Starvation diets - a sign of hard work or ignorance?

After reading recent stories about Dasom’s and Momo’s “dieting” stories, I felt compelled to share my opinion about K-pop diets.

Most, if not all, female idols are considered underweight according to the BMI calculator. Their profiles usually put their weight between 40 to 50 kg, which would be fine if they were, say, close to my relatively short height of 157 cm. But a lot of these girls are pretty tall, and to imagine that they were my weight or even lighter freaks me out. I would probably be considered “too fat” if I ever tried to enter the Korean entertainment industry. I usually hover around 47 kg, putting me at a healthy BMI of about 19.1, but even if I drop to 45 kg (which is about average for female idols), I’d still be borderline underweight.

It really peeves me how the K-pop industry expects these girls to starve themselves, eat like 200 calories a day or less, work out for at least five hours and try not to collapse, and then be applauded for “working hard”.  I was honestly a bit sad after seeing Kang Mina lose so much weight over the past two years – she looks pretty either way, but her chubby cheeks were part of her charm! Like, when show hosts get impressed that girls have 17-inch waists or whatever, I just shake my head. I’m pretty sure people with 17-inch waists look like this: 

16/17-inch waists: only achievable via corset?

And not so much like this: 

Naeun's waist is apparently 19 inches, but compared to the previous pic, there appears to be more than a 3-inch difference. 

I’ll admit, my perception of “working hard” is kinda skewed from all the K-pop I’ve been exposed to, and sometimes I find myself cutting down my sleep to 5-6 hours just so I can feel more accomplished, but I almost NEVER skip meals. I love food too much to do that. If anything, I just exercise 2-4 times a week and hope to lose some fat on my stomach. I LOVE abs on girls, but I’d rather be a bit heavier with lots of muscle than be unhealthily skinny.

Momo’s story was the worst though. Losing 7 kg in one week? That equates to losing 1 kg per day! She really didn’t have to lose THAT much weight, especially if she was already underweight to begin with. Do Korean audiences really want to see stick-thin girls who may collapse at any moment from exhaustion? And if Jungyeon’s weight limit really was just 44 kg, that’s pretty screwed up considering how tall she already is. A few runway models have actually died from being too underweight, so I’m surprised there haven’t been any stories of trainees and idols dying from starvation or exhaustion… just trainees and idols dying from suicide, but that’s for another time. Anyways, if you want to make yourself angry, read this article: https://omonatheydidnt.livejournal.com/22381975.html#comments#comments

I’m not necessarily saying skinny or underweight is unhealthy and should be avoided at all costs. Some people, like Sunmi, are naturally skinny, and although her arms do look a bit scary, she otherwise looks pretty healthy.  This blog post is simply meant to warn people about the potentially damaging effects of Korean societal expectations on girls’ body images. If you really want to lose weight, make sure to use healthy methods to achieve your desired body type, and don’t be unrealistic about how much weight you can lose in a week or month or whatever. You can “work hard” without working yourself to death, and progress WILL happen. But trust me, all of you reading this, no matter what size you are, are beautiful. Just know that. J

VIXX in Vancouver - My First K-pop Concert

So I just came back from the VIXX concert in Vancouver. I have school tomorrow, so thankfully the concert was in a convenient location for me.

When they came out on the stage for the first time, I could only recognize Ken from a distance, since his features stood out the most. They started off with Fantasy, and then went with Chained Up, but after the third song we were all asked to put our phones and cameras away and just enjoy the show. I managed to get a few okay shots of them.

Hyuk showed off the best English, but all of them needed a translator. Points to all of them for trying and improving on their English skills. 

Hongbin's speaking voice is so deep (not like Wonwoo deep but you get the idea), you wouldn't expect it from a flower boy like him. 

Leo and Ken's high notes live were legendary. 

There was such a contrast between their dark, edgy, and charismatic dances and their real personalities. In the middle of the concert, they brought out some chairs and asked each other to do some challenges requested by Canadian fans. Ken started singing the ABC song, both him and N got to show off their vocals in musical-style, Hongbin died a little inside when he had to do some aegyo, N and Ravi had a staring contest, N was about to fight Ravi, and Ravi lost and had to do the "oppa-ya" dance. Also, Leo had to write his fellow members' names with his... belly button? He also died a bit inside.

