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Rant: From Korea to America - Why Entertainment Companies Failed
Do you remember that tragic excuse for an American debut 'The Boys'? What about Wonder Girls' reason for overall downfall with their two year hiatus in Korea? 2NE1 isn't off the hook, either, already releasing American versions of songs like Can't Nobody and entangling themselves in a song feature with artist, Will.I.Am. Regardless, it's undeniable that all K-Pop companies and artists have failed in America (other than PSY) by using the same ol', same ol' formula that they thing will eventually work--release an American song, get someone you think is famous and relevant to feature or help you with it, appear in a few shows that make you seem like a desperate nobody in the eyes of typical, non-K-Pop loving Americans--but ends up not doing so hot. Why I'm going back to this topic that I already covered as a reply to the Juice Judge's original topic--I don't know, however, this one is different. As opposed to asking how idol groups can make it to the US, I'm now telling why idol groups who already attempted or are still attempting fail/are failing at it horribly with the newest English release of SPICA's I Did It.
1. Arrogance
SM Entertainment has Girls' Generation, Super Junior and SHINee; YG Entertainment has 2NE1, Big Bang and Lee Hi; JYP Entertainment has 2PM, Miss A and Wonder Girls
However
Newsflash! No one cares!
No one knows who you are in America regardless of your like five album sales from here (omg, we're famoos!!11) and you shouldn't treat it like the people who actually do know you are a great representation, for example, when Girls' Generation performed on David Letterman, the crowd knew all the words to the song that no one else had heard about in their lives before ever. Coincidence? I think not. Likewise, I have never once in my life witnessed an American say 'I'm an Interscope Records stan!' because stanning companies is probably the stupidest thing I have ever heard of... ever.
2. Desperation is like masturbation--you're fucking yourself.
Teddy Riley! Snoop Dogg! Your brother's old laundry! Stop getting people who see as famous in the United States to feature in your work and then expecting yourself to rise to stardom since you're certainly wrong, Us Yankees could give no fuck about the who, the what and the where that's attached to it.
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| They say time flies. But really, it's true cause you're just wasting your time. |
3. Talent is the second best bet.
Talent = Singing in America
Though it's not 100% based on singing talent--Taylor Swift being the biggest example--singing talent actually does play at least a key role in it and then after that, it's song viral-ness. Once a song gets popular, you get popular--but that really depends on the quality of the song first of all.
4. Puppets on a string, puppets on a string, looking like a fool with your puppet on a string.
No one wants a remake of Duffy's Mercy to listen to.
You're a manufactured product by companies, attached with a pull-able string that releases filtered jargon, emotionless words and filthy lies. Being backed by a company is one thing in Korea but it's definitely another thing in America. You need individuality and something that differentiates yourself from others to keep you relevant.
5. When one person crosses over, don't think the rest will
6. Get your music out there in any, non-pathetic way.
7. Music first, other stuff second.
8. To assume makes an ass out of u and me.
Let's be honest here--barely any K-Pop Idols have what Americans call 'talent'.
Singers like Taeyeon will be deemed mediocre because when comparing America to Korea and the talent-level, she actually is mediocre here whereas she's deemed as some type of singing god in Korea because there's not many good singers in the idol industry to battle out, anyway. Ailee and Hyorin aren't off the hook either. They're amazing singers in Korea. Amazing. But in America? They'd be labelled as good. Not even great. Just good.
Talent = Singing in America
Dancing doesn't count unless you can sing good on top of it--in fact, I don't think I've heard of any dancer in the United States who became globally famous for solely their dancing and the last dance extremely popular music video that focused almost entirely on dancing (other than PSY's Gangnam Style) was Beyonce's Single Ladies in 2008... but mostly because it's Beyonce. With that being said, about 70% of idols who rely on their 'main dancer' or 'lead dancer' roles will be shunned... as well as the rappers who call themselves rappers just because they can't sing or dance (looking at you, Bora) because they're just walking and talking sticks of wastefulness.
Though it's not 100% based on singing talent--Taylor Swift being the biggest example--singing talent actually does play at least a key role in it and then after that, it's song viral-ness. Once a song gets popular, you get popular--but that really depends on the quality of the song first of all.
Music is more than just pretty faces who can smile, talk and walk (90% of K-Pop Idols, I'm looking at you) and doesn't even include their 'epic personality' and 'awesome role model-like qualities', either. To add, if we really cared about those two, Justin Bieber would be under a bus right now for spitting in a fan's eye, Taylor Swift would be locked in a meat locker to keep her away from anything that has a penis and Chris Brown would simply be off the face of the earth. Has that happened yet? No.
4. Puppets on a string, puppets on a string, looking like a fool with your puppet on a string.
Honestly, I want to be called an artist.
Sure, you can, Sooyoung! Just buy an easel, some paint and some get-the-fuck-out-of-SM!
Idols are merely products of entertainment companies and aren't seen as anything else than such. Because most artists in America hold the ability to express themselves, they have what I like to call 'individuality' which is in my opinion, the most important attribute when wanting to make it here.
Taylor Swift is a great singer - Said no one ever.
But she's popular... why is that? She has individuality and she expresses herself in a way that people would like to listen to and buy--her songs reflecting her (self-inflicted) emotions and being written by her especially, fans eating that shit up.
No one wants a remake of Duffy's Mercy to listen to.
No one cares if you get twenty years of training only to come out a chess pawn.
No one gives a shit about the songs with the 'love', 'heartbreak', 'upset stomach, diarrhea' lyrics.
