#not saying that western music industry is better by the way | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

dearweirdme · 2 years ago

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“I'm still holding out hope that's it's all pr, but if it's not, then I'm just upset at the FS. I just wish kpop would stop doing it with how homophobic they are”

you didn’t comment on this part of anons ask so i’m not sure how you feel about it but i just wanted to give my opinion bc this ask rubbed me the wrong way.

to start because i don’t want to get misconstrued, kpop definitely does do fan service and baiting (i’m not saying queer baiting because real ppl cannot queer bait). and while imo it’s up to the fan to realize they’re being baited (not in every situation bc some ppl are good at manipulation)- especially in todays climate - and fan service isn’t always bad as long as the idols aren’t intentionally trying to trick you into thinking they’re together, it’s still definitely annoying and irritating because so many of these straight idols end up being homophobic but are participating in fan service and baiting. and of course the companies and kpop world root for baiting and fanservice but then turn around and be homophobic and not even allow idols to come out. a lot of korea in general too of course. then you have the straight fans who love the idea of their idols being gay for each other but then are homophobic and unsupportive of gay ppl irl.

so yes i definitely agree with the last sentence of anons message BUT calling taekook fanservice/baiting just rubbed me the wrong way. now don’t get me wrong i’m not saying they aren’t together but in this case let’s just hypothetically assume taennie gets confirmed tomorrow and taekook ends up not being real, that does not mean taekook was all fanservice/baiting and they’re bad for doing it. if we’re simply looking at it from a taekook isn’t real perspective (bc i know most here believes they are but just for this hypothetical in response to what anon was saying. i know i’m repeating myself a lot but i just want to make sure you get I’m not actually denying taekook) taekook have never done anything to suggest they’re together. looking at tae’s support of lgbt+ artists and hints that you take as him confirming he is or hints or videos you take as confirming taekook is real are simply how you took things in your own perspective. they’ve never done explicit baiting or fan service. they’re close and showing how close they are isn’t wrong and they aren’t at fault for what fans assume. it’s also not like taehyung has not said to “get out of your imagination” before - you cant say they tricked you purposely. what i’m trying to say is if taekook ends up being fake it is not the fault of taekook you assumed they were. yes idols often do stuff like that but taekook never have.

i hope anon and you get what i mean !!

Hi anon!

Thank you for your input. I don't think I'll agree on everything you've said, but let me cut up your ask in smaller sections a bit to discuss. I'm probably going to rant a little.

you didn’t comment on this part of anons ask so i’m not sure how you feel about it but i just wanted to give my opinion bc this ask rubbed me the wrong way.

Yeah, I try not to invalidate anyone's feelings. If someone's upset they can't really help it, even if the reason behind it might be based on bias/misinformation/whatever. I try to ease peoples mind by explaining pr-tactics, bodylanguage etc... more tangible stuff. And it's very complicated matter. There's fanservice, skinship, real connections... all those are mixed together and all of them can co-exist. I was confused about the differences between those at first as well. South Korea being very different from my own culture made this really hard to disect. So I understand why fans are confused about this. Especially with SK being homophobic and shipping between members being... normal. A lot of Kpop's standards are weird to me (being from Europe). I have a big problem with the constant mentions of dieting for instance. Young girls are so impressive and having your idols mention being on a diet so often seems wrong to me. The obvious homophobia is a big NONO. Idols not being able to date in general.... not great although maybe it does at first give them more privacy, but the backlash they get when they do get caught dating, wow! So yeah, not everything is great imo. I am very much aware though that cultures differ, and things that are weird to me are normal to them (the enlisting for instance, I've seen many fans angry at the SK govenment for having idols enlist... and it is very sad.... but then again, most of us do not live in a country that is always in a tense situation with their neighboring country, so we don't know what that feels like). I think SK is slowly catching up, but change takes time... and for a whole culture to change even more time.

There being fanservice in Kpop is not debatable. There is, plain and simple. I feel anyone who has been a fan for an extended time is aware of this. I feel most of army who aren't in an actual shipping part of fandom are real quick to point to every single act of intimacy as fanservice. The way I see it is that they make use of fanservice and skinship a lot to justify physical interactions between members. The over the top grand moments are fan service and the more subtle moments they are able to classify as skinship (which is way more normal in SK than in my country for instance). Fanservice isn't bad. Most bands and artists do fanservice, some just do it more naturally than others. Fans should know that not everything an artist does is his/her/their natural behavior... not everything is spontaneous. Artists go through media training and probably also through training to make them appeal to fans more. I use Jk's flirting in lives as an example of learned behavior, because to me those flirty comments (although hilarious) seem prepared/learned. I do think for younger fans this is hard to understand at first though. You don't want to think of your idol as someone who 'tricks' you with their learned pr-behavior. You want to feel connected on a personal level, so you ignore the business side of things. It's happening now too. I'm calling out certain pr-tactics (which is normal for any artist) and yet I get hate for it. Artists always (!) come with a portion of business, they aren't able to do what they do without it. I’m not sure fanservice is supposed to look ‘queer’, I often feel the intent initially (in kpop) was to make it look obvious that it’s fanservice, but some artists just have such great chemistry that it’s easy for fans to start believing it. And once that seed has been planted, it’s hard to get rid of. But having a ‘ship’ alive and thriving isn’t actually bad for business, so labels probably don’t mind much (and might even encourage). It keeps the ships alive, but there will always be enough of army to immediately call "Fanservice" to 'defend' their artists.