Fun fact: my mom dubbed N "mouse boyfriend". Apparently he resembles a mouse?

There was SO. MUCH. SCREAMING. OH MY GOD. Sometimes, someone in the audience would yell out "I love you!" and N or whoever heard the comment would go like, "I love you too!" Those people were lucky. I tried, but I don't think they heard me. I think I lost some of my hearing after this. 

At the end, we all got to stand up and dance, and it really brought all of us together. 

Now, the part I unintentionally spent extra moolah on: the hi-touch. I was hyped to actually be touching VIXX, especially my biases N and Hongbin. It went by wayyyy too quickly, unfortunately, and I think they've forgotten me already. 

Leo looks a lot less scary up close. Ravi also looked soft. I kinda whizzed by Ken, Hyuk, and unfortunately Hongbin before I reached N at the end, although I do remember Hongbin and Hyuk being good-looking and gentle in person. The only things I had time to say to all of them were "good job" and "thank you", but once I got to N, I randomly blurted, "I like you!" I don't think he heard me though. My hand is still trembling from his high-five, though. 

Also, they're not as intimidatingly tall as I thought they were. Then again, I didn't really have time to check. 

Now every time I look at or hear VIXX now I'm going to remember this concert and remember their faces when they hi-fived me, it was just such an unforgettable experience 

TL;DR as a broke college student, spending $250-something to high-five VIXX for 1 second each as my first K-pop concert was definitely worth it. 

Why I like K-pop idols, but hate the idol culture

“Thou shalt not worship false idols”  - Exodus 20:4

As a Christian, I often wonder if my love for K-pop is contradictory to my faith. After all, K-pop idols are called as such for a reason. They are admired and basically worshipped by fans who spend all their time following them and their activities, and seen as people who cannot do any wrong until a controversy happens. Many undergo strict diets, excessive exercise, and even plastic surgery in order to look “perfect”, and are required to act in certain ways to please their fans. However, having all these expectations placed on them by others, and subsequently failing to meet these expectations, means that there is a large burden for these celebrities. I don’t even like using the term “idols” for these people because of this connotation.

I’m nowhere near famous or even popular, but I know what it feels like to be idolized. I know what it feels like to be the centre of someone’s life to the point that I’m all that they care about. I know what it’s like to act contrary to my true nature in order to not disappoint the ones I love and to fulfill their wishes for me. That’s why the stressful life of K-pop stars has become so much more relatable to me now, especially when they speak out – sometimes emotionally - about any issues and negative thoughts they’ve experienced, and any lessons they’ve learned being in the idol industry.

Like many, I got completely hooked onto Produce 101 earlier this year (making the mistake of spending more time and attention following the show than growing in my faith), and found myself falling in love with all the boys’ personalities. For some of the contestants, I started stanning them because I thought, “hey, they would make pretty good friends if I actually knew them”, making them seem so much more human to me. However, I had to think whenever they desperately cried out, “I want to be an idol”. Were they prepared to be basically worshipped and swarmed by crazy fangirls, every action only for the entertainment of others? Were they prepared to have people devote their entire life to them? For example, I’m pretty sure Kang Daniel is Christian, but he expressed the wish to be known as “God Daniel”, and now his fans basically worship him and everything he does. (Kang Daniel, if you ever find this, I’m not intending to hate on you and I’m sorry if it’s coming across this way. I like you too! I just wanted to point this out as an example.)

I had to put everything into perspective again when I found out that one of my former high school classmates is debuting as an idol later this year. Now naturally, my fangirl self was delighted that I actually knew a Korean celebrity, and to this day I’m hyped for everything that he has to show the world. However, I can’t help but worry for him, for his life once he debuts. This particular soon-to-be idol is a Christian as well, and he will likely find himself tempted to forget about the real reason why he entered this industry, which I can predict is to use his talent and passion for music to glorify God. Already, fansites dedicated to him have popped up, and it still shocks me that total strangers fawn over him more than his former friends and classmates do. For me, this is a good example of an idol being “just like the rest of us”. Having known this guy for five years, he is very human to me, and I can’t imagine how he’ll feel knowing that people may start swarming him, invading his privacy and – God forbid – endangering his safety, just because they adore him so much.  