You're a manufactured product by companies, attached with a pull-able string that releases filtered jargon, emotionless words and filthy lies. Being backed by a company is one thing in Korea but it's definitely another thing in America. You need individuality and something that differentiates yourself from others to keep you relevant.
I have been saying this forever and ever--when one person crosses from another music industry, not everyone will. What's odd is how people discredit PSY saying that he did nothing for K-Pop but solely for himself which was expected all along and you silly fans should've known.
America knows the British singer Adele, that doesn't mean we know all British singers.
America knows the Colombian singer Shakira, that doesn't mean we know all Colombian singers.
America knows the Canadian singer Justin Bieber, that doesn't mean we know all Canadian singers.
So what's with all the angry mobs with pitchforks?
This isn't K-Pop in which you know one artist, get addicted and then know all of K-Pop idols--it's American music.
6. Get your music out there in any, non-pathetic way.
The Wonder Girls' movie simply just crushed them however, their appearance on iHeartRadio wasn't that bad. You see, going on popular television talk shows and being interviewed by numerous random people seems good but actually, it's not that great. Interviews where you show your bright and epic personality aren't the way that you get your music out because
1. no one is going to watch or care if we don't know who you are.
2. you're music still isn't being promoted.
Also, it's weird because nearly every interview, there's always that mention of what I was speaking of in #2--the famous person you collaborated with or who produced your music. No one cares.
7. Music first, other stuff second.
After you get famous, show your other side. It's not a beauty pageant nor is it a 'who's nicest' competition. You need to shoot yourself to fame first and then try to get the other stuff like personality down.
There's no 'digital sajaengi' (looking at you SISTAR), pull a bunny out of your hat, wish upon a shooting star kind of thing that'll shoot you to popularity so easily. You have to first get known for your music through a legitimate way and through another process. Not to mention, as seen through PSY's Gangnam Style then PSY's Gentleman, when you have one music video that becomes viral and you shoot to fame, your following videos typically follow the same course.
Don't assume because typical American songs are full of nonsensical lyrics and the songs are bland that you releasing a nonsensical, bland song will shoot you to fame, too. No--the people who release shitty songs are already famous so don't have to try as hard as you do.
Is Dancing a Talent?
To dance. When asking Google's definition, the exact defining words are given as so: move rhythmically to music, typically following a set sequence of steps, with the synonyms (that aren't really up-to-par, in my opinion) being sway, trip, twirl, whirl, pirouette and gyrate. When asking a normal person's definition, it would probably be similar to the scientific, wordy phrase used by the biggest website in the world. However, if questioning a Korean pop fan their definition of this "movement of music", there would be two different answers being fought over across the board: Dancing is moving to the rhythm and beat, following a tune, and requires hardwork and practice to improve because it is a talent, and, dancing is moving to the rhythm and beat, following a tune, and requires hardwork and practice to improve because it most definitely is not a talent. And while there is a constant argument throughout the Korean pop fandom (under all the fanwars and jitters over whether a new comeback is awesome, of course) questioning which statement is the most valid, I want to go into this further and confirm which side is correct: is dancing a talent or not.We can all dance.
But we can't all dance well.
We always say this about singing, whether or not someone is trying to prove that singing is more than just breathing out a note or making harmonious sound in conjunction to the track their playing, however, whenever someone says the same about dancing, there is always backlash coming from the other side. Now, now, I'm not saying that the other side is wrong, however, this statement is true.
We can all dance, of course.
But we can't all dance well, and therefore, should give the good dancers props for being able to well, move their bodies better than we can.
But, because I'm a fan of Google definitions, I took the liberty to try to prove the claim as to whether or not dancing is actually a talent, looking at the sentence as if it was actually 'dancing = talent' and wanting to know what the actual, factual definition of talent was in order to continue going on with this blog post. Here's what I came up with (I made sure to link the Google definitions if you guys think I'm just pulling these out of my ass):
If you can't read that or emitted horrifying screams after seeing my smiley face with a moustache, the relevant definition of talent is as so: natural aptitude or skill. (Aptitude's definition: natural ability to do something). Look at my other opened tab, natural's definition. Since I'm too lazy to create another masterpiece of the definition of natural, here is the most relevant adjective definition of natural (since natural is used as an adjective defining talent):
existing in or caused by nature; not made or caused by humankind.
basically, this means that you are born with it.
This is not something training can bring to you.
This is not something vocal lessons can bring to you.
This is not something that fans can pretend you have.
This is something that you have been gifted with.
A talent is natural.
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| All the stans of any group but SPICA, Ailee or Brown Eyed Girls (i.e. not known for dance) getting shaky now |
What does this mean, though?
Dancing can be a talent as a talent can be dancing. Some people are naturally born with being flexible, for example, SHINee's Key who noted something about him dancing to the beat at his audition. However, for some idols, it's not the case. It's virtually impossible for some idols to be considered 'full of talent in dancing' because they inherited the talent for dancing through training.
They did not come our from their mother's womb knowing how to dance perfectly. In fact, knowing most of these idols, they probably did not come out of the mother's womb knowing how to do anything at all but look pretty.
You cannot fucking sit here and tell me SM Entertainment took YoonA because she was talented in anything. I'm not hating against YoonA. It's just that she's the perfect example in this case. She exhibits confidence and likeability (aka she'll be able to make money) in her audition if anything... but if you call that talent, Hyoyeon must be a fucking god in dancing. A fucking god.
There's no hard feelings against idols who learned how to dance however, using YoonA as a perfectly good example as shown in the audition clip above. Clearly, she was not a good dancer then however, improved to be a good dancer now. Is she talented? By definition, no. She's currently a good dancer, yes, a better dancer than I could be anyday (here SONEs, I self-depricated, happy now or are you going to argue with me that YoonA is actually talented?) however, she is not talented. There is no skill. No skill that was naturally given to her at birth but was rather learned in years and years of practice.