I think you are trying to say that Tae and Jk have never done anything to blatantly state that they are together. They have not been obvious about it, so us interpreting situations would have been us interpreting things wronly and therefore we are to blame for misunderstanding (did I understand you correctly). I do agree that they haven't intentionally been obvious about it. I feel very strongly that they do not intent to out themselves and that they even try to protect their relationship from being outed. There have been many moments that I feel their feelings were obvious, but we weren't supposed to pick up on those. In general, because at times they might have felt a bit more bolder, I think they want us to think they are really close friends. I do also feel though, that Tae and Jk have done fanservice (so maybe we disagree on this a bit). I think things can be both. Jk sitting on Tae's lap during the Las Vegas show to me was both fanservice and them wanting to. It’s like getting to do a part of your job that you really really enjoy. From a business perspective it would also be weird to never have Taekook do fanservice together, because they are obviously close, they are in the top physically affectionate members, and all members do fanservice on occasion. I think these things can co-exist. I feel fanservice comes so easy for Tae and Jk though, they just melt into each other. The way their bodies operate around each other is so lovely to see. Can we be mad about them doing fanservice? No, it's part of their jobs. Can we be mad at fanservice in general? Honestly, it would make fandoms lives so much easier if they were to tone that down a lot. Because it is confusing and it makes fandoms argue amongst themselves. Labels make use of that, because an argueing fandam means it’s very much alive.

they’ve never done explicit baiting or fan service.

I agree on the baiting, disagree on the fanservice. Fanservice is part of the job though, while baiting I would classify to a more personal level.

they’re close and showing how close they are isn’t wrong and they aren’t at fault for what fans assume. it’s also not like taehyung has not said to “get out of your imagination” before - you cant say they tricked you purposely. what i’m trying to say is if taekook ends up being fake it is not the fault of taekook you assumed they were. yes idols often do stuff like that but taekook never have.

Absolutely, they should definitely be able to express their closeness how they want. It's wrong to assume intimate behavior between men can't be romantic, but it's also wrong to assume intimate behavior between two men automatically makes them queer. My believe in Taekook stems from all things combined, the frequency of intimate behavoir, the body language, patterns in behavior, clues about queerness, the way I feel they were being hidden.

I don't know if my answer is satisfying, or comprehensable even... it's difficult matter and I feel I’ve just been babbling here 🙈.

#anon #taekook #not saying that western music industry is better by the way #they are meased up in many ways as well #yes this is long

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roo-bastmoon · 1 year ago

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Thoughts on 3D

So Jungkook's collab with Jack Harlow is out. It is catchy; it will go viral. I have purchased it; I will add it to my new releases playlists--same as I do for all our boys.

But while the dancing was cool and JK's parts are okay (I'm not thrilled that the word "girl" is used literally 20 times, but I get what the western music industry is), I was--I need to be honest here--really taken aback and unhappy with how misogynistic Jack Harlow's rap lyrics were. As far as I'm concerned, he's absolutely unnecessary, and I'll be supporting the alternate version with a lot more enthusiasm.

A deeper look at the lyrics and more of my thoughts are under the cut if you're interested (but by clicking, you're agreeing to keep it respectful in the comments or you'll get banned.)

All my ABG's get cute for me I had one girl (One girl), too boring Two girls (Two girls), that was cool for me Three girls, damn, dude's horny Four girls, okay now you whorin' (Hey, hey, hey) Hey, I'm loose I done put these shrooms to good use

Setting young women up in a line and talking about how sleeping with just one is too boring but sleeping with four is whorish? Yeah, miss me with it.

Then there's this:

You won't regret me (You won't regret me) Champagne confetti (Champagne confetti) I wanna see it In motion In 3D (Show it to me, girl, now, why?)

I was given to understand that "ABG" stands for "Asian Baby Girl" and refers to an Asian party girl who likes clubbing, wearing excessive makeup and tattoos, and revealing clothes, etc.

I also learned from Urban Dictionary—which can be an unreliable site with outdated or incorrect information—that "champagne" has referred to underage girls in the past and "confetti" or nowadays “champagne confetti” refers to orgasm, or sometimes when a group of men or women surround someone, masturbate, and then ejaculate on them.

Not even going to get into the shrooms thing. I'm not in a hyper conservative country with harsh punishments for those type of drugs so... I was a bit taken aback about a song about being fucked right, and now there's lyrics about what amounts to harem girls.

*sigh* Do you know how much I hope I'm reading into things incorrectly? Please correct me if I'm misunderstanding the innuendo, but this is what urban dictionary says. I'm 44 and live in a cave. Maybe I'm wrong.

But in any case, the vibe of Jack's parts in the video was not coming off respectful.

I don't care how many other rap songs objectify and insult women--I won't get behind any content that does. And don't even try to gaslight me or other ARMY into saying we should like this because it's comparatively worse in other rap songs. Don't try to suppress any discourse about it, either--let women discuss how they feel about how they are represented. Don't police women. Don't silence women.

BTS' rap music got so much better once they incorporated feminist feedback, so I'm used to a higher standard and I won't be lowering those standards for anyone. I have no hang ups about sex, but please miss. me. with. misogynistic. bullshit.

Then again, it seems some of the rap hyungs were on board with this.

So I guess industry pros have a different take on stuff like this!

*shrug*

Okay, we have established that I really don't like Jack Harlow's contributions to this song. Which means I'll support the alternative. Thank goodness they had the foresight to provide an alternative!

Now I can work for JK's charts in a way that doesn't aggravate my conscience. All good. Enough said on 3D.

Personally? I really hope JJK1 showcases JK's range of genres, but also has a range of topics besides pursuing girls or being cool.

I just can't vibe with a fuckboy persona; I never liked Justin Bieber or Justin Timberlake for that very reason, even if some of their songs sound fine. Now, if Jungkook really admires their style and wants to pursue it, I'm not going to rag on him for it. Of course not. It's his choice and I can respect people's choices without making the same choices myself.

I will always try to support our members as far as I can, even if not everything is my cup of tea.

But I can't help hoping for something personal and authentic and substantive, when it's just Jungkook coming to us without a collab. (And with Scooter at the helm for an all-English EP, I guess I'm not holding my breath. But maybe this is all part of the learning and growing process. Time will tell.)