Several K-pop artists identify as Christian, but very few have actually been outspoken about what their faith means to them as an entertainer, as an idol (for example, I really miss Siwon’s inspirational posts). I hope and pray that fans and idols alike will recognize that idols are, really, just like the rest of us, and that ultimately, they can’t be God for other people. Even when I pray to God for Him to do something, He does something else that I might not like at first. So if even the LORD doesn’t fulfill our desires all the time – or at least not in the way we want Him too – why should human beings feel obligated to do so for the satisfaction of others? 

April 16th: The Anniversary of a National Tragedy

*Very serious post ahead*

April 16^th is considered one of the saddest days in modern Korean history, as on that day three years ago, the Sewol ferry sank, killing almost 300 high school students around ages 16-17 from Danwon High School who were on a school trip. Now, I’m not Korean myself so you may be wondering what business I have writing about this tragic event. Well, being a K-pop and Running Man fan, I was still affected by the complete shutdown of the entertainment industry during that month or so. With time, I understood why the release of EXO’s new song or the latest Running Man episode was postponed for so long.

Every year on April 16^th, Koreans will post something along the lines of “잊지안겠습니다” or “I will not forget” to remember this disaster that took so many lives. Meditating on those words, they are similar to “Never forget 9/11”, which was an even bigger tragedy with almost 10 times more casualties, possibly the most well-known and devastating of all modern-day tragedies. Every time an event like this happens or the anniversary passes, I’m left wondering, “How will people ever move past this?”

From what I know about the Sewol sinking and its aftermath, the parents of the deceased students are still deeply affected by their losses. The ship was recently salvaged from the waters and brought onto land for investigation, which forced these parents to relive the grief they felt when they learned that their children were gone forever. There was also a lot of anger as most of these deaths could have been prevented if not for the crew’s commands for the students to stay on the ship as it sank. I’d read that some parents had even committed suicide because they couldn’t live without their children. 

These are just two of the 300 or so students who died in the Sewol sinking.

I don’t know much about the process of grief either, having rarely experienced it throughout my life, but I do know that everyone experiences it differently, and it will take varying amounts of time for each individual to come to terms with their loss(es). I’ve often thought of mourning as crying constantly every day, remaining solemn and silent, and refraining from happy thoughts and activities as those are disrespectful to the dead. This impression was reflected in the South Korean entertainment industry following the sinking, as TVs cancelled drama and music video showings to broadcast updates about the Sewol 24/7. I questioned even watching reruns of Running Man or talking about anything happy during that time, and wondered if it was unacceptable to immerse oneself in an enjoyable activity in order to escape, even for just a moment, the horrible reality of the world, when an entire nation that I’d invested myself into was in mourning.

Thankfully, after that somber first month after the sinking, South Korea slowly picked itself up and moved forward. In lieu of filming shows, celebrities used their wealth and influence to donate to those affected. Songs, drama episodes, and reality shows were finally released, much to fans’ anticipation. There were even several music videos that made direct or indirect reference to Sewol, with The Ark’s “The Light” being the most blatant example. Recently, even BTS’s “Spring Day” is said to address the event. 

The MV for "The Light", released in 2015, pays homage to the victims of the accident.

Of course, South Korea will never forget this heartbreaking day. I too will never forget that there were 300 students around my age whose hopes and dreams ended on that cold April 16th, 2014. Three years isn’t actually that long when put into perspective, so the memory is still fresh in many people’s minds. But while most of us never knew these students personally, we must not only remember the sadness and unfairness of their deaths, but also remember the joy that they exuberated and their legacies. We should acknowledge that our hearts hurt and that they might never fully heal, but at the same time we should live with gratitude, contentment, and youthful abandon, to honour those dreams that were never fulfilled.  

2016 in Review

Even with 2016 being the year of celebrity deaths, thankfully virtually no tragedies struck the K-pop industry this year. The only one I can think of was this 10 or 12-year-old kid named Jun Min Woo who was known as "little Psy" and had a brain tumour. The fact that he was just a kid made it even sadder. Thankfully, it was nowhere near as bad as 2014 with the Ladies Code accident, Shin Hae Chul's death due to medical negligence, and the Sewol Ferry tragedy that put everything on hold for a month or so. 2008 and 2009 were bad as well as there was a whole string of celebrity suicides in those two years.