And there are tons of other idols that fall into that mold, this, not just applying to YoonA but rather, to many other idols in dancing... as well as in different 'talents' like singing and rapping.
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To conclude, dancing is a talent. Dancing can be a natural apititude or skill you are blessed with at birth. However, the word talent is flung around like a rag doll without people actually knowing what they're saying. Many idols are not 'talented' in dancing, singing, rapping, etc. but are rather 'good' at it. Of course, there are idols who do have talent in their specific skill however, the majority rules;
The majority (not all) of Korean pop idols whom are not talented in singing and can dance well are not talented in dancing but are rather, good at it. They improve their dancing overtime in training and there's nothing wrong with that.
"The K-Pop Effect" - Plastic Surgery: A Positive or Negative Force?
It's undeniable--K-Pop has gone global, it's largest anchor being none other than PSY's fantastically viral hit song, Gangnam Style, which not only placed #2 on the iTunes chart (much higher up than any other K-Pop song known to man) but also, replaced Justin Bieber's Baby as the most watched YouTube video, LMFAO Party Rock anthem as the most liked and other celebrities who were releasing songs as the most talked about at that moment in time. But rather than thinking of simply the 'one-hit-wonder or two-hit-wonder, still-more-hits-than-your-biases', why don't we look more in the depths of the music, analyzing and viewing the positive and negative effects of not only K-Pop itself, but the Hallyu Wave and figuring out this question's answer: Is the K-Pop effect a positive or a negative force?
Us international fans mostly forget about Korea or simply, don't have a good view and make up the opinion of what Korean's think through netizen comments that have 100 likes and simple assumptions and guesstimates so to say, not really upholding the true effect of K-Pop. K-Pop in Korea can best be described as a 'fascination', hooking people with their catchy songs and receiving love with their outstanding and charming looks, the influence of how K-Pop infects daily lives otherwise known as 'The K-Pop Effect' , inheriting its name from SBS's Dateline. Watch the clip below which projects the actual effect of K-Pop on national Korean citizens starring the lovely Annie Ko of LOVEXSTEREO who was also interviewed by us and asked a question pertaining to her views on surgery.
Teenagers are the biggest victims of the K-Pop effect anywhere including the origin of South Korea, everyone knowing about Girls' Generation or Big Bang regardless of what age group they belong to (which is similar to that of your country knowing of the biggest pop artist--everyone not liking them but everyone acknowledging their existence), but the young ones usually being the most gullible and influenced. As seen in the video and can easily summarize the 16 minute clip, appearance is a huge and key factor for normal people especially for ones who acknowledge the existence of K-Pop. Most normal people apparently resort to plastic surgery as said by a Korean female in the clip who has lived overseas in America and most inspired by their favorite idols to get plastic surgery. To be honest, it's hard to escape the 'pressure to be perfect' when your favorite celebrities have gone through changes that are inexplicable when judging from past photos, idols being simply everywhere as stated in this article pertaining to idol actors.
Nevertheless, a Korean female who's otherwise known as 'JW Cinderella' of the JW plastic surgery clinic whom had actually went under the knife revealed her side of the story:
If you have a complex, you should have a surgery and be free from the complex, I strongly recommend. Of course, each person has their own beauty. However, surgery could improve their complex, it will be good.I agree with this to an extent, plastic surgery can free you from a complex and will be good if it does. But from the popular MTV show Girl Code, the girls decoded plastic surgery and the cast members even said things that can be summarized like this:
Makeup can fix anything plastic surgery can fix but plastic surgery is permanent. They can screw up surgery but if you're good at makeup, it'll be okay.
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| Maybe we should all be like Tanisha |
Why?
Because the media influences you to aim for perfection, all of those women who are a size 0, have the most radiant looking faces and are marketted as goddesses change your view on yourself.
Which is exactly what K-Pop does to women.
And that's the thing.
Now whether the strive to be perfect is a positive or negative force is debatable. I mean, of course, there are some cases where it could drive a woman to be less lazy and care more about herself, maybe taking a jog once in a while and actually washing and moisturizing her face. However, with the plethora of Korean women (and I mean plethora) throwing their money out of their pockets in order to get a straighter nose, larger eyes and a prettier smile just because of a few women on the television screen, I want to say that the K-Pop Effect definitely is not something positive. And whether or not we can fix the consequences of it is still unknown.
My Thoughts on Hyomin's Nice Body
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Better late than never, Hyomin came out with a solo music video some time ago, shaking her barely-existent ass without shame and giving off a Marina and the Diamonds' Primadonna vibe (I recommend clicking that link if you disliked Nice Body) but without the satire. Since I'm late, if you haven't watched it, shame on you. If you have, here's the video below again to refresh your memory.
Hyomin. She's my bias in T-ara. She's secretly the girl I yearn to scissor with. She's undeniably amongst the most attractive, if not, the most attractive female in the group. And she's the one who blew this debut up in flames.
Regardless of the plagiarism controversy which I honestly could give less fucks about, Hyomin had this chance with Nice Body to create a satirical masterpiece displaying the hardships of women, especially in a country as image-centric as South Korea, as they constantly strive to be the beautiful through horrible acts like anorexia, bulimia and weight loss treatments/pills. I mean, the lyrics were aiming towards it, saying:
You’re so hungry you look like a login what seemed like irony. However, she did not use this opportunity to be angry at societal standards like f(x) did, which I appreciate them for, with Red Light. She used this opportunity toliterally boast about having a nice body, not even adding irony or just a small bitter sweet chuckle at the end because apparently, this concept will not only sell more but recover T-ara's tainted image more.
