Meditations on Hyolin's bottom

By David Tizzard

Obviously a married man beginning a discussion on the posterior of a young female entertainer is fraught with danger in today's age.

However, with articles in The Korea Times presenting cosplay and pictures as “social costume” projects filtered through the near incomprehensibility of post-modern language, I should be OK. Hopefully.

At the 2018 KBS Drama Awards, a room full of actors looked on as K-pop star Hyolin performed three songs for the star-studded audience in Yeouido. Known for her powerful vocals and strength as a singer, the former SISTAR leader started with the song “Spring Watch.”

Yet the “controversy” has arisen because of what followed. Her performance of “See Sea” and her biggest track of the year, “Dally,” saw her wearing a silver leotard as she entertained the crowd with a rotating crew of back-up dancers.

The performance itself seemed effective. It was coherent, well executed, displayed a good deal of confidence and personality and combined many different thematic elements in the six minutes it ran.

It didn't seem overly crude. It wasn't playing up a Lolita complex by dressing as a schoolgirl. It was even less raunchy than the official music video released for the song earlier this year.

And then came the internet and its users ― articles and videos with hundreds of thousands of comments in a matter of hours.

Yet it's interesting to note that much of the internet's criticisms are being directed at the individual rather than the establishment that arranged and scheduled it. Why is that?

Did Hyolin phone KBS and ask specifically to perform this song at this particular drama awards show? Or did the producers of the program choose her, and this song, knowing full well what the choreography and costumes would involve?

There were no doubt rehearsals for the performance, too. Nobody thought to say anything then?

Is it because Hyolin is a young, confident individual rather than a faceless group of 10 members to whom no one really pays attention? Or something else?

Hyolin's performance seemed a very manifestation of the K-pop model. It was a young, attractive person dancing provocatively on stage while wearing clothes not necessarily appropriate for a Sunday garden tea party on the church lawn.

That's what K-pop, for the most part, is. And, in this particular instance, having watched the performance as well as various others with my young niece over the New Year's period, it was actually done better than most.

However, the headlines, newspaper articles and YouTube videos have all focused on their interpretation of the audience's reaction as well as the physical qualities of the performer.

From what I have read, none of the celebrities in attendance has come out and expressed any form of distaste or disapproval at the performance. Rather, people are taking it on themselves to be offended on behalf of others.

Then we have the argument that it was a drama awards show and not a music awards show. In Korea, the drama awards are normally black-tie events and more formal in both attire and atmosphere.

Moreover, they typically receive less interest and viewers ― certainly among the younger generation ― than their musical counterparts, because they don't contain any of the coolness and vitality associated with the pop industry.

So if this was an effort to bring either some attention or controversy to their own show in an effort to boost ratings by hiring a singer known for her biggest hit being a provocative song, then surely the blame lies there again?

The Hankook Ilbo and Realmeter both recently released statistics highlighting the biggest sources of conflict in South Korean society today. What was interesting was that the old familiar trends of regionalism and ideology have now been replaced. While that will no doubt ensure many academics have to revise their papers for 2019, the answers hold relevance to this piece.

For people in their 20s, the biggest source of conflict was “gender.” And it's understandable. The Korean Institute of Criminology has reported that 95 percent of women fear being a victim of a sex crime. In the pop music industry, SaneE has hit the headlines for putting “feminists on blast” while Irene from Red Velvet received a barrage of unwarranted criticism for simply having the temerity to read the book “Kim Ji-young, Born in 1982.”

With other important issues such as the Molka protests and MeToo movements joining the ever-growing neologisms in society, these gender issues are incredibly important for the country and its people to contend with.

The story is not always about national security and the politics of a region. Now what matters to the youth is their individuality and dignity. The Platonic thymos has risen in South Korea and now demands recognition.

It will no doubt be a theme for politicians to contend with in the 2020 election, particularly as other surveys have shown that young men are a major demographic turning away from the current president. But before then, it's a matter for people in society to confront every day. And most importantly online.

I don't believe the criticisms aimed at Hyolin this week were warranted. Nor do I believe they are conducive to creating a more prosperous and cohesive Korean society in 2019.

But that's just my opinion. And I didn't mention her bottom once.

David Tizzard (datizzard@swu.ac.kr) is an assistant professor at Seoul Women's University.