Established cartoon characters have appeared in pop stars’ music videos occasionally over the years, including Beavis and Butt-Head in a recording of Cher’s “I Got You Babe” (1993), Popeye and Friends in Wilco’s “Dawned on Me” (2012), and Rick and Morty in Run the Jewels’ “Oh Mama” (2018). In the second half of 2025, there has been a burst of activity in this space, mostly involving K-pop groups:
- Seventeen, a 13-member South Korean boy band formed by Pledis Entertainment and managed by the entertainment company and record label Hybe, partnered with The Peyo Company and the Smurfs in a deal announced last week. A music video for the group’s song “God of Music” stars some of the Smurfs, including Papa Smurf, Smurfette, and Clumsy, along with the members of Seventeen. The hit song performed in the video, which is included on the group’s EP Seventh Heaven, dropped on October 23, which is also the date the Smurfs were created (in 1958). A range of collaborative merchandise will follow in 2026.
- Plave, a five-member virtual boy band from South Korea — consisting of virtual avatars backed by real-life singers whose performances are transformed for the screen through motion-capture animation — paired with Sanrio in an agreement revealed last month. The collaboration supports the group’s new three-track mini-album, PLBBUU. Sanrio characters including My Melody, Cinnamoroll, Kuromi, Pompompurin, and Pochacco appear in the music video, along with chibi versions of the virtual band members, for the lead single, “BBUU!,” as well as in teaser photos. Plave was created by Vlast, an entertainment company and record label.
- Hearts2Hearts, an eight-member K-pop girl group from SM Entertainment, collaborated with Pokémon in a partnership divulged in September. The group recorded a music video for its song “Pretty Please,” part of its first mini-album, Focus, released in October, that was used to promote the new Pokémon game, Legends Z-A. The video starred Pikachu and several other characters from the Pokémon franchise, as well as integrating other Pokémon brand elements. Although Hearts2Hearts just made its debut in February of this year, it has already been part of multiple merchandise collaborations with Calvin Klein, Converse Korea, Chanel, and other Asian and global brands.
- Katseye, an L.A.-based, multicultural girl group consisting of six members from four countries (South Korea, Philippines, Switzerland, and the U.S.), worked with Mattel’s Monster High on a partnership disclosed in July. Katseye created a new version of the Monster High theme, “Fright Song,” backed by a music video starring the group’s members, filmed in a Monster High–like high school setting, with each singer portraying a monster that is inspired by the entertainment-toy franchise and her cultural background. The members of Katseye, jointly managed by Hybe and Geffen Records, were given unique Monster High dolls of themselves as part of the project; after seeing photos, fans have been clamoring for an opportunity to purchase the dolls, but so far they are not available for sale.
Such pairings with existing characters potentially bring these already-popular bands some new fans (as they do for the characters as well). The video collaborations can also help emphasize the groups’ brand images, for example Seventeen’s positioning of joy, as embodied by The Smurfs, or Katseye’s inclusivity, via Monster High. They also represent opportunities for the band to create something new that catches their followers’ fancy and can go viral on social media, as well as opening doors for collaborative consumer products that expand both partners’ offerings to their fans.
Comments are closed.