this post was submitted on 08 Jul 2025
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Mega famous yes.
They make their company mega rich yes, they don't get mega rich though lol. They get used up and tossed out.
Damn, they need a union.
They face a similar issue to games industry workers, it's hard to unionise them because such a huge number of people want to work in the industry. They are hyper exploited because they can be replaced, and they're young and naive so they don't advocate for themselves very well. Any negativity also doesn't fit idol culture and can harm your career.
Idols know they're in direct competition with one another and with other idol groups. They all want to make it big. 99% of them will not and the industry chews them up and spits them out.
Think of idols like the music industry but if the singers were just on a contract with a wage within an "idol company" that is effectively the owner of their future. It's not helped by the age issue and most idols aging out of the work and "graduating" before they reach the kind of age in life where you'd start fighting back. Graduation is a useful tool of hiding whether the idol was let go by not renewing their contract or quit. And of course every single person graduating will always say it's on good terms because if you don't and you cause a fuss well you're never getting a job in the industry again.
The only exception I can really think of are Perfume, who started out as idols but kinda became their own thing and are now in I think their 25th year as a group together