Please know that I don't expect other people to suit me and my tastes, but neither will I enthusiastically support content with my time and money when they don't suit me at all or actually really turn me off, ya feel me? It's a real and respectful relationship I have with BTS and their music; not performative. I don't follow along quietly out of obligation, but rather a sincere joy to participate.

I love Jungkook deeply. He's a sweet and intelligent and kind-hearted young man. Amazingly talented and humble. Sincere, open to being vulnerable, protective of those whom he loves. He donates to kid's hospitals, for goodness sake. Jeon Jungkook is a good egg.

I guess I'm just sort of feeling a bit whelmed by the type of music that is in vogue these days. JK worked hard, he did well on his parts. I just am hoping his album showcases some of the emotional depth and meaningful thoughts I have seen from him in the past, if I'm being purely honest. *shrug*

Those are my less-than-two cents. Of course, you may have a vastly different perspective and I appreciate that. Just please keep it respectful of all members and each other in the comments here. It's been a long day and I desperately need some real rest now. I'm trusting I can post this and not come back to a warzone.

I've got a Friday Thirst post in the queue for you guys, and then I'll be taking a bit of a break from social media for a few days to work on work deadlines. Please keep voting for Jimin and of course stream and buy for Jungkook and other new releases.

Sending you all so much love!

~Roo

#jungkook #Spotify

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outsidereveries · 3 months ago

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newer but a bit older requests from curiouscat (25th september 2024—27th september 2024)

25th September 2024

there are rumors saying actor jung haein and jung somin are dating, their drama ‘love next door’ is currently airing, do u think the rumors are true?

the world, the magician, page of cups • 3 of cups

it looks like it's true (and not a rumor).

will Ningning be forced to interact with idols especially a particular male idol this year? because i have heard from rumours that it is connected to awards show or variety show? i hope she will go to the one without getting hate. i have seen some RIIZE stans and NCT stans hating girls for tiktok challenges and calling them boy obsessed..i hope this rumour is not true

the hermit, 6 of cups rx, 8 of cups rx, knight of wands rx, the empress

she doesn't want to communicate with idols of the opposite gender😭😭😭 it looks like it's a no

how does itzy’s cb look… successful hopefully!

ace of cups, the moon, 7 of pentacles rx, the sun, queen of wands rx

i can see they'll do better in korea compared to elsewhere. if i also compare how itzy did in the born to be era in korea to gold era, i see that itzy will do way better.

when it comes to the foreign lands, jype might fabricate the sales in the albums. the company will try to promote itzy in the western market (like usual, i believe), but it might not work out, therefore the fabrications (whether they'll be about the album sales or not) might be more seen.

will tyla do well career-wise?

2 of swords rx, 9 of penacles, the empress

oh yes, she'll still do really well. might rest for a bit but it won't be fatal at all.

what will be worse than the Burning Sun scandal? (for YGE)

4 of pentacles, 3 of cups, the magician, 5 of pentacles rx, 7 of cups rx

it's money-related, so money laundring, debuting a group because of trying to win more money illegally, unfair salaries for some of the employees... it's money related and it's not done by 1 person but idk how it'll be revealed tbh

the boyz, brief career check (2025-2027)

10 of swords rx, 8 of wands rx, 4 of wands

currently it'll be postponed how tbz gains their fanbase, so no. the b's will be stable and won't change that much.

will nwjns change companies/subsidiaries or not?

5 of pentacles, wheel of fortune, 8 of cups, 8 of pentacles rx, 7 of swords rx

currently will stay in hybe. it looks like the girls have separately talked with the new ceo of the corporation and he has explained the current circumstances.

from what i see, he didn't give hope to newjeans but he hasn't said that min heejin is gone either. it's complex, i don't see the full situation here.

what does nct jaehyun think of sung hanbin?

5 of wands, ace of pentacles, king of cups

jaehyun wants you to know that how he sees him as a person differs from what he thinks about hanbin in career-related .. stuff a lot.

the difference is very visible as in the industry, jaehyun sees hanbin as competition. it looks like there were offers in the past that were made to jaehyun where sme denied them. jaehyun wanted to accept all of them but sme didn't. the offers in question were made to hanbin instead and wakeone accepted them. therefore jaehyun feels very jelaous and envious that hanbin has (to him) great relationship with his group company while jaehyun hasn't. jaehyun's relationship with sme interferes a lot in how he sees sung hanbin simply because of his insecurities.

however he knows how hanbin is as a person and jaehyun likes how emotionally balnced hanbin is (and mature). they might've talked about jaehyun's worries in that matter and are fine with each other.

will there be some sort of bts and txt collab in the future? maybe musical production or solo release features?

the world, the sun, 6 of wands

i can see a collaboration between members of both groups - possibly they're in the rapper positions? i'm betting on yeonjun and j-hope.

for txt i also see soobin but my pendulum denied that's possible in the future as of now so it's a question mark

what's txt's soobin energy towards the creative field? he recently seemed to expressed interest in writing more lyrics and getting into reading, will he find some sort of success in that prospect? is it possible for him to release more music besides covers in the future?

songwriting path | 10 of pentacles, 4 of pentacles rx, 3 of cups

i can see him also taking this path and will do very good in this field

more music? | 4 of pentacles rx, 7 of pentacles rx, page of wands

as i've seen he is also interested in acting in the past, he has to be more organised than he is currently and only then trying to make time and release more music on his own. he is focused on 2 fields as of now (for himself) - acting and songwriting (again, he practices this fields on his own). apart from them and txt, he does not have that much time to work on creating the songs fully on his own, so in the future yes but currently it is a no.

nct mark, jay enhypen (bond)

the lovers, the hanged man, knight of pentacles

i don't think they know each other but have the potential to be closer (friends). if they actually know eo, they aren't close.

zhang hao, career reading (2024)

2 of cups, death, strength

hao thinks that the acting industry involved teamwork, something he's good at and also impacts a lot in many ways possible. however he doesn't want to try it currently mainly because he's solely focusing on being member of zb1. hao doesn't think he'd like to try it in the near future but isn't closing the door for that. he knows he'll be good and nail it, just.. not now

26th September 2024

if there's something odd regarding babymonster's image, is there a facade or yge is hiding something?

