Virtual YouTuber group StelLive's agency acquired by Japan's Brave Group

The agency of StelLive, a group of virtual YouTubers known for their livestreaming content and songs like “Stars Align” (2024), has been acquired by the Japanese intellectual property (IP) company Brave Group.

Virtual personas from content creator group StelLive [STELLIVE]

The agency of StelLive, a group of virtual YouTubers known for their livestreaming content and songs like “Stars Align” (2024), has been acquired by the Japanese intellectual property (IP) company Brave Group.

The agency that manages the content creators, also called StelLive, will merge with Brave Group but still hold onto its management, the Korean firm said in a statement on Tuesday. The deal’s amount was not disclosed.

Brave Group is an IP management and production company that manages 17 virtual groups, according to StelLive. According to the Japanese firm’s website, Brave Group was established in 2017 as Virtual YouTuber, and has since launched four international units for Britain, the United States, Thailand and China.

StelLive, meanwhile, was launched by famous streamer Gang Gi, and currently consists of nine individuals behind the virtual characters. The group members made their debut online starting from January 2023 and have released songs including “Milky Way” (2024) and “Hit on Shot” (2024) either as a full or subunits, in addition to their individual activities.

StelLive had been mentioned frequently as a popular example of the so-called virtual K-pop idol trend, where artists release songs and communicate with fans with a virtual avatar at the front, instead of real-life people. The concept was already popular in Japan, where the idea of virtual YouTubers, or V-Tubers, caught on earlier due to the popularity of the anime market.

StelLive has been acquired by Japanese IP company Brave Group [STELLIVE]

StelLive and Brave Group have collaborated for over a year since May last year, when they signed an agreement that provided the Korean creators resources for producing 3-D content, according to the Korean virtual content agency.

The company said it decided to join Brave Group after confirming that the two firms’ goals and aims aligned.

StelLive asked its fandom, called Pastel, for its continued support after its merger was completed, with promises to hold onto its identity as a Korean group despite joining a global company.

“All the foundations we’ve built together so far will remain firmly in place; we plan to add more possibilities and embrace new challenges,” StelLive said.

“While keeping the door open to the global stage, we promise to continue growing as a Korean virtual entertainment company, just as we always have.”

BY KIM JU-YEON [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]