one time and that time went over budget. There was some kind of bad luck and the wrong way of marketing. I tried to solve the problems with the companies first – like the ticketing company or equipment rental house. Even though we went over the budget, I thought I have to keep a good relationship with those kind of companies to keep working in this field.
9. How would you manage stress as the date of an event draws near?
The closer the event date comes, the greater the stress becomes. At that time, I shared tasks with other staffs to reduce some stress and to concentrate on the bigger picture.
10. What are the most common or serious problems you have encountered during an event and what did you do about them?
During the event, I received several calls. While I was solving one problem, the others kept calling me. My phone got over 400 missed called when I check after the event day. And if someone asks me what to do, I always find a way out to make them solve the problem by themselves by guiding them with a few words. Or sometimes, I am the only one who can solve the problem. In Myanmar, it is really hard to work with the police. But if you make an event you need help from the police for securities. So how you act and manage those areas is very important. Most people in Myanmar prefer requesting than ordering. I think it is the same in every country. So I used to make requests to a related person if there are some problems. That way really works on solving the problems.
11. Describe a time when you provided a creative solution to a problem. What was the result?
A day before our concert, there was a heavy rain. Our location was outdoor, so most of the lighting equipments at center part were removed because of the rain. The LED and the sound system were ok. We planned to do a technical rehearsal at that night but the lightings were missing at the center. That time was around 5pm. I was going to the airport to pick up the artists, but the Korean director called me to go back to the concert location. The local manager called me back to solve the problem so I let another staff pick up the artists and ran back to the concert area. I had a meeting with the Korean Director and local manager. I had to decide what will be the best way to keep going for the concert. I asked what was gone and checked what we can’t use and checked how long it will take to change the new ones and checked what the Director can do best in this situation. I decided on the best way for next day’s concert even though they couldn’t do the technical rehearsal. The concert and the stage was fine on the concert day.
12. Describe your most successful event planning experience. What did you do that made it so successful?
The concert was over the budget but it was the biggest K-pop concert in Myanmar that was ever held. Around 10,000 people came.
13. Describe an event management experience that didn’t have the results you aimed for. What happened and what did you learn?
My first experience was everything to me and I have learned so many things. The budget went over and I faced some losses. I have learned to make contract even for the little cases. And I have learned that the law is very important in real life and especially in business.
15. What do you like most about your job? How do you stay motivated when things don’t go as planned?
I feel that my job is a venture. It is not the same with working in the office. I faced several problems every day. And also for every project, I meet new people – new partners. I was kind of nervous if something doesn’t go as I planned at first but I started to learn to think of a plan B. Especially in this field, there are a lot of things that could happen unexpectedly. Even though I feel so much stress, I try to take it easy and to take them for experience as I am young.
B. K-POP
1) Why did you decide to promote or produce K-pop events?
There are a lot of reasons for promoting and organising a K-pop event. But one thing I can tell is that I was too ambitious and too brave. It was more than my capacity but I believed that I could do it. Thankfully, that event was a success. It became a very precious experience for me to hold this big event in my age. Even though I got a little bit damaged, I believe this experience will help me a lot from now on.
2) When and what was the first K-pop event that you have organised and who were there?
K-pop festival 2017 in Myanmar was my first event. The artists were EXO, NCT127, TRAX and MATILDA.
3) What do you think about K-pop? What do you think is the future of K-pop in your country?
I always envy Korea because they have huge success with media and entertainment and they let the world know about Korea. It’s incredibly amazing. That point made me to work in this field for our country. K-pop is already famous here so I think Korean entertainment companies will notice Myanmar from now on and the market will be bigger as the country started to develop rapidly.
4) What are the pros and cons of organising K-pop events?
It’s really risky but it’s worth to do it. Even though you can’t get profits, the experience is very precious.
5) What do you think about the K-pop artists as you work with them in person?
I found out that they only focus on their schedule and work. I couldn’t even talk with them as I was busy too.
6) Who is your most favourite K-pop artist today? Who is your most favourite pop artist in your country today?
I like TVXQ the most. I like some of the pop artists in Myanmar but I don’t have a favorite yet.
7) What do you think are the differences between most K-pop artists and the pop artists in your country?
It’s all about fashion and the system. Artists are like a company. They need to manage themselves as managing a company. Most artists in Myanmar are not good at managing themselves. There is no good system to support them too. Next is fashion. Personally, I don’t like Myanmar’s fashion. I think it’s the difference between color choices. In Myanmar, most people like very bright colors.
8) Who is the most memorable K-pop artist that you have worked with so far? Why?
It was EXO because they were on my first experience.
9) Can you pick and describe a very memorable happening during your event with a K-pop artist or company?
There was one small case. EXO arrived to concert area for rehearsal and every member went inside to their preparation rooms. There was a place cooking Myanmar noodles beside their preparation rooms. One of my staffs told me that D.O. seemed to be eating noodles. I looked around and I found D.O. standing in front of the cook waiting for his noodles. That was funny for me because a K-pop star was standing and waiting for Myanmar noodles. I thought that was cute but I told him to go and wait in the room.
10) Do you have an upcoming K-pop event this year? Can you give us a hint about it?
I am planning another one but I couldn’t give any hint yet because I have to make it sure first.
11) What would you like to say to all the K-pop fans in your country?
I am a big fan of TVXQ. So I understand how they feel when they see their idols in their own countries. For Myanmar fans, it is not easy to go overseas and see their idols. For them, to see their idols is their dream.
Organising a concert is not an easy job too. But I do this because I want to show them a dream can come true in Myanmar too. Not only to see their idols, but they can also dream so many things through a concert. For example, a star, a production director, a market promoter, etc. By making more events, the Kpop market in Myanmar will get bigger and we can learn the system. By making a better concert by ourselves, it can make more work spaces and make a bigger market. JJM will try its best for all the K-pop fans in Myanmar. We made mistakes last time, but we will try to recover those the next time. We ask for forgiveness if there were some uncomfortable situations. We will try our best for the next time and another time.
Thank you so much Khaing Khaing Moe Htet for answering our questions! We would also like the fans to send their own questions which we may include for our next interviewee. Chat with us or send an email to [email protected]
Don’t forget to follow JJM Media Group on Facebook for upcoming Hallyu events in Myanmar!
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“One of my staffs told me that D.O. seemed to be eating noodles. I looked around and I found D.O. standing in front of…
Posted by kpopchannel.tv on Tuesday, July 25, 2017