3 of pentacles, knight of wands, the magician rx, strength rx, knight of cups

when it comes to babymonster's group image, it seems to be related to the "yg vibe". honestly, the concept babymonster suits the best doesn't suit that much the usual concept yge is providing to all of their groups. although the company aims somehow to the younger audience with babymonster, babymonster actually suit the most the original "yg vibe" they started to provide with their 2nd generation groups: bigbang and 2ne1, even with the 1st generation ones with .. 1tym (teddy was there) and swi.t. yge should learn that they can make their "yg" aura age-appropiate if there's an actual will.

how successful will be i'll-it's comeback?

(2nd spread) 3 of pentacles, the world, temperance, queen of cups, the empress

honestly, i don't sense much with the spread (it's very indifferent energy here, to be honest), but the world hints a bit that they'll do way better outside of korea.

in case where zb1 disbands, will hao redebut in a group?

the hierophant, 7 of pentacles, the hanged man

in a case where zb1 disbands, as i see hao being extremely attached to the group, he might redebut in a duo with ricky (cards with similar meanings and vibe as the hanged man is frequent with ricky in the near future) in china. he doesn't want to think about a future without zb1, so he'll be fine with this option if zb1 disbands in the end as it'll remind him of zb1 the most in that way

will yeonjun's other songs sound different?

7 of pentacles, queen of cups rx, temperance

yes, they'll sound different. they might be more emotional, sensual and etc. synonyms so the genre and lyrics will differ a lot from ggum.

27th September 2024

is there any chance for enhypen and i'll-it to collaborate?

7 of swords rx, 4 of swords, 3 of swords rx

currently there isn't.

how i'll-it and aespa's comebacks will do?

aespa, 2nd spread | the fool, 7 of cups, king of cups, the world, ace of swords

they'll do like usual, it'll do well in the internet.. similar to the supernova/armageddon era.

i'll-it, 4th spread | the high priestess, the moon, 10 of wands rx, 6 of swords, 8 of cups, 2 of pentacles

eeeh it's complex, like i saw they'll do way better in foreign lands, in korea it seem to be similar to how le sserafim's crazy did but kinda worse, in foreign lands though they really won't do that well (compared to their 1st ep), the hate spread i'm seeing on x recently seems to help making the things worse...

[rumor or truth?] yuna (itzy) and jay (enha)'s dating rumors

yuna's side to this | 3 of pentacles, 10 of cups, 10 of swords rx

jay's side to this | strength, 5 of cups rx, the star

was there something | 3 of cups, the chariot rx, 9 of cups

yuna | she really was with her friend

jay | uh that's very funny, he might've spied on yuna 😭😭😭 on purpose 😭😭😭😭

rumor or truth | as simply as possible.. they're allegedly fwb. they aren't dating, however i sense onesided feelings (possibly from jay's side). they might call it an open relationship between each other, though.

what will sabrina carpenter's career look like in the next two years?

king of cups, 2 of swords rx, 3 of pentacles, the devil rx, 8 of pentacles

like usual it seems?? i see 1-2 upcoming albums or eps, maybe tour/s for them until september 2026, she'll work like she usually does tbh

will anyone (famous) gets their karma for.. their involment with that rapper?

the moon, 4 of cups rx, 9 of swords rx, the empress, temperance

what kamala harris did with p.diddy? americans seem to search something that will make trump guilty or something but they'll find kamala's wrong actions instead? these americans who want to vote for her will try to hide something she did but idk

like i know she was doing some inapporpiate stuff to get known in the politics industry but what else she actually did?

sorry for seeing only kamala but her name was on my head when i learned about it and since i also see her here.. it might be very significant

is there chance for rosé to try something in the fashion industry?

justice rx, the lovers, 9 of pentacles

well, no, she doesn't think she'll be good at.. anything, related to the fashion industry. whether if it's modelling or being a fashion designer, she knows her limits and is aware of her talents being better somewhere else (ahem, music). she might've received an offer for modeling but has personally refused.

how billie eilish currently views her relevance status and her fandom?

5 of cups rx, death, 10 of pentacles, strength, ace of cups

she's very thankful for what her, her family and her fans have achieved so far. very thankful for her achievements, very grateful for what they've done so far. she's more motivated to continue forward doing whatever she wants in the industry, basically positive thoughts

and done! i believe that's all of them

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loonarii · 9 months ago

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Ari's K-Pop Roundup: March 2024 (ILLIT, ARTMS, CHUNGHA, VCHA + MORE)

Check out last months installment here :) sidenote: sorry about this episode being a bit heavy on the smaller reviews - have been experiencing a cruel and unusual combination of illness and exam season lol - next month will hopefully be slightly better

Magnetic - ILLIT (SUPER REAL ME)

Whether you watched HYBE's 2023 idol survival show 'R U Next?' or you had the self preservation to skip it, if you were into k-pop at that time, you definitely heard about it. The show gained attention from the community originally because it was from HYBE, the newest, and arguably currently the most influential k-pop company goliath, and because HYBE's girl groups (notably Le Sserafim and NewJeans) are famous for influencing the kpop scene instantly upon debut, and maintaining their spots in the top 10s of the charts for many months. This was HYBE giving us a look behind the curtain at the making of the next big girl group, and letting us call a lot of the shots along the way. Or at least that's what it was supposed to be. Rigging in these type of idol shows is practically expected, but HYBE was a new offender, and their crimes weren't only frequent, but pretty obvious. The fans protested, but nothing changed. ILLIT, the group that emerged on the other side, was a group that was hardly a showcase of the talent on display on the show, nor a reflection of the fans and their biases. It was a reflection of who the producers felt fit their pre-established concept for the group, an influencing factor that wasn't made clear to the fans watching, nor potentially, to the idols participating. Ironically, since the whole point of a survival show is to drum up support and build a fanbase for a group's upcoming debut, ILLIT has arguably started off on a worse foot than if they had just dropped 'Magnetic' on YouTube out of nowhere, NewJeans 'Attention' style.

