K-pop and marriage: why not?

By Han Jeongmun and David Tizzard

Han Jeongmun and David Tizzard

In a country with one of the world's lowest birth rates, one would assume the news of a beloved celebrity announcing plans for marriage and an imminent child would be welcomed with open arms.

But not in Korea. And not for a K-pop idol.

Chen, a member of one of the country's most successful K-pop groups, EXO, announced in a handwritten letter posted on social media that he was doing exactly this.

Yet much of the response from fans was both toxic and unpleasant. Many called on him to leave the group immediately and spoke of the betrayal that they felt.

Such devil comments (“ang-pul” as they are known in Korean) should not be taken lightly as the recent suicides of K-pop stars Sulli and Goo Hara have been linked to the negative treatment they received online.

Twitter was filled with hashtags retweeted in the tens of thousands wildly criticizing Chen for his perceived crimes and inconsiderate behavior. The atmosphere, as is often the case, was full of self-righteousness and a lack of humility and consideration.

Things went a step further when the official EXO fan group released a statement demanding Chen leave the group saying that they could “no longer support him” and that “his arbitrary actions were damaging the group's reputation”.

The fan group, known as EXO-L ACE Union, have warned that they will carry out protests in response and expect action from the management (SM Entertainment).

And remember this is not for stories involving drugs, sexual misadventure, or violence: it's for marriage. And Chen's situation is not the first.

Sunye was the leader of the Wonder Girls but left the team to marry her husband and raise her two daughters in Canada. Rather than support her nascent family, many netizens spoke out angrily at the hurt and lack of loyalty she demonstrated.

The same treatment was given to Super Junior's Sungmin when he married his wife back in 2014. He was accused of mistreating his fans and his return to the group has been vehemently opposed by an army of online commentators.

To most of us who are not devoted and committed fans, what is it there to be mad about? Are marriage and the birth of a baby not something to celebrate?

The disappointment and anger that has arisen has to do with how the K-pop industry operates. It is a manifestation of how the relationships between artists (in the loosest sense) and fans are formed as well as the consumption of the artist/idol as a product.

A lot of K-pop artists are “born” as products: mere merchandise of an entertainment company. They are designed and constructed through the company's 'know-how', including the person's aesthetic look, the music genre, and the character (or concept).

All this is done in order to attract as many fans as possible, thus generating profits for the company. Moreover, the designed product is often a young child who dreams of dancing and singing on stage.

Autonomy is not a word one should readily associate with these products. Rather than expressing themselves freely and naturally, many are simply following the orders and demands of the company whom they serve - something not that unusual in the broadly collective and hierarchical nature of Korean society.

People inside the industry also speak openly of the “services” their entertainment company provide - a form of surrogate dating. A virtual boyfriend or girlfriend experience created for the fans.

Moreover, because the most popular idol formation seems to be that of a group (normally around 5-9 members but sometimes as many as 17), individuality is not a key component. The key is for the trainees to adjust themselves to the tone of the collective - even if it clashes with their own personality or wishes.

Thus an agony arises when the individual member is forced to choose between their own path and that of the group, either artistically, personally, or otherwise. This will always remain an existing concern - yet it is not necessarily unique to K-pop.

It does however demonstrate how and why Chen as a member of a group has had to face such public criticism for merely having the temerity to follow his own path rather than that of his teammates.

Of course K-pop is inspiring and brings joy and happiness to millions around the world, promoting welcoming messages and increasing the representation of Asians on the global stage while helping to weaken racism and promote greater awareness.

From the other side, however, one article recently likened the nature of K-pop fandom to the rabid and sometimes ugly support that we see in football. Yes, football is the beautiful game, but it would be wrong to say there isn't often a dark side to the fandom and that it differs in each country in how it manifests, from hooligans to racism.

To wit, a recent study out of Korea University and published in the academic journal Asian Women suggested that the more money people spend on K-pop, the less egalitarian gender values they are likely to demonstrate. Perhaps the recent case involving Chen increases the explanatory power of that research.

Following the arrival of the bestselling book “Trend 2020”, the followers of K-pop have been renamed “fan-sumers”: consumers who use their influence as fans to affect how the product (in this case the K-pop idol) is marketed and presented.

The fansumer culture has arrived in-line with social media providing a platform for their voices to be heard and a generational shift away from the boomers and “latte is horse” people to Millennial and Generation Z consumers.

Being a pop idol, a TV star, or a celebrity is mostly about maintaining your popularity - this is achieved by winning the public's attention, interest, and love. Losing this popularity as a celebrity is then equal to an enterprise losing customers.

Celebrities are expected to make choices with which the public will agree. Rather than “loving themselves,'' they are forced to adjust themselves to the wants and needs of the consumers: the fans.

And thus anytime a celebrity does something that the public have not previously agreed or consented to, for example Han Ye-seul's recent appearance with a nose piercing or Gong Hyo-jin's tattoos, a great deal of criticism then appears for it contradictions expectations.

This is not a problem of right and wrong. It's about consumers coming to terms with changes in the products in which they have invested. In this case, idols.

Chen's announcement of marriage shattered not only the expectations of his fans, it also broke the virtual dating relationship many had with him that had been created by the entertainment company.

Moreover, it was an act that put his own individual life above that of the group - he failed to recognize his commitments to his teammates and the fans. Thus, from an economic perspective, it is only natural that the consumers have since turned their backs on him.

Ideally, the fans would support the personal decisions taken by their favorite idols. But practically, being a successful K-pop star and being yourself in real life while seeking marriage and children is not really compatible.

To be an “idol” is to forego the chance to be an independent or autonomous artist. Instead one becomes a product: merchandise that is sold as part of a total fantasy package created by some of the smartest and richest companies in the country.

The general public will no doubt balk at the reaction to Chen's marriage and imminent child, and that is to be expected. But for the fans who have invested time, money, and energy in this virtual reality only to have it snatched away by an individual decision, they are upset and voicing their opinions as only they know how.

The problem is not Chen. The problem is not the fans. The problem is that K-pop creates packed products which don't always go as planned and the fansumers then naturally voice their disappointment on social media which does not filter or censor even the most lurid of opinions.

Han Jeongmun studies Fashion Marketing at Seoul Women's University.

David Tizzard (datizzard@swu.ac.kr) is an assistant professor at Seoul Women's University. He also presents economic and cultural issues on "Business Now" on TBS eFM (101.3FM) live every Wednesday from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.