Living Idols
A Living Idol (Kuxul K'oh) is a type of entertainer manufactured and marketed for image, attractiveness, and personality in Mutulese pop culture. They are primarily practictioners of the art of God Impersonation (K'oh) with training in singing, dancing, and modeling. They can belong to a Confederation or be associated to a Temple which market them as 'living gods' worshiped by a passionate consumer fan base.
God Impersonation
God Impersonation is a form of highly codified theatrical representation of the Divine typical of the White Path and the Mutul in peculiar. It blends dance, theatre, music, satire, facial and body painting as well as masking, all in an highly religious and ritualistic context. Living Idols represent a specific sub-type of God Impersonators who practice their art with modern "pop" songs often composed by or for them.
Fan Culture
Passionate fans of Living Idols are colloquially referred to simply as "Fanatics" because of the religious nature of their interest. Some Fanatics are known to follow their preferred Idol for a period of time in "Pilgrimage" to support them at concerts and public appearances. Popular living Idols can amass a large number of Fanatics, some of which form a "core" communicating with one another to organize more pilgrimages or share news about the Idol. These core groups are generally known as the 'Idol Carriers' or 'Ihkam'.
Because mainstream Mutulese media is massively censored and avoid taboo or controversial subjects, Fanatics and Ihkamob specifically are influential in circulating under-reported news, especially in the digital media. They are notably exempt of the censorship and repression known by the rest of society because they place themselves directly under the "patronage" of an Idol, Divine Impersonation having always served as a vector of satire and criticism in Mutulese society.
relationship with the fans
Living Idols can be set apart from typical celebrities because of their relationship with their fans with whom they have an high emotional connection. For them, it's a form of "personal worship" where they spend money in Donations and Offerings to support their favorite idol and their temple. Dedicated fans may give up their careers and devote their life savings to supporting and following their idol. To foster a closeness between idols and fans, some Temples offer "Public Devotions" events where fans have the opportunity to see their idol in person, show their admiration, take photographs, and speak briefly with the idols.
Because living idols share an intimate relationship with their fans, fans may feel "betrayed" if idols reveal unfavorable parts of their personal lives that are different from the image they present, or break the illusion that they are there exclusively for fans. A living idol maintaining a private life outside of their position as an entertainer is poorly seen, as they are expected to have fully turned into the god they're supposed to represent. In that regard, living idols are not expected to retire after their career is over: voluntary sacrifice is considered to be the only proper way for an idol to finish their career as there's no other acceptable way to rescind their godhood.
Media presence
Living Idols are a vital part of media and avertising in the Mutul, with more than 80% of commercials in the Mutul featuring an idol. Along with promoting products, commercials are also a cross-platform to promote idols at the same time by keeping both brand and idol product in the forefront of the consumers' minds. Pitches for commercials are often made with a specific idol who matches the company's image in mind. Idols contracted to particular brands are expected to uphold the brand's image and may not work for competing brands or networks; the agreement extends to magazine advertisements, online videos, and appearances in dramas.
90% of the annual "mainstream" Mutulese musical output come from Temples publishing their Living Idols' albums or singles. Their production and distribution circuits are considered central in the Divine Kingdom, to the point that it has defined what is Mainstream or not. With 48% of musical productions in 2018, "Neon Electro Techno Gods", or Living Idols specializing in EDM and other form of electronic music, represent the largest subgroup of Living Idols. The second most popular genres are the Satirical Ballads which merge together social critics, dark humour, and sounds inspired by Rezeses rocks or Scipian Blues.
Because of their central position in the Mutulese musical industry and their dedicated fanbase, movie studios and television companies compete to secure contracts for idols in their pictures, dramas, and other series. On television, variety, talk, and music shows also became popular, in part for featuring idols as guests or the stars of the show. In cinema however, Living Idols have always found themselves confined to specific sub-genres, but it is nonetheless quite common for idols to reach movie stardom and appear in all different sorts of films, sometime even international ones shot by Rezeses studios.
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