Anyone can realize it with her facial expressions which clearly show how much more sexual prowess one has if they were 40 kilograms rather than a whopping 51.4 kilograms (I just gave my weight for the whole world to see. #teamfatass) which clearly is worth it to impress men who care only for appearance and not inward beauty.
I just wish Hyomin, instead of shaking what her mother gave her, used this opportunity for the good. I wish she made fun of societal standards and presented a call-to-action (or at least lead us to one) since she was on the right track with this song. It would have been more pleasurable and possibly give the girls more street cred. Also, I'm usually a feminist but she plays as if all guys are idiotic buffoons, really. I've met plenty of sapiophiles in my lifetime (THAT'S THE ONLY WAY I GET MY LERV) as well as guys who don't want women to be size -2 so please.
Likewise, this track did not make me lose respect for her, so don't get me wrong. It's just disappointment since she really could've... stood out amongst the crowd of overly provocative concepts.
I give this comeback a 2 out of 5. I didn't discuss the music video or song directly but for people who might shit themselves saying this is not a review: the song was average. The tune was not memorable but it was audible for the time being. The music video for the 15 version (the only one I saw) was worse than I anticipated. I thought there'd be more of a story other than 5 seconds of a fat Hyomin at the beginning and ending, but no. Hyomin lost quite a bit of weight, too.
What do you think of Nice Body? Great solo debut or could've been better? Place your comments below and remember to starve yourselves to meet the needs of men!
Let's Get Down to Business: Bom's Drug Scandal
I was initially going to title this: Dispatch is the #1 News Source: Bom is Not a Druggie, and even had a whole article written, ready to be published a few hours ago, however with new speculation about this whole Park Bom drug scandal coming up, I had to change my original rant about... well, everything.For those of you who haven't been following this blog for long, 2NE1's Park Bom was, is and will always be my ultimate bias alongside Girls' Generation's Tiffany. Maybe I'm just a legs and thighs person (but no buscuits!!) or maybe I'm just a lover of all singers who kind of sound like they have a dick in their nose but still, I am deeply in love with these girls and when I found out that Park Bom was in a scandal, and not just a scandal but one about her abusing drugs, I have to admit, my heart rate soared and I started having uncontrollable flatulence.
But for those of you who also have not followed this blog for long, regardless of who my bias is, I will tell my unbiased, truthful opinions surrounding a scandal and am not a delusional fangirl, therefore, won't jump the 'THIS BITCH IS B-DRUGGIN' nor the 'PARK BOM IS INNOCENT' wagon just yet. To everyone else who is still shitting themselves defending either or side, here's probably the only friggin' fact that is circulating the Internet around this whole scandal.
So please, feel free to stand up from your computer chair, stretch a little, do a little EXO Overdose dance then take a huge, long seat.
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| Regina is just as shocked as I am |
...from what I have seen in the 9 years watching over 2NE1, they do not smoke, drink much, or go clubbing for reasons besides official events
but for fuck's fucking sake, exaggeration isn't going to kill anyone. Pull the actual, meaningful stuff from the long ass message he read to the press. Likewise, most media outlets do not even add this part into the YG Entertainment statement because it's irrelevant as hell! It's like people are literally fishing for something even a little bit bad to have severe diarrhea over. Enough for once.
Likewise, the Dispatch article seems clear to me. All this speculation that Dispatch is being paid by YG Entertainment could be true (or just a rumor for people who want to see a bad ending to this scandal) however, with:
1) Park Bom was never actually even charged with actual reason behind it rather than giving her celebrity treatment
2) The prosecution giving a damn good reason as to why she was not charged and people shitting themselves that this practice is deemed illegal (their rules are selling the drugs to people unprescribed it) however, because it isn't for illegal purposes it becomes a loophole (think medical marijuana)
3) The apparent thing going around that when you catch a celebrity in a crime, you get a raise and all this money bonus stuff so legal teams actually strive to put celebrities behind bars
to me, I really don't think there's much... wrong? I mean, the biggest question to ask is:
Why is this even coming up four years past the date?
Nevertheless, there's a lot of things popping up with this. People are questioning Park Bom's actual age, through Segyo Ilbo, a popular Korean news source along with Dispatch, in which people obviously fail at math because even if you do the math, Park Bom would still be 30 years old in American age since the school mentioned how Bom was 14 in 1998,
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| Slaying K-Netizens who can't even do simply addition and subtraction since 2014 |
people wondering if Bom actually did know if the drugs were illegal in South Korea (this one is tricky, we can only use this by word of mouth, to be honest) and people wondering if she really did use the drugs for depression or just for weight loss (I honestly would say that truthfully, she probably used them for depression as I wouldn't doubt that she is/was depressed and either:
a) possibly found out they also came with weight loss
b) labelled them as weight loss pills to not freak out her grandmother with depression pills
c) the news about the pills being as true about the news about Park Bom being approximately five years older than she actually is
However, we will never know the full truth as with every scandal. With the lack of use of pills as stated by prosecution, Park Bom clearly could not have been using the pills for things like getting high or whatnot therefore, the only thing left to question is her personal health. I probably will do an individual post surrounding Park Bom's mental state especially with this news (I wanted to do so prior to this but never found the evidence, now it's here!) and can only tell you guys to stay tuned, stay posted and stay seated if you're planning to shit yourselves on either/or side.
In conclusion, Park Bom may or may not be completely innocent however, what I can take from this?