However, regardless of their rocky start, ILLIT is here, with their debut mini album 'SUPER REAL ME', featuring the title track 'Magnetic' - let's talk about it. 'Magnetic' capitalizes on that glitchy, 8-bit, distorted, bedroom pop sound that's been blowing up recently, both in the k-pop industry by NewJeans, LOONA, and tripleS, and in the western space by Pinkpantheress. It's easily catchy, and highly danceable, and the members sound amazing on it - I felt especially drawn to Minju's delivery, her vocal tone is beautifully unique, and Wonhee did a stellar job as the centric member of the choruses. Magnetic's allusions to NewJeans are undeniable, if only lacking that certain NewJeans je ne sais quoi. I don't really have a problem with this, if I get more fun songs out of groups allegedly 'copying' NewJeans then it's a win for me, my only fear is that if ILLIT doesn't find their own niche they will be called knock-off NewJeans for the rest of their careers, which isn't fair to the girls. TripleS got accused of something similar back with AAA's 'Generation', but since then they have carved out a space for themselves in the industry, making music and exploring aesthetics others aren't.

As for the b-sides, I was kind of obsessed with 'My World', even though it is functionally an intro; it's such an unexpected earworm. 'Midnight Fiction' is cute, even if I think it needed another hook or layer of production to elevate it more. 'Lucky Girl Syndrome' is slightly better than 'Midnight Fiction', but a bit worse than 'Magnetic'. It's very obvious that the title came before the track, and it bizarrely sounds kind of like 'Sensitive' by Loossemble? The chorus is slightly weak, but I am obsessed with the instrumentation and the production choices - this song sounds nothing like NewJeans, I really hope they draw from this vibe in their future releases.

Overall, a pretty decent debut. You will definitely catch me streaming 'Magnetic' over the next few weeks, whether it will have the longevity to stick around in my playlist for longer remains to be seen. Good luck ILLIT, you've had a rough start in the industry, but it's clear that they have a big career ahead of them, and I for one, am seated.

Pre1: Birth - ARTMS [LOONA] (Dall)

After an iconic run of Haseul and Heejin's solo projects, as well as ODD EYE CIRCLE's first release out of BBC, 5/12 of the LOONA girls are here as ARTMS. 'Birth' is a song that operates outside of the conventions of kpop formulae; its experimental, confrontational, melancholy and bears an undercurrent of rage. Tonally and structurally it is unique from anything being released right now, and lyrically its compelling and mysterious. If this is a taste of what the upcoming album is going to sound like, I am extremely excited.

The music video is one of the best kpop has to offer - its so unlike anything else I have seen. I heavily encourage you all to go check out the theories the orbits/ouriis have been cooking up because LOONA LORE IS BACK!! I am very curious if the loossemble lore will link to this in any way, but that remains to be seen.

EENIE MEENIE - CHUNG HA, feat. HONGJOONG

Chungha is back, with a new company and an old concept. I'm not sure how to feel about this track, its clear she feels very confident in this style and it does suit her more than 'Sparkling', but I think 'Sparkling' was overall a better song. The production of 'Eenie Meenie' is very high quality and I especially loved that guitar layer in the chorus, and bringing Hongjoong in for a verse was a great call, he fits the song and matches Chungha's vibe perfectly. Unfortunately however, I don't find the chorus to be very catchy, which is clearly what the song is banking on in order to chart. The whole 'eenie meenie minie mo' thing is odd, but honestly could have been worse if this song had been given to anyone other than Chungha, the real death sentence for this song was the lack of interesting melody. I'm happy that Chungha is now making the kind of music she wants to, I just hope that the quality of releases go up in the future.

Only One - VCHA

Who knew that when Fifty Fifty crumbled due to their (allegedly) god awful company, it would be VCHA of all groups to successfully pick up the retro girlpop gauntlet?? 'Only One' is genuinely so fun, that post chorus is a killer, and even the mildly awkward writing clears up after the first verse. The girls have such great chemistry, and they are all genuinely improving their skills every comeback, and although I may have questioned JYP's decision to debut girls who had barely been in training, seeing the girls improve in real time is lowkey actually a selling point - like now I want to pay attention to them to see how good they are going to get?? JYP making an intelligent marketing decision?? In this economy?? Congratulations VCHA, you have officially established yourself as a force to be reckoned with, KATSEYE had better bring the heat when they debut to compete with this.

MINI REVIEWS:

Get Goin' - aespa: did you know this song existed? no! Is it surprisingly really fun? well yes! not sure what aespa has to do with fraggle rock, but if it takes Apple TV spamming SM Entertianment's dms to get aespa to release more music, then that's what must be done.

The knight who can't die and the silk cradle - LUCY: (req. by @a-moth-to-the-light) I've always been mildly aware of LUCY, but until my moot requested I review their latest release, I had never heard any of their songs. Needless to say, I was severely impressed. This song is so cinematic and heartfelt - to my knowledge it isn't part of an OST to a particularly cinematic kdrama, but it might as well be. I heavily encourage you all to go watch the mv with subtitles on, or read the translation, because lyrically this is a masterpiece. LUCY, you have officially caught my attention, I will be checking out future releases.