What 2016 will be remembered for in K-pop, however, was the sheer number of disbandments of beloved groups. The four most notable ones are KARA, 4Minute, Rainbow, and 2NE1. With KARA there's still some hope as member Gyuri opened up the possibility of them collaborating again in the future even with all of them in different companies. Rainbow also ended on a good note with the seven members taking a farewell trip after disbanding.

 I was only really bummed by 4Minute and 2NE1. 4Minute was actually one of my favourite girl groups, and initially it seemed as though the members had left on bad terms with each other, which made the situation even worse. As for 2NE1, they actually hadn't released anything since 2014 and after Minzy left YG there were all these rumours of the remaining three members coming back. Sadly, that never happened. We were all left hanging with their unreleased tracks forever unheard. But CL and Dara are still at the same company, so if they ever collaborate in the future that's already half the group...?

Running Man isn't a K-pop group but it was recently announced that they're ending their run... in 2017. So in that sense, the cast is "disbanding" as well. I'm actually happy they're giving us two-ish months to say goodbye instead of just cancelling the show right there and then after the Jihyo and Jongkook scandal.

But thinking about it, we are simply witnessing the coming and going of groups. Even with all the disbandments, there were many new amazing groups debuting, including Cosmic Girls/WJSN, IOI, NCT, and Blackpink. We also saw the rise of groups like BTS, Seventeen, Twice and G-Friend, as well as the reformation of disbanded groups such as Sechkies and SES (so that gives us hope for some of the more recently disbanded groups). And we can't forget the groups like Girl's Generation, Big Bang, Super Junior, TVXQ (albeit 40% of their former selves), and Shinhwa that have lasted so long. Disbandment actually doesn't do that much harm if the members do well on their own afterward, it's just that we don't get to witness the chemistry between group members as often or see the group as a whole rather than as individual parts.

 And as for the celebrity death epidemic back in Hollywood and the music industry in general, sure, more legends are leaving us but there are even more new talents being discovered waiting to become legends in their own right. In that sense, the net number of household names is staying the same or even increasing.

So if we look at "2016, the worst year ever" through that lens, suddenly it doesn't seem like such a horrible year after all.

Except for Donald Trump winning the election. The States is gonna go through a rough time during these next four years...

We Need More Women Like Song Ji Hyo

One thing that set Running Man apart from similar shows like Infinite Challenge was that there was a female there to balance out the men. Now that Ji Hyo's leaving, I really wish the Running Man producers will make one thing right with the new season and add another female. Obviously not to replace her entirely since Ji Hyo is a unique human being, but any new woman who is added has some big shoes to fill, and here's why:

1. Jihyo has a totally different image.

Most girls and women in the Korean entertainment industry are rarely seen without makeup, and often take extreme measures to make themselves thin. Jihyo on the other hand usually wears sporty clothes and no makeup on the show, and was filmed several times sleepy, groggy, or wrestling in the mud. All of these make her so much more relatable as a human being and not just as a pretty woman and I really hope we continue to see that side of her in her future shows. I'm sick and tired of seeing the typical K-drama trope of clingy girl squealing "oppaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!~" or naggy, manipulative, and possibly evil mother-in-law/stepmother/auntie. If a new girl joins, she has to be willing to put aside that glamorous image and show the human side of herself.

This, my friends, is the real Song Ji Hyo.

2. She's like one of the guys but has her own feminine charm. 

There have been a few times where Jihyo has dressed pretty and the guys were genuinely impressed, but they don't sexualize or objectify her like they do with young female idols who are 20-30 years younger than them *cough* Seolhyun *cough* TWICE. Now this is the type of relationship I'd like with my platonic male friends - they'll mostly see me wearing casual clothes, so it's all the more beautiful and refreshing for their eyes when I dress nice occasionally.

Because how often do Jong Kook and Jihyo get to see each other dressed as nice as this?

Pretty woman indeed.

More fab than you'll ever be.

