[K-RANT] why the "they look like girls" thing is a THING - racism and gender against kpop

 posted here on my tumblr [[i genuinely have no idea what's happening right now, my mouse is darting all over the place and things keep moving and some images keep disappearing...siggghhh. anyway, just read the words, yeah?]]

alright, this one's been ages in the making. i notice this racism/sexism/ignorance more the bigger kpop gets, people are introducing their friends and family into kpop without fully understanding how to deal with this sort of stuff...so often it just gets sidelined. but it is a serious issue, just because it's aimed at kpop doesn't make it any less of an issue.

years back when i first got into kpop/jpop one of the first things i became very familiar with was people telling me that asian bands/individuals i liked "looked like girls". /or other racially/gender driven judgemental comments. while this might just sound like another defensive western thing to deny that anybody outside of the west has ever done anything, it's actually very problematic.
"they look like girls" was usually answered by me, sometimes defensively "no, they don't!" or "well, they're all guys, so..." even to a point where i felt more comfortable admitting to like certain kpop/jpop groups. like, god bless taecyeon of 2pm for people accepting him by western standards...and god bless jonghyun's undeniable talent (it's ok i like him! he's really talented! you can't even see his height or eyeliner when he sings! pLEASE ACCEPT ME OH GOD). that was me like 3 years ago.

hey look it's bi rain more like...bi...more like...ugh idk he's just really hot.

i mean come on guys...come ON.

taec=more acceptable because he confirms western ideals of masculinity; strong, serious, bigger than women, buff.

 taec=more acceptable because he confirms western ideals of masculinity; strong, serious, bigger than women, buff.

 taec=more acceptable because he confirms western ideals of masculinity; strong, serious, bigger than women, buff.

in reality he's all;

i...i....

we r srs

BUT ANYWAY...

 taec=more acceptable because he confirms western ideals of masculinity; strong, serious, bigger than women, buff.

[[having said all this is still feel awkward with a lot of what i like when i'm in a mainstream setting. i'll usually only show people what i think is an "acceptable" or "digestible" form of a culture i love. it's awful and it's absolutely ridiculous that our culture has to be like this. for example, i feel comfortable showing bigbang and certain ballad songs but i'd probably squirm awkwardly if was watching old school u-kiss with non kpoppers]]





i'm def not saying i prefer some idols because of this, but i'm just demonstrating what the western view does to taste and validity. i love u-kiss as much as bigbang but because of what's said to be more culturally valuable i feel more embarrassed openly liking something that goes against that. still pressurised by things like "real bands" vs. bands that are "just for looks". i've talked about this on my tumblr here ages ago. it's a bit dated by yeah, i still agree with most of my points.


but i'm tired and done with having to answer peoples questions and ignorant, ill-informed comments. and i know there's a lot of us that just don't address any of what we like in public because of this. it's like when people of a different generation start talking about feminism or racism in an ill informed way, their information gained from telly and the media and you're there thinking of a way to try and tell them they're wrong, to win them onto your side. but doing that all the time, about everything is tiring. and that's why we might look haughty or proud, it's because a lot of the time you're being dumb and ill informed and i shouldn't have to be the one who tells you something plain stupid like "no, all asians don't look the same/??????///???"//?????????????????o,O???????

if we were given a GOOD amount of exposure to a variety of asians then perhaps it wouldn't seem like they "all look the same". everyone in kpop who wasn't really "into" asian culture before will tell you that they can see individual differences much better now because of kpop. that is so so sad, and so wrong. that's like, whole countries and continents that aren't being represented properly or with respect. god world, get your act together.

wait so ur telling me he's wearing makeup...AND he has a penis??? #HOW???

idc tho

a part of this issue is that if you put what you really really like out there, people judge, they judge you but they judge the group or idol. and that kinda hurts as a fan of them. maybe it's just me being sensitive? but i don't want to be belittled, and i don't want people i like to be belittled. there's a lot of people out there who take this *thing* very seriously (including me).

and the idea that you can just consume or dislike what you want, and throw it away when you want is a western idea, it comes from privilege. should ren care that you think he looks like a girl? does he care? probably not (hopefully not), but it's this idea that western people believe they have the authority to judge whether something's good or not. 

the statement "they look like girls" is based on the presumption that guys shouldn't look like girls, they should look like "guys". and, more dangerously, that to look like a "girl" is shameful and they shouldn't want to be it because it degrades them. the anger and hate directed towards amber for being a sexy tomboy is because she's not fulfilling the gender requirements that she should as a woman, she should be pretty (and she should want to be a "pretty girl") 

"idc either i'm too hot for this shit"

 it sorta begs the question; "so what?" and "so what if i like guys that look like girls, or girls that look like girls, or biological girls that identify as boys and dress in a non-gendered way?". that's the issue here. 