1) She wasn't actually druggin' (over-consuming the pills; she obviously took them)
2) There's a problem with her health (whether it's mentally or physically)
3) This is just petty news
Hopefully, the people who made fun of Bom for the past few years would quit it because she actually, to me for a long time, seemed to be a sensitive person. She may laugh or not actually admit it, but she probably does get sad at everything that is thrown at her as every single idol. We never know what's going on in the interior regardless of how the exterior acts. Maybe instead of idols reflecting, we should reflect at how low we are. How hypocritical we are. How insane we are. After we take a moment to vote on the polls below and comment.
a) possibly found out they also came with weight loss
b) labelled them as weight loss pills to not freak out her grandmother with depression pills
c) the news about the pills being as true about the news about Park Bom being approximately five years older than she actually is
However, we will never know the full truth as with every scandal. With the lack of use of pills as stated by prosecution, Park Bom clearly could not have been using the pills for things like getting high or whatnot therefore, the only thing left to question is her personal health. I probably will do an individual post surrounding Park Bom's mental state especially with this news (I wanted to do so prior to this but never found the evidence, now it's here!) and can only tell you guys to stay tuned, stay posted and stay seated if you're planning to shit yourselves on either/or side.
In conclusion, Park Bom may or may not be completely innocent however, what I can take from this?
1) She wasn't actually druggin' (over-consuming the pills; she obviously took them)
2) There's a problem with her health (whether it's mentally or physically)
3) This is just petty news
Hopefully, the people who made fun of Bom for the past few years would quit it because she actually, to me for a long time, seemed to be a sensitive person. She may laugh or not actually admit it, but she probably does get sad at everything that is thrown at her as every single idol. We never know what's going on in the interior regardless of how the exterior acts. Maybe instead of idols reflecting, we should reflect at how low we are. How hypocritical we are. How insane we are. After we take a moment to vote on the polls below and comment.
KARA Project: Are They Reaching Their End?
However, every group has to fall from their height, and though some can argue that they were already gradually decreasing post-Mister era, we can all agree that they have reached their rock bottom with the member change, as noted above, Nicole and Jiyoung saying their 'goodbye's early from the group and leaving KARA as three instead of their powerful five.
With what some call the money-hungry company shadowing the five after their split in half, they have had their eyes on repairing the group and replacing the two lost with two gained, starting a reality show entitled, the KARA Project, for eager fans to shit themselves watching and voting on who really is eligible out of the seven candidates to be in KARA. And though this follows YG Entertainment's Who Is Next? program in order to decide which group to choose to debut--Team A or Team B (none of them debuted--this is a closer and more personal-type of competition as you can connect with the members more and see their talents before deciding.
All the videos of the contestants are located below, their order as follows: SoJin, ShiYoon, Youngji, ChaeKyung, SoMin, ChaeWon and YuJi.
Out of all seven of the girls, I would say all of them have some potential for some market that KARA targets. Whether it be South Korea in general, Japan in general, people who dislike the lacking of KARA's vocal talent, people who value dance and more and though many people do not agree, I would say that all of them would have not been picked if DSP did not recognize their qualities.
Before I start analyzing the girls, I want to note how I feel as if this program and member addition is somewhat betraying the fans... that they have left. I mean, let's be honest here. Their first member change in which they added Hara definitely wasn't as detrimental since:
1) KARA was considered a new group in my standards, anyway.
2) The member change wasn't completely detrimental as Hara did a lot for the group's popularity.
3) The member change wasn't exploited as much as this one
However, with the group nearly a decade in the run and on fast decline, having two girls added to the group is somewhat like pulling a Wonder Girls' and adding Hyerim only to have her be there for a tiny bit of time until Sunye took her hiatus and SoHee got the hell out of that sinking ship. Likewise, unlike what the other commentors are shouting about: "make these girls into a group themselves and don't add them to KARA!", I have no doubts that DSP has considered that however, the line-up, just from my eyes, didn't exactly work and they still had one ship still afloat, KARA, to at least attempt to mend onto before giving up.
Therefore, long story short, I don't like this program however, it seems like it's the only option though the girls added would have a short duration in the group being that KARA is a sinking ship.
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| I already have your penises trapped in my gaze. Pick me. |
In my opinion, the third girl, Youngji, caught my eye. Why? The same reason as everyone else. She's pretty. Let's be honest for a second: KARA is not the group to value talent over visuals and she seems to be impeccable in the visual department. She's even somewhat comparable to the lost member, Jiyoung, in visuals, therefore, I would not doubt if she would be chosen.
The first girl, SoJin, also seems like a doable condidate even though there is a chance that she probably will not get chosen. She seems talented and her visuals aren't lacking that much. In fact, she seems more like a down-to-earth kind of girl who, if she would not win because of her face, could possibly win because of the sob story she delivers on camera or her personality compared to the other girls who seem a bit less...authentic.
Likewise, the following girl as well as the fourth, ShiYoon and ChaeKyung, probably can as well. Their visuals aren't exactly up there with Youngji however, they looks talented and seems as if they can match both the cute and the mature concepts when comparing songs like Honey to Damaged Lady.
I'd doubt if the sixth girl, ChaeWon, aka the girl who looks like she's around eight years old would be chosen. I mean, she'd be great for a Japanese market but next to the other three girls as well as one of the candidates in a group? She'd look extremely out of place. Her immaturity should be delivered in a different group and although her confidence is shown in her walk, I have no other way to say this but she just shouldn't make the cut.