Paths to home - 문채원, HOWUS: The music video for this song, at time of writing, currently has 147 views, I have no clue how I stumbled across it, but I am so glad I did. 'Paths to home' is a beautifully constructed and performed citypop inspired track that to me evokes LOONA's early discography, especially those from Hyunjin's solo project. It is so perfectly constructed to my tastes, I love it to death. I have no idea how 'HOWUS' as a project works, I don't know if it's a group, a company, a subunit, or apparently even when it was released because according to some websites it came out in 2022 (the struggles of extremely nugu kpop cannot be understated), but what I do know is that this song deserves more attention, and I adore it. This is one for the NewJeans, LOONA yyxy, tripleS +(KR)ystal Eyes girlies.

Wish You Hell - WENDY (Red Velvet): SM finally gave Wendy a song that isn't a ballad!!! This song is pretty fun, but I wish it bit more oomph. The lyrics leave much to be desired, but Wendy's vocal performance is naturally very high quality, although I wish she went a bit harder in some sections - she's singing about wishing someone hell, but tonally it sounds like she's serenading them lol. A fun song, could have been better with another few drafts. Seulgi's 'best Red Velvet solo project' crown is yet to slip.

BBB - Purple Kiss: I will never shut the fuck up about how good 'Zombie' is, so seeing them explore similar sounds is so exciting for me!! 'BBB' is a very easy going listen, never awkward, never unpleasant, and although I think it needed a little something more to elevate it, it's a fun song I could easily see myself loving this summer. Swan absolutely ate up this comeback btw.

XXL - YOUNG POSSE: Bizarre sfx aside, I am very glad young posse is attempting to bring back 2000s hip hop into kpop, even if the execution is mildly clunky.

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beautifulpersonpeach · 11 months ago

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I’m relatively new to the fandom and have really enjoyed a lot of your posts… I have a question that I couldn’t quickly find an answer to in searching through your tags…

What’s the deal with streaming? Like, I listen to BTS. I enjoy them a lot, I listen to a pretty even mix of all their albums though I probably like MOTS:7 era the best). Some days I listen to them like all day lol (if I’m cleaning the house or something) and I listen to them a lot in the car or while working. I’ve enjoyed some solo releases more than others so I naturally streamed those more. but like the more I start following accounts on here and on army twt the more confused I get about the intense pressure to stream constantly? I’ve heard that people play certain songs (or albums I guess?) on repeat on mute and/or have dedicated streaming devices they keep going all the time.

Not to be negative or rude at all but like…what? Maybe because I’m new to KPop and have never followed it until BTS but that just sounds so weird and… idk the word, maybe disingenuous? Again I do not mean this as an attack I am just genuinely confused. Wouldn’t BTS themselves want us only to listen if we were actually enjoying it and not out of some competitive attempt to get better ratings? It feels so odd to me, like that is not how I would behave with any other artist that I love. I would only ever listen to them out of a genuine desire to hear their music. But there seems to be so much weird shaming out there for when/if songs are not streamed heavily enough? And for any other artist I would just write that off as a difference in taste among the fandom, but here it’s treated like a personal wrong against the artist…?

But as I say that I’m sure there’s more to it… I have definitely seen people talking about payola or chart manipulation so idk. If I should google this instead, just tell me to, I just have already tried and didn’t find that much clarity, just a bunch of people on quora and Reddit talking about certain songs not getting streamed enough.

Anyways this is super long, sorry if it annoys you. Just thought you seemed knowledgeable and levelheaded enough to ask? Love your posts. All the best.

Ask 2:

Okay wait I’m the anon that just asked about streaming and I went and re-read your post about “inorganic success” — I had read it before but somehow I didn’t put together that the 24-7 streaming is an attempt to combat payola or like go up against it I guess. Okay. That makes more sense. I still feel like there’s a weird focus on charting but I guess if it’s about getting more concert venues and more radio play it makes sense.

You can ignore my last ask then I’m sorry if I’m being dense or something lol.

***

You haven’t at all asked a stupid question. Your confusion is easily explained by you being new to k-pop, and everyone new to this madhouse asks this question eventually. I’ve talked about this before, but can’t find the post for the life of me so I’ll briefly go over it again.

First, you need to understand what k-pop is. K-pop is a system that gamifies music consumption. Competition is something you’ll see in the music industry regardless. Western stans such as Arianators, Barbz, and the Beyhive have organized around streaming goals and efforts for at least 10 years now. But there’s no other music industry that explicitly emphasizes competition among groups and fans, the way the k-pop industry does.

Competition is baked into its DNA:

From the idol training system under agencies with supposed specialities that are treated like warring houses a la Game of Thrones (a mentality created by the Big 3),

to the music shows where fans are encouraged to vote daily and weekly for the best artists and where wins are tied to streaming numbers,

to the highly publicized year-end award show criteria that outline key metrics for wins in streams, sales, and fan votes.

Basically, the k-pop industry creates a clear hierarchy of talent and acclaim for artists in their system, directly stokes fan participation in buying into that hierarchy, and the numbers are the easiest litmus test/short cut to settle the question of who is at the top.

And all of this is served with a cocktail of parasocial delusion and entitlement that has (more easily manipulated) fans thinking their perceived investment into their faves, earns them the right to micromanage their fave idols’ careers. All of this benefits the labels and industry because they’d rather have you more engaged (even if toxically), than not.

Everybody here buys into this system despite what they’ll tell you, some just manage to keep their wits and perspective to prevent getting sucked in, while others fall headfirst into it.

And so, like I said in my ‘inorganic success’ post you referenced, the focus on streaming is part of fans really just playing the game. Excess is something you’ll see on the charts in any case, whether in k-pop or in the West.