[[korea itself has a very restricted traditional view of gender roles, but that's irrelevant, we're talking about the western view. i'm not even gonna address that now]] 

the fact that most people still think that gender is a two road thing...that there are two paths and if you aren't picking a side then there's something sick and wrong with you. it doesn't make you a person anymore, because to be a person you've got to be a "man" or a "woman" and if you identify as none, or both then you're considered a deviant, an "it". a threat to the social order. if you're saying you accept humans as humans regardless as what they identify then you bring out a kind of anger and resentment from people who've spent their whole lives trying to fit into a specific set of rules for their gender, often not feeling comfortable or competent in that gender. i think this is *one* reason people of older generations have against this new approach to gender. they've spent a whole life being told what a "woman" and "man" is for these new ideas to come along and make out like you should "do what you want and everything's gonna be ok and hippies and flowers and sunshine" makes them resent how we're questioning all that. 

in conclusion

about ur gender

still prettier than u tho

ok so why should it matter, if we don't care. (aside from the fact that we've already gathered we actually do care). well, it makes living in society very hard...knowing that nobody agrees with you and nobody is willing to accept what you like (which inherently makes you what you are). and also, on a creative level it stops us from being able to creatively express ourselves, it restricts gender into either/or and that makes the options for costume/makeup/concepts much more restricted. the easiest way to look at this is to imagine a k-girlgroup concept being done by a boy group and vice versa. boys are given more creativity in kpop. kpop boys are (although stigmatised in the west) accepted wearing makeup, costume and having nice hair. comeback concepts for boys can be on a range of different themes and topics, including love, revolution and friendship. girlgroups are restricted almost exclusively to love and romance/relationships.

honestly i could go on forever about how gender restrictions hinder girl groups-it's enough that they're treated like crap and looked down on because they're women. but almost every comeback concept fits into a certain image and it just makes me cry-there's NO reason to ALWAYS dress girlgroups in skirts/short shorts or ALWAYS exploit their sexuality in some way. be sexy, hell yes i have no problem with that. but the double standard is ridiculous. "we want you to be attractive and arousing but not too slutty but also cute and also homely and entertaining and smiley and bubbly and a bit dumb. can u do all of that in one mv/comeback" but the WORST part is that there's so many less amazing girlgroup mv's out there. yeah, think bigbang's fantastic baby, shinee's sherlock, b.a.p's power all amazing...i'm not saying girlgroup mv's are bad. but have you ever seen a proper party concept like gd&top's high high? or a really awesome anti-bullying/revolution concept like nu'est in face? i love k-girlgroups and i'll support them forever but it disappoints me as an artist that their talent isn't being harvested in the right way. there are exceptions ofc. all of f(x)'s things, 2ne1 and a lot of the smaller groups stuff but yeah. 

here's gd sporting various gender symbols

and here's russell brand...no real reason i just like him

and the makeup/adornment/vanity thing. women aren't "the fair sex" (fair meaning beautiful etc), that concept came around in the 19th century and hasn't left. men have, throughout time adopted various adornments with no stigma. adornments, good hair, good skin, beautiful fabrics etc have always meant good money. there were many times men were more heavily adorned than women and more concerned with appearance. so shake off that prejudice that "men shouldn't wear makeup" 

and i haven't even touched upon sexuality but i think i'll do a separate post for that - a whole other cup of tea tbh

humans have adorned themselves since the beginning of society. as soon as we realised there was pretty things we wanted them, we wanted to wear them and put them on our bodies and parade around the place.