3. Jihyo holds her own against the guys. 

In fact, she's even shown to be stronger than most of the guys save for Gary and Jongkook. One thing that bothered me a little though was she's won so many times that sometimes I wonder whether she really is that overpowered or whether the guys give her an unfair advantage because she's a woman - I think it's a bit of both. What's surprising is that I find her and Haha to be the most evenly matched in terms of brute strength. They're around the same size so that's a factor. Here are some of my favourite Jihyo vs. Haha battles:

Ep 285

Ep 167

And let's not forget about the time she took on MMA fighter Choo Sung Hoon, being the only one left on the Running Man team. Sure she didn't really have a choice but she gave her all and lost fair and square. Most girls would probably either give up or attempt to seduce oppa to let them win. Jihyo doesn't do any of that.

Bad. Ass.

4. Jihyo isn't afraid to show her vulnerability. 

For a show as funny as Running Man, there have been a few emotional moments, at least on Jihyo's part. Meanwhile I don't recall seeing any of the guys ever crying except for Kwangsoo and Song Joongki when the latter was filming his goodbye. This is probably because, as mentioned in my first article, men are socialized to hold back their tears, while women are more free to display their emotions. As tough as Jihyo is, it's good to see her human side.

 

When she cried in fear during ep 285. 

Crying after she and Gary finish their couple lifts. (ep 301)

Voicing her doubts to the younger brother she "bullied". (ep 295)

A more recent pic of her saying goodbye to Gary (ep 324)

Of course, it's going to take a long time for the new woman, if there is one, to reach that same level of trust as Jihyo did with Kwangsoo, Gary, and the rest, to be regarded as a member in the whole and not just a pretty girl, to set aside that image of beauty and perfection and show her vulnerable and weird side. Hopefully the new season will last long and give the new members enough time to create similar tight and lasting bonds, and then maybe I'll have faith in Running Man again.

2017 already looks very bad...

Let's see... IOI is disbanding, Big Bang is enlisting, Running Man is undergoing MORE member changes, more great Kpop groups are gonna disband...

First, let's talk about IOI. They said they were gonna promote for a year, so I thought they meant one whole year... turns out they're disbanding after only 9 months (beginning of May-end of January), which I'm a bit bummed about, I wish they could stay as a group for a while longer. Inevitably, we're all sad that this amazing group is temporary. I actually really love them as individuals and as a group. I hope we'll get to see pictures of their annual "IOI Day"!

Let's switch our focus to Big Bang now. Their new releases "Fxxk It" and "Last Dance" are their last before T.O.P enlists, and people on YouTube are making it sound like these are their last releases forever. I really don't think they'll disband, they'll probably be like Shinhwa and come back after everyone finishes their military service, albeit less frequently. Even g.o.d is still considered an active group (they released another song in 2014) and member Park Joon Hyung is almost 50 lol

Unfortunately, I don't think that'll be the case with groups like Secret, After School, and Miss A. I predict that they'll disband sometime in 2017. The members of Secret and Miss A could probably all fare well on their own, but I'm not sure what E-Young and Kaeun of After School would do once their group disbands. Or make the group a duo of just the two of them? :P

Finally, more bad news from Running Man as Jong Kook and Ji Hyo are gonna leave at the end of this year, as if Gary leaving a month ago wasn't bad enough. I accept Jong Kook and Jihyo's choices but I personally believe they should've waited a little longer so that we could get used to the 6-member arrangement without Gary. Now they'll have to film another sad episode for the two of them, and doubly sad to boot. Jong Kook is one of my faves along with Suk Jin, so it'll be hard to get used to Jong Kook's absence. I'm also hearing that Kang Ho Dong is joining and I've heard a few bad rumours about this guy, but again we just have to see how it goes, maybe it'll go really smoothly. After all, Kang Ho Dong could probably fill in the "strong guy" spot that Jong Kook is leaving behind. I'll just really miss the OT7 arrangement, nothing can replace the OG 7012 squad in my heart. Maybe they should just rebrand Running Man as X-Man the Reboot and at least old fans of X-Man can be happy. As long as Yoo Jae Suk continues, Running Man may be able to achieve the longevity of Infinity Challenge even with all the member changes.

But even when Running Man eventually ends (I dread the day!), that won't stop me from my annual tradition of playing the nametag game with my friends hehehe.

Oh, and Donald Trump is starting his first year as president. I wonder how that will go.

I just hope 2017 won't be worse than 2016 and that everything good that happens next year will outweigh the bad. Let's try to focus on the positive, shall we?