Girl number five, SoMin, seems one of the most out of place. Not only does she look somewhat like an old and less alien version of Hara, but she doesn't seem to be fit to actually be inside the group. She seems to belong to a different kind of group, such as SPICA, or at least if she is vocally talented.
Girl number seven seems like the most out of place. She seems to belong to a group that definitely is not KARA. Do I need explaining? I'm just thinking that if she was to be placed in KARA, she would stand out too much.
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Lastly, I would just like to note that I feel KARA is reaching their end. The members seem to not have that much else going for them as they are reaching double digits. DSP Media already screwed themselves up by screwing up groups that had potential yet focusing on KARA like Rainbow and now has to suffer the consequences. With this member addition, it seems as if they are realizing that they are on a sinking ship and had made bad choices yet are trying to fix them... even though the problems are somewhat unfixable. In the end, I genuinely wish the candidates the best. They all actually seem to want to want the idol life and maybe have waited years to get it, this, being their last hope. Regardless, even if they won, let's be honest. How long would their fame last?
Not very long.
What do you think of the KARA Project and who is your favorite member? Leave your comments in the best place ever... the comment section below.
Comment-Ception; Is Girls' Generation on Decline?
The couple whom everyone, except rowdy KhunToria shippers, already knew were a "thing", has recently confirmed that they are actually a "thing" to the media. 2PM's Nickhun and Girls' Generation's Tiffany are now the fourth confirmed to have-happened-at-least-once relationship, with Girls' Generation's YoonA, Sooyoung and Hyoyeon whom we have speculated was dating on a previous article, anyway, in the lead. This couple, different than the rest has been met with more than just love: many people are taking Girls' Generation more into account than just the coupling and commenting as to how Girls' Generation is at their last straw. Whether that's true or not, we'll have to wait and see, but for now, I'll mostly focus on these sort of comments as a whole:
[+79, -10] SNSD is slowly on the decline
[+523, -155] SNSD's over now, farewell
And a comment from a regular non-K-netizen:
i'd say snsd is one step to their downfall.. sones can say its not true but their popularity isnt only about their fans-
Even Girls' Generation's Yuri has pointed out the validity of the statement. She realizes the short span of girl groups for example, S.E.S, FIN K L, even foreign ones like Spice Girls and Destiny's Child, reaching the top then plummeting to the ground in just years with maybe one or two from the disbanded group remaining in the limelight. And although no SONE wants to admit it, Girls' Generation is not free from that obvious ending. Their recent scandals, more specifically, Girls' Generation's Hyoyeon apparently attempting suicide and hitting her now ex-boyfriend (who's nearly a decade older than her) has emerged this feeling of bitterness towards the group of 9 girls. Many people have turned their backs on the group for years simply because they're growing weary or tired of them, however, after the poor feedback from their recent albums, starting from their Japanese works to even the I Got a Boy and Mr.Mr. album, even the smallest things are taking a blow on their buit-up image. Don't get me wrong, Soshi is still strong, but I wouldn't be very surprised if a few scandals later (at their rate, another scandal is simply inevitable), less and less positive comments will appear and will rather be overtaken by hatred. I mean, they're not getting any younger. Their music is not getting any better. Their attitude controversies with Taeyeon and Jessica nor their dating scandals are getting any less memorable.
Perhaps they truly are at their last straw.
Regardless of the empty threats of SONE fans on the Interweb, the resilient truth should still be made known. No one can say they haven't yet reached their potential or they still have a lot of time left as we always hear and see defenders argue.
They have reached their potential.
They don't have much time left.
They have already begun their gradual fall from the top since The Boys was released.
I'm sorry but not really sorry to break it to you.
So:
The top girl group, Girls' Generation, will not remain Girls' Generation for much longer as stated in a previous article in which bitter argument was released in the comment section, delusion on SONE's part. Although we should be happy the girls are dating, we should also be aware of their obvious fate which is just around the corner. Splitsville. Disbandment. SoshiGone. Likewise, Girls' Generation's Yuri is intelligent and should shed more light on their fate to soften the blow of delusional fans. The fate is simply inevitable. Even though many promise to hold their favorite girl group at the top, it happens to everyone and it can never be changed.
My Love Hate Relationship With Lee Michelle's Debut
You remember Lee Michelle from K-Pop Star Season 1, right? If not, listen up since I'm saying this one time and one time only: She was the half-black, half-Korean singing goddess who not only lost the competition but didn't even make it to the finals solely due to the fact that she was not full Korean, as stated by Park Jin Young himself. Anyway, she was supposedly supposed to join this group in YG Entertainment called SuPearls that Lee Hi and her would be the main vocals while the other two who weren't nearly as popular as them in the competition would kind of just attempt following along, however, that didn't end right and therefore, she left the company as well as was thrown into the caverns of oblivion and erased from the public's minds for a few years. However, now, she apparently has debuted with Without You about a week ago, the music video being able to be found below and it being a short tale about her life apparently in which she was faced with racism. Watch the video below.
being black is bad?
There's a difference between disliking racism and disliking the race itself and sometimes in the video it seems like, in this video, Lee Michelle simply dislikes the African-American part of her more than she dislikes the people who dislike the African-American part of her.
In fact, the lyrics of the video are filled with bipolarness of self-confidence.
Lee Michelle first exclaims that she's beautiful and has meaning without the audience she is singing about (I'm guessing this implies the people who were shitty to her), and has cried puddles but then in the next line, she's claiming that she's beautiful and has meaning even without the audience and then is saying how she's smiling and frolicking in flowers.