//got my makeup on...paradin' about ancient egypt//

no but seriously makeup for ALL genders def isn't a new thing, and isn't a western thing. through all periods of time makeup, hair and costume has been explored by all genders, everywhere.

here's miyavi being beautiful. apparently men in east asia also wore makeup alongside their female counterparts throughout history as well. visuel kei and harajuku/japanese contemporary culture are a great example of men utilising makeup for creativity. it's not hollywood makeup, it's not "man" makeup, worn to conceal or hide; it's worn for the effect, in the same way it is for women. this is important. and i can hear a lot of people being like "but wHAT are they? how can i tell? T_T how do i know if i want to screw them or not if their gender's not written on their foreheads boohooooo". well....maybe you need to question what it is you require in a person? if a man wearing makeup with gr8 hair threatens you then why? 

also

...

i'd just like to add that the right for people to NOT wear makeup is as important as the right to wear makeup. 

sleepy puppy~

especially girl idols, with the extreme pressure to fulfill said gender binary. support them, everyone is beautiful. b e a u t i f u l ~

just one more final thing...

//i'm so curious yeah//

---not my macro, only the mv screencaps are mine---

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[OLD] [BLAST FROM THE K-POP PAST]; U-KISS Man Man Ha Ni (만만하니) 2009

[[2014 disclaimer-this was written like over a year ago. my opinion may have changed and w/e. you can tell it's old because i spell and use grammar properly lol. its here on my blog if u wanna reblog on tumblr???]]

So today I will be talking about the concept and costumes from…BBRRRRAPBRAAAP; U-KISS. WOOHOO. (with pics!)

This was the first U-KISS song I heard (obv, it was their debut) and I looooved it instantly. I loved the style of the MV and the dancing and their costumes. And Xander, we’ll talk about that another time

Instantly I was hooked on the song and dance. And Dongho. 

So this MV is split up into 3/4 different sequences. There’s the Main Room, a pseudo-street type situation with a neon U-KISS sign behind them. This is dominated with black and white army/bondage suits. I remember the teaser pictures for this and they were relevant for once. The alternate blue/pale beige filters give the whole MV a cool, crisp feel to it. This U-KISS era kind of reminds me of what Nu’est is doing these days which is good because it’s a bold style that can be updated and re-used, monochrome like this works for a variety of different concepts. I like that they haven’t tried to split up the dark visuals with a ‘colour room’ in the way that many other K-POP bands have done, just to lighten the mood. This keeps this whole concept dramatic and eye catching.

I remember how there was lots of people chatting about what Xander was wearing because it was like half white shirt half black shirt but I loved it :’( It should also be noted that their hair was AWESOME and what set them apart from most other bands at the time. They each had distinctive hairstyles in different colours and it became really easy to distinguish the members straight away. 

This part of the MV, which takes place in some really clean alleyway, they wear the same suits as they wear in the other dance scene, which takes place in front of…a white screen?

Kiseop’s red sash may be the only colour flash in the whole MV apart from Dongho’s red tinted hair.

And then there’s two different sets of individual shots, #xanderappreciationphotos

^ This puffa jacket thing that is only seen in a few shots, and the army jacket below feat. pretty epic 80’s hair.

Soohyun’s individual shots are the only real ‘warm’ colour that comes into the MV.

This is one of my favourite dance MV’s because it’s so consistent and does the job of both keeping you interested and introducing you to members. The dance is catchy and remains a K-POP classic to this day, the song is awesome and timeless, the costumes are eye-catching and appropriate. = KissMe for life y’all!

4.5/5 for costume

-0.5 because Xander

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[K-POP Costume Review] EXO WHAT IS LOVE 2012

three words; THE SILVER JACKET

that's all.

1000000000000/5

this jacket/scene/song/mv/preview/debut/line made kyungsoo my forever bias in exo. he's also one of my ultimate biases, i loved him from here. from this point right here. the colouring in this mv is beautiful, the shots are beautiful, the concept is beautiful, the boys are beautiful. beautiful. beautiful. BEAUTIPEUR

 

here you can see that sm has set exo up as a trendy, young, hip group. they tend to fade in and out of casual everyday wear with sorta couture elements. but none of it is uncomfortable to watch, it always looks good. whether it's baggy tees and harem pants or kris in a designer cape, it's got the cool exo vibe about it. amongst other things this has to be a major factor in exo's success; they've got the trends bang on.