The difference with BTS and ARMYs however, is in the why of how the fandom streams. Essentially, you’re more likely to find people just as passionate about the music itself as they are about giving that music its due in hard numbers and consequently, recognition. You’re more likely to find fans like this in the ARMY fandom, than any other, in my opinion. Some people forget that the og ARMYs were k-pop fans first. They were fans who intimately understood how this system worked, they understood why the Big3 maintained dominance in k-pop for literal decades, and they saw the worth in the music BTS made, loved it enough to invest time into the playing the game better than anyone else at the time - pushing BTS from nugu status to where they are now, competing well outside the realm of the k-pop system but in a space that remains complex and highly competitive.

Another aspect that differentiates how ARMYs stream vs other k-pop fandoms, is that due to the sheer size of the fandom in absolute numbers, the average ARMY typically streams less than a typical k-pop stan. Basically, in other fandoms the typical stan has to stream more per person to have even a fraction of the gains seen in the ARMY fandom. ARMYs also aren’t doing anything other fandoms aren’t doing, it’s just that so far, they’re more efficient at it and don’t have to worry too much because BTS makes music that keeps attracting more fans, adding to the size of the fandom. They’ve also generally stayed away from more illegal methods given the intense scrutiny and animosity the fandom has faced for being part of the reason BTS upended the ordained hierarchy in this space. It sounds silly but it’s true.

But that’s only one side of the story. The other side is that in the fandom, everybody here really just does what they want. And many people genuinely enjoy listening to BTS that much and that intensely. Going by personal experience in what I observed before I became ARMY, I noticed that many ARMYs are Type A and organized - people who like and study data. The first time in my life that I saw someone create a spreadsheet for fan theories on a k-pop MV, was when an ARMY made one for I NEED U MV. I’m not sure what it is about BTS, but from the beginning they’ve attracted the sort of fans who genuinely enjoy listening to music often, people who enjoy creating and playing around with playlists, and people who track and measure applicable data. So your assumption that the people who stream like this are people who don’t actually enjoy the music, is wrong. In my opinion. For a lot of ARMYs, streaming and appreciating the music isn’t mutually exclusive.

Personally, I listen to music a lot. And I’ve always been that way, so when I became ARMY, I just sort of naturally fit into that culture. The sort of music BTS makes is a joy to listen to, I play their stuff literally everyday and it feels like the most normal thing in the world for me to sleep to Serendipity sometimes (in my sleep playlist which includes brown noise and rain sounds), or to do laundry to Let Me Know playing, or to drive to UGH and Set Me Free Pt 2 playing. I have multiple accounts because I listen to all kinds of music all the time, and it’s just convenient for me to have things set up such that I can flip on a playlist in every situation I’d want one on.

But like I said, the reality is that everyone in this fandom does what they want. It’s true there are certain people in the fandom who obsess over streaming, these are typically chartmys and akgaes, but most other people stream however they like. Fandom in general is a pressure cooker environment so I don’t blame you for noticing that pressure, but at the end of the day you really should just do what makes the most sense to you.

ARMYs generally recognize the reality of the space they are in, they recognize what it means for BTS, and most simply tweak their normal listening habits to maximize the gain and support to BTS. Plus sometimes it’s fun to play into fandom’s initiatives as a way to connect with other fans (such as in streaming parties).

I ended up rambling but let me know if this answered your question.

#BTS #BTS army #bts fandom #kpop fandom #kpop industry #fandom behaviour #streaming

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gladiatorcunt · 3 months ago

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Didn’t know you were a kpop fan babe 😧 Kinda not surprised, but still… Your faves?

“kinda not surprised” erm

(i got into it like around 2015 and i typically go for 3rd gen to earlier when it comes to music, also i don’t interact with any fandoms on social media anymore since i’ve gotten older (and i don’t rlly keep up with the idols themselves) beyond what edits i see or what gets so popular i have to see it on my fyp)

red velvet (my girlies)

loona (haseul could’ve been the baekhyun of loona if they used her properly beyond 1 line)

exo (masterclass in discography and actually being a capital i idol but also mess and mismanagement, arguably a big part of some of their issues is the tension between sk and china, etc.)

vixx (still a fair bit underrated imo when you consider how long they’ve been active, their vocal ability, being known for their concepts, like ughhhhh leo is one of the only idols who i will be like ‘that’s my husband and we have 6 kids <3’ about)

monsta x (very solid discography, talented, rappers that genuinely have something which there a lot of rappers in kpop groups just bc they’re trying to get appeal, still mildly irritated over the wonho thing bc the way companies deal with stuff like that when the idol is innocent is just so annoying. queen is one of the best bsides in kpop history.)

ramble under the cut

honorary shinee (jonghyun is my golden standard male vocalist), boa, snsd, sunmi, btob mentions

unfortunately jay park is cute and i do like mommae, dean’s like one album he did (i didn’t listen to the other one if that even was a full second album), i used to fw hyuna but she’s pissed me the fuck off

fave time out jail ig: bts (just really grew out of being into them ig since boy with luv came out, some of their tiktok fanbase proudly bullying people and how i feel about the quality of their music now (missing house of cards type quality) + the western validation debate + being on tumblr when people made jungkook’s whole personality at 19 yrs old being goo goo ga ga over banana milk and having a noona kink)), nct (the t*eil thing, but imo if people like that want to hide then they will so i think at least some of the members didn’t know, i don’t keep up with that so i’m not sure if any other info has since come out. i believe he did it with how things are rn and as a csa survivor i just feel a bit gross with being overly supportive of them)

and then there is the can of worms that is the group named after colors (another case where imo they were better earlier on, playing with fire >>>>)

i don’t really have any 4th gen faves, i love ateez and i like some stray title tracks (as in random not stray kids lmao) & bsides from groups here and there