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| This girl is too cute, though. |
Then in this one part of the music video, the little girl who is apparently playing Lee Michelle as a child is putting on make-up. Of course, she goes for the whitest powder and puts in on, creating the illusion that she is possibly that white and then old Lee Michelle comes with a huge pancake load of the same powder as well as a wig to look well, more Korean.
Again, double meaning for me. I could see the symbolism that she, as a mixed Korean, has had thoughts of being Korean and finally, when she's white enough to be their standards, she's happy (hence why she smiles when she has it on) however, right after, she then realizes that she actually isn't full Korean then starts crying because the make-up didn't work enough however, later in her life realizes that she should be proud of who she is.
But then I can also see it meaning that she hates herself as a mixed person and put on the make-up to show her want to be Korean and never really letting it go, hence why that make-up is still visible when she transitions from younger Michelle to older Michelle in the video.
It could either mean that hey, being a colored person is amazing because of course, that life-size portrait of Michelle is literally as white as paper, and needs something to spice if up.
But it could also be like throwing tomatoes at someone you don't really like and the little girl attempting to cover up Lee Michelle since shit, half of them even made it close to Lee Michelle's face and therefore could mean anything.
There's never a clear... defining point to this video and the question still remains in my head what exactly were they trying to portray. Regardless, the song is phenomenal, the music video is meaningfully created (not like the majority of Korean music videos) and Lee Michelle has been my favorite SuPearl since SuPearls was created and even after it ended. Likewise, I hope Lee Michelle has a great career and becomes as popular as her ex-group member, Lee Hi.
If you think you have the absolute meaning to the music video, please comment below as I would love to hear the input and what you think about Lee Michelle's debut.
Analysis: What is Media Play
Ever heard of Lee Seong Min from Five Senses of Eros or Goddess of Marriage? ...Probably not. Well, ever heard of that one chick who kept whining about how she was about to be a Girls' Generation member and her regret for not agreeing to the offer? Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner! Not only is she, Clara, the actress (seems to be unknown to most K-Pop fans) who constantly cries or verbalizes her pain and woes, but she also is the actress who gifted her face in Jay Park's JOAH music video, started controversy with her boobtastic exercise routine and the queen of media play. What is 'media play' you might ask? Though there's no official definition (unless you're into educating yourself on 1992 Musicland media) however, in my words Media Play would most likely be described as what it actually is:A play on the media.
A way to get your group or artists' name known in a subtle (or not so subtle) way.
A way to advertise without spending money or straight-fowardly advertise a product which is usually seen on journalist articles.
Yes. All of those describe media play. However, although to most netizens, they vent their frustrations almost all the time that media play is the most repugnant thing they have ever seen and they wish that it didn't even exist, I want to analyze both sides and bring out both the good... and the bad of media play.
Media play may not always be a bad thing. Many people complain about media play and whatnot however, without media play, all of our favorite artists potentially would not be as famous as they were now. I mean, in the beginning when artists such as Girls' Generation, 2NE1 or Big Bang were trying to rise to the top, I am almost positive that they used this same method to tell people around the country that hey, this group actually exists. Media play is just a less time-consuming method of going on variety shows or advertising a new song however, a lot of media play can not only be entertaining but also be something to pay attention to. For example, when Girls' Generation's Mr. Mr was released, a small boy group still in nugudom called Mr. Mr took that opportunity to strike at SM Entertainment by media playing and venting their frustrations that Girls' Generation didn't know the nugu group and made their promotional track as well as album go by the same name as their group. Although many SONEs thought this was outrageous and said the group Mr. Mr were nothing but attention whores, I have to admit, that article did bring some conflict in my mind, me seeing substantial arguments to both sides and even taking a few minutes to google the group, Mr. Mr, and check out what they were about. As noted before, without shameless media play such as this, many groups would not even be discovered or spoken about, another great example being Girls' Day's Hyeri during the time when it was revealed she was dating Tony Ahn and articles bringing that group to famedom.Media play may not always be a good thing either. Media play only deems useful when an artist is either at the brink of losing relevancy or is not relevant at all and is basically useless when an artist is well-known. Many companies, YG Entertainment being the prime suspect of this, already have all of their artists being well-known with pockets stuffed however, still takes the liberty to media play tiny aspects such as scouting Yoo Jae Suk. Though it's not always bad to have a company on the public's mind, over-saturation of media play can lead to lack of trust, diminishing reputation and simple tiredness from the general public turning the media play to a negative in the case of losing fans.
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| Hello, media play. Hello. |
Nevertheless, media play is an aspect of every single entertainment industry in the world regardless of the company. As noted numerous times, artists are simply a by-product of entertainment companies success. For more people to know who they are, the better at first, however, when the maximum limit of fans is already met, the constant flooding of the same ol' tactic gets old. And although many people hate or love media play, there's one thing for certain: media play either brings or reflects success.
What's your take on media play? Love it? Hate it? Comment below!