they've also taken the supernatural concept of their band and incorporated this into their visuals. like, they could do a really "out there" other world concept like with matching outfits like 2pm's i'll be back. but they choose not to, they choose to go for a more trendy approach to fashion. and i love that. sm always knew they were going to be under the scrutiny of not only korea but china as well, and they know there's a massive int. fanbase as well so those 90 boyband outfits wouldn't cut it for exo. remember that this is the first we saw of exo. it's their debut not debut debut. 

just another gratuitous picture of this scene. amazing.

bringing in a bit more colour/variety. this is a nod towards all the glorious different jackets exo will wear for the next few years (and hopefully forever)

*ouch*

i could go through all the symbols in the background and the whole concept but we're all familiar with that right? more important is this hat. look how fluffy it is. and these mittens. all men should wear mittens.

and this ensemble is particularly fitting; grimy, raw edges, rough texture, lots of little dangling bits all over. it's absolutely perfect for tao's wushu scene. also tao with black hair <3

           
  

                   let's just have another shot. 

so beautiful urgh T_T

idk if it's fair to rate the costumes because mOST of this mv isn't under a normal kpop "concept". like, it's introducing the world to some of the shiny/futuristic patterns and fabrics we're likely to see in the future, but most of it is just plain casual wear. but nonetheless, it gets us there. we're interested in exo. 

5/5 for costume

5/5 for mv - it's a piece of art

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[K-POP Costume Review] [Blast from the KPOP past] 2PM I'll Be Back 2010

i'm classing "the kpop past" 2011 and before. :) this is more for potentially new kpop fans who may not have been around back then. they missed some good stuff, probably not this but nevermind.

it's 2PeeEeeM

*whispers JYP*

there's lots of elements of this mv concept that i like. 

but there's also a lot that's just a bit like...eurghh

taecyeon's hair is really disturbing, in fact a lot of the colouring in this vid is weird? it's like, khaki/burnt brown? i don't mind the colour scheme it's jusst put with a really obvious army/cargo type think that i rarely like. i also dont like random sleeveless cut off jackets (esp. when there's only 2 members wearing them) and 3/4 jackets in general. and clumpy, confusing fabrics when i don't know why??? (what i mean is-B.A.P and costume concepts with their love for clumpy, shapeless fabrics like denim and thick leathers makes sense, it fits with their band concept/concept at the time e.g. power)

2pm are the worst sleeveless offenders. i didn't like it in 2008 i don't like it now.

???????!!????????

anyway. so taec is this weird colour.

and i know i love junho's arms and everything but that's not gonna make me accept this.

?????

still haven't figured out what this was/why it happened/what it's about? is it symbolic? it's not even like it's following an aesthetic or anything? is it influenced by army markings? idk but i know it makes me feel uncomfortable 

on the plus side, i really like nichkhun's whole ensemble. he's anime enough to pull this off, and idk it just looks much less offensive in a pale grey?

i like the boots too. but i feel like the whole thing was too army-y, too tubular and non flattering. and didn't really work with the makeup. and i love the makeup! but i feel like maybe if they'd all have stuck to what chansung/nichkhun and wooyoung are wearing if would look a lot better. taec already has the biggest frame of them all, getting his body out makes him look bigger again. big ole taec <3

if i was a 2pm stylist i'd always dress chansung in long sleeved black things. he's got a great figure and a great look in general. exploit that. make him wear tighter things. and long haired chansung is my favourite chansung. also this spikey room is interesting, i like it. this, along with the mirrory?/reflective?/water room they use in single shots make this video above average. the main room is just a bit...meh. 

transgender alien wooyoung <3

there's a lot of nice shots though, and the whole mv is filmed really well. i love the solo shots. and it seems to be fairly balanced in terms of cam time. which is great because my bias is junho and i hate it when i'm only seeing 2/3 members out of a big group (KAI)  and there's a selection of nice accessories i like, like the glove junho wears. 

...

IS THAT 3/4 LENGTH
...

exactly how i feel.

overall, when this came out i wasn't disappointed. at all. in fact i really liked it, but that's because i love 2pm and the song and i like the overall mv concept. [i had the fan goggles on] just a close look at what they're wearing makes me kinda cringe?

i think it was a bit overkill for me?

2.5/5 for costume

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