“It’s something I definitely want to achieve someday… but to be honest, winning first place on a music show scares me.”

In today’s K-pop scene, a growing number of idols are expressing anxiety over something once universally celebrated: winning first place on a music show. What was once a moment of glory has, for many, turned into a nerve-wracking test of live performance skills, especially on the dreaded encore stage.

Encore stages were originally designed as fan service - an informal moment for celebration, with members often swapping parts, goofing off, or donning silly costumes. Now, however, they’re more of a live audition. With the rise of instant online dissemination, a single note can spark criticism, and MR-removed videos or edited clips focusing on pitch issues are quickly circulated, sometimes positioning one momentary slip-up as proof that an idol is “not a real singer.”

Cultural critic Park Song Ah attributes this shift to evolving fan culture and the hyper-consumption of media: “Fans now record and analyze every second of an idol’s performance. What was once a lighthearted moment has become a new form of content - one that demands perfection.”

This pressure doesn’t just impact individual idols - it can affect a group’s entire future, especially for rookies. In a fiercely competitive industry, Park explains, “One or two chances are all a group might get. A mistake during an encore can become a liability for the entire brand.”

Even industry insiders are taking note. One entertainment agency representative shared, “We used to plan fun encore stages as part of first-place pledges, but now we worry if the artist can sing the song well enough live. Expectations for live vocals have grown alongside the demand for performance perfection.”

Park adds that idols today are expected to debut in a “finished” state: “Because investors want fast returns with minimal risk, groups are now expected to have stage perfection from day one. That pressure feeds into the importance of live performance.”

Still, winning a music show trophy, especially on major networks, remains a symbolic milestone in any idol’s career. But increasingly, that trophy can come with heavy emotional weight. Instead of celebration, many artists feel dread at the idea of being scrutinized during the encore stage.

“After pouring everything into an album and finally seeing it top the charts, that moment on stage should be joyful. But instead, you’re being watched like a hawk to see if you hit every note perfectly,” said one source.

What was once a festive finale has become yet another hurdle—one that artists must conquer to prove their worth. For many, the first-place trophy is no longer just a symbol of success—it’s a poisoned chalice, demanding yet another performance under unforgiving scrutiny.

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