Miyu Takeuchi does it all — literally. From her home in Seoul, the 25-year-old singer-songwriter creates YouTube videos of herself covering songs as diverse as BTS’ “The Truth Untold” and Stevie Wonder’s “Sir Duke.” She’s also solely responsible for filming, editing and uploading the videos, as well as making the backdrops, using materials bought from the local fabric district.

“I thought that I could learn abilities other than what I’ve done as an artist, doing all of this myself,” Takeuchi says via video call, with one of her self-made backdrops visible behind her. She’s also personally responding to fans (and, to the surprise of this writer, media inquiries). “Sometimes, I get panicked ... like, I have too much to do!”

The feeling is a common one among creators in 2021, who often juggle multiple responsibilities to produce a single video. What separates Takeuchi from the others is where she comes from. She started out as a member of idol-pop group AKB48 from 2010 to 2018, launching her YouTube channel in the middle of this period. Then, she found attention in South Korea via the popular reality competition “Produce 48,” leading to several years under Mystic Story, a K-pop agency owned by SM Entertainment.