University festivals struggle amid rising artist costs

Social Affairs

Published: 22 Apr. 2024, 19:01 Updated: 22 Apr. 2024, 19:36

University festivals struggle amid rising artist costs

Singer Psy performs at unversity festival at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies' global campus in Yongin, Gyeonggi, on May 19, 2022. [JOONGANG ILBO]

While university students eagerly anticipate which K-pop stars will appear at upcoming festivals, event organizers are desperately seeking external funds to meet students' expectations.

Universities unable to secure these funds end up having to cancel events, resulting in much disappointment.

Soon after each new semester begins, universities typically host large festivals for students, featuring a variety of activities, bars, club performances and event zones. The main highlight of the event, however, is the lineup of famous artists.

Universities vie to book the most current and sought-after artists to make their festival a success. Each festival's artist lineup becomes a hot topic not only for a university's own students but also for students across the country.

“Could you give us just a little more discount, please?” asked Song Eun-soo, the director of external relations for the Jeonbuk National University's student council, as she haggled with a bar owner near the campus.

Song has been approaching restaurants and bars to partner with for the university's upcoming festival, slated for May 8. After some bargaining, the bar agreed to a 10 percent discount on alcohol for the school's students during the festival week.

"I still have about 20 more restaurants to ask," Song said.

Like Song, other student councils across universities are struggling to organize their own much-anticipated events, often considered to be a key measure of student council performance.

Students enjoy the festival at Yonsei University in western Seoul, on May 22, 2023. [NEWS1]

While the cost of booking celebrity performers for festivals continues to rise, student union fees and available funding are on the decline.

Major universities in Seoul typically allocate around 200 million won ($145,000) for festivals, sourced primarily from students' tuition fees, the student council's budget and donations from alumni and corporations, according to university students.

A significant portion — 60 to 70 percent — of this budget is spent on artists, leaving little money for other events, as explained by a president of the event organizers at one university in Seoul.

“Festivals are the largest and most high-profile events organized by the student council, and students often compare them with previous events or those at neighboring universities. So, the success of festivals is crucial in the overall evaluation of the student council,” said Kim Kyung-jin, the president of Seoul National University's student council.

Student organizers rely heavily on companies and stores near the university to fund the festival. Event organizers can earn 1 million to 1.5 million won from corporations by allowing them to set up their promotional booths during the festival period. Organizers also often receive sponsored products from the companies to use as event prizes. Last year, Incheon National University partnered up with Hyundai Motor to run a booth promoting Hyundai's Casper.

However, securing sponsorship can prove difficult.

"We emailed more than 200 companies, from mobile carriers to snack manufacturers, but only three or four of them replied," said an official from a private university in Seoul who oversaw the festival last year. "We were so desperate we even visited PR teams at corporations and held meetings with our proposals."

Universities outside Seoul that struggle to attract sponsorship from large corporations turn to local businesses for extra funding.

Kangwon National University hosted a traditional liquor tasting event with Chuncheon Brewery Association during its three-day spring festival on April 2. "We offered 1,000 cups of traditional liquor on a first-come, first-served basis over two days, and they were gone in a flash," said Shin Yoon-hee, the school's student director of festival planning. “It was a great way to showcase the regional features and characteristics of Chuncheon while saving on budget," Shin said.

Meanwhile, corporations are overwhelmed by the influx of sponsorship requests from universities.

Liquor companies are the most sought-after sponsors, but not many universities can secure sponsorship. "Schools ask us to sponsor them with alcohol, but under the current law, we cannot provide liquor free of charge," said an official from HiteJinro, one of the country's largest brewers.

"We conduct around 20 sponsorship programs in the first half of the year, focusing only on legal options, such as providing ice buckets or running event zones."

Park Seo-rim, head of Ewha Womans University's student council, stressed the need for realistic budgets in order to ensure students fully enjoy the festival.

"A university festival is about more than just watching artists perform. It's about students enjoying the festival altogether. While we should avoid overspending on artist bookings, we also need a realistic budget to enhance the festival's quality,” Park said.

The Kookmin University student council's emergency response committee announced on social media that the festival has been called off due to decreased budgets and a lack of labor. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

A lack of funding has led some universities to cancel their festivals.

Last month, the Kookmin University student council's emergency response committee announced on social media that the festival was called off due to decreased budgets and a lack of labor.

BY LEE GA-RAM, WOO JI-WON [woo.jiwon@joongang.co.kr]