Sticks & Stones may Break your Bones, but Words will ALWAYS hurt you
It's a miracle if an idol doesn't screw up their career by saying something or doing something that either offends or is inappropriate in the eyes of the general population. With just a few simple words, they can lose thousands of fan club members, be un-contracted by an abundance of endorsement deals and be pushed to group disbandment. These idols get targeted daily, the idiom "forgive and forget" playing no pawn in the chess match and people who were unconditionally and indescribably in love with the speaker yesterday are now the same blood thirsty hounds today, their leaches off and their teeth clenched, wanting nothing more but the ultimate punishment--death-- being ensured to the doer, no mercy at the trial, no sympathy implored. And with this are just those few seconds that they wish nothing but to turn back. Those few seconds that they may have mildly wounded the persons unknowingly--like a tiny paper cut--yet are subject to exile. Those few seconds they released those words that left scarlet wetness to gorge from their bodies' open wounds like a poked water balloon, to leave a brutal scar that's looked upon every, single, day, that continuously awakens the memory of their fault, to push them off the cliff into the depths of thought and make them wish they have never been born or even--should remove themselves from the world because the convoluted, sickening and ultimately wrong idea that if the world doesn't find them useful, they are not, wanting nothing but to quickly satisfy the world with their lack of existence. To inflict pain and leave it aching and spreading around their bodies engulfing them and swallowing them into the pits of darkness, all because a few
Variety Shows are simply the home for idols to make their biggest mistakes, the best examples yet, KARA on Radio Star, in which bottles were thrown, useless tears were shed, insults were emitted and careers were ruined in the mere minutes given to the girls on the show. It's surprising to me that though so many idols like Girls' Generation's Tiffany are manager-like and control their group and themselves on what is being said, many other idols still believe that wherever they go, it's still a playground, where no rules are enforced and they can do whatever they want. Because of this, idols are faced with accusations of being rude, misbehaved and unmannerly and their images are hurt despite the years of training that are not used to develop talents but instead are used to better visuals, improve verbal utterings on live television and not look like an idiot outside.
Social Network is another way for idols to lose control. To them, websites are more than just a way to connect with fans. It's a 100% guaranteed way of getting attention from the people who will do almost anything to even breathe the same air their biases are breathing. It's not the ability to waste time dilly-dallying rather than going to a schedule that draws them to Instagram, Twitter and even more rarely, Facebook. But it's rather the attention they will receive and the overall growth of people giving them attention as they release more and more pictures and videos of them acting "dorky" or "a person just like you and me". Many idols play it cool with social networking for example, Girls' Generation's Taeyeon who has one of the most popular idol Instagram accounts to this day, nearly hitting the 2 million followers mark and still having yet to stir up controversy however, other idols such as T-ara and IU who both plummeted to rock bottom (IU rose from the pit, T-ara still has yet to improve) simply with either typed messages or images uploaded online? Pure victims of the word infection that's been spreading all throughout idols since day one. What many idols don't understand is that though they feel as if social networking should be a safe haven, more than just die-hard fans check their pages each and everyday. And being that the fact that the people who aren't deluded in the idea that 'oppar is so perf!', they tend to see around their words and are more critical on their actions.
Simple
Words.
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Remember Hyosung? The girl who single-handedly wiped out her whole group with just a simple sentence when trying to act like more than just a pretty face on a radio show.
“Our team respects each other’s individuality so our group doesn’t utilize democratization.”
Just like Hyosung, almost everyday, an abundance of Korean idols have a 'slip of the tongue' by saying something more naive than reasonable. This is the reason why numerous Korean netizens claim that idols are brainless baboons who, without idoldom, would be nothing but a burden to their parents. To them, they're insipid. They're bogus. They're deranged. And while a plethora of defensive international fans will nearly kill themselves saying that kind of language towards celebrities is false and unnecessary, you can't help but realize that those accusations actually aren't just filled with the rage towards idols in general and truly stem from somewhere--and with Hyosung, just like numerous other celebrities like INFINITE's Sunggyu who claimed women aged 30 and over are hags, anchorwoman Eun Young claiming women over 50kg are pigs and Super Junior's Shindong stupidly noting that women should not be fat and there is a standard between men and women for fatness in which men can be as fat as they want and women should not weigh more than a toothpick these remarks of stupidity and wishing for reflecting which cause the celebrity to lose fan base, respect or even their careers should not be taken lightly.
Variety Shows are simply the home for idols to make their biggest mistakes, the best examples yet, KARA on Radio Star, in which bottles were thrown, useless tears were shed, insults were emitted and careers were ruined in the mere minutes given to the girls on the show. It's surprising to me that though so many idols like Girls' Generation's Tiffany are manager-like and control their group and themselves on what is being said, many other idols still believe that wherever they go, it's still a playground, where no rules are enforced and they can do whatever they want. Because of this, idols are faced with accusations of being rude, misbehaved and unmannerly and their images are hurt despite the years of training that are not used to develop talents but instead are used to better visuals, improve verbal utterings on live television and not look like an idiot outside.
The problem with many variety shows however, are the fact that they continue to ask questions as if they have no boundaries. Going straight in for the kill rather than trying to relieve stress on the idol when asking their questions and forgetting to edit out parts that could otherwise make the idol seem idiotic or hurt their image.
What does all this mean?
There's no actual answer to this question. Idols tend to employ words, phrases or sentences in order to get their point across, add laughter to shows, tell secrets or simply not fall into the stupid category that idols always fall into. No matter what fans, companies or even the idols do, none of them can get away with the fact that the words they say can persuade, influence or hurt fans or even themselves. Even at the height of careers, there's always a camera watching, there's always a person listening and there's always a crowd waiting for them to fall to rock bottom just so they can spend their thirty minutes on lunch break laughing at how much an idiot the idol because that's simply what us netizens do. Idols are no more than a by-product of entertainment companies hands and should realize they are just tools to wallet stuffing and aren't looked at as even human beings to entertainment companies, to journalists, to anti-fans and to even fans. And at the end of the day, when all is said and done, fan cafes close, a plethora of articles release and careers are ended almost as fast as they began, it should always be remembered before hitting post on that one social networking site, before saying that one tiny little word that can change the whole meaning of a sentence on a variety show, before even thinking of a funny-to-you-however-maybe-not-so-funny-to-everyone-else kind of joke that sticks and stones may break your bones but words will always hurt you.