i have mixed feelings about 4-5th gen (imo music is not the focus so much as international reach and social media presence), riize (wonbin is so fine though like sm employs pretty boy idols and refuses to manage them properly) and new jeans (i really wished i liked their music because literally everyone else does), ive’s title tracks are pretty solid (i don’t know anything about their bsides), le sserafim is ehhhhhhhh (i think i literally only like anti fragile + they do need to improve technically for me), enhyphen (i will say is the closet to being a fave for me because i eat up their obsessive songs that are apparently about their webtoon???????? and that one jyp cover (i assume bc he was there) bangs, also again they’re fine 😖)

for the life of me i can’t fully commit to aespa but their concept is cool (and the lore should stick to them and not be attached to every sm group imo)

talking about the songs i like & listen to regularly/industry opinions is a different discussion (that i dipped into too much here) i fear so i’ll shut up!!! i could probably get back into it if a company debuted a group and was like ‘안녕하세요! we are D.I.L.F!’ and the members are all at least in their mid 40’s and they groan when they try to bow

#sorry #one of my fics is called love on the floor and one of my old themes was based on an exo song…….#🎧.asks

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renrenlady · 2 years ago

Text

Ranking Shaperaverse Songs from Worst to Best Within Their Album

First up:

24- Voodoopunk

Listen. I have listened to every single one of Paul’s albums. I’ve hunted each and every one down and listened to the ones I could get my grubby hands on. I’m very familiar with his work and his musical habits (he has a very particular set of trademarks ie: symbol crash to end a song, repetitive word/lyric use throughout albums to create a through line, etc) but one thing that just does not resonate, does not vibe with me are these very long winded instrumental songs interspersed with singing. I’m a huge lyric person, so I definitely have a bias and it’s not that the music itself is bad, but this song is always gonna be a skip for me. I’m just not gonna sit and listen to pretty much the same thing over and over again, although I would LOVE to see this performed live. I think it would be incredibly fun, but from a listening standpoint, there are much better songs on this album.

23- Edgar Builds a Business

There’s gotta be a worst and best, and unfortunately this lands on the former side of that scale. Despite me absolutely loving Kate coming in with the connective tissue, the central theme of the show (really, all of Paul’s shows if you think about it) “circles never stop themselves” it isn’t enough to get past the extremely repetitiveness of the song. One could make the argument that, because we are heading for a more industrious/business era it’s only natural for the song to be repetitive and maybe even a little boring. One could also argue that because Edgar is such a boring little evil incel bitch, perhaps he’s meant to have such a tedious song. Whatever the case may be, it has a lot of verses, lots of instrumental breaks and it usually also gets a skip, unless I’m listening for lore purposes. I have to admit that the second to last verse where he addresses the issue he has with Silof is my favorite part of the song, it really lets us peak into his head after the break up and is almost the epitome of his evil if not for the last verse/conversation he has with a recently divorced Fay over dinner. (Side note- I absolutely love the headcanon that Silof is Amelia’s father. I don’t know if that’s canon or been made canon, but it’s absolutely delicious and makes DoNA a complete circle with no loose ends.)

22- New Albion 3

The lesser out of the four. While it does tie up some storylines (or ties them up from the perspective of a first time listener) and it does have a humor to it, it’s extremely transitional and it shows. You might be thinking ‘well no shit it’s transitional that’s literally what the song does’ but when I say it shows, I mean that you can just feel Paul really wanted to write this song and be done with it. It falls into the unfortunate section of not being the last one as most of us in the western world are very used to a ‘rule of threes’ way of things. Particularly stories. But I did say it had humor and it ending abruptly with the sentient plant’s story coming to a close is some unexpected humor I enjoyed. (Also is the plant a post human? Did I read that right on the wiki? Is the fucking plant able to control reality? Somebody tell me, please.)

21- The Movement 2

So. The thing is I don’t think I like gen 3 all that much. It’s still interesting and Byron and Amelia are fascinating characters- also Jasper gets to really shine in this act! But it definitely has the more instrumental, bring me to church kind of songs. We get an interesting advancement of understanding the character dynamics with Amelia fully admitting to loving Byron who is never gonna love her back, but it just doesn’t make up for the repetitiveness of this song. Much like New Albion 3, I think this entire act suffers from not being the last to go, it feels very transitional despite it being arguably one of the most important acts due to the founding building blocks of Radio Hour being done within it.

20- The Movement 1

Much of the same critique of the one above this, but I will say what gives it more of an edge is the reestablishment of Edgar’s ‘business theme’ where Byron uses it for campaigning. It’s a bit of musicality that I really enjoy from Paul, connecting the characters through motif and parallelism. Byron hates his dad so god damn much, and yet still employs the same tactics he used when he was a young man looking for a purpose. McAllisters don’t fall too far from their tree huh?

19- Annabel Has a Doll

The origin of Kate’s ‘circles never stop themselves’ motif and it’s haunting beautiful when you go back and listen through. It essentially sets up the theme of every album following the first and is, what I think, the central part of what Paul is trying to convey. I could get into the philosophy behind his work for hours, like make a whole video essay on it but for now- this song. It’s on the lower end due to the fact that even though it is a hilariously frantic and manic bop, it can get really grating after the third verse. Like getting hit by a hammer over and over again with the constant and loud and insistent melody. Like I said, there has to be a worse and best, and I just think there are better songs on this album. Oh also- the beginnings of the Elysium theme? Fucking brilliant.

18- We Bid the 1st Generation Adieu

This is a brilliant way to introduce the concept of time jumping and also not getting too attached to the characters we see. It’s exposition without it feeling like exposition and Kate is always a delight to hear. It’s just that it’s a very short, transitional song and it’s. Yeah. That’s kind of it. We bid adieu to this review and move on to the next.

17- Bonfire of the Dolls

This song is a doozy in the best way possible. The climax of gen 3 and it completely delivers after creating such a delicious amount of tension between the living, the dead, and those who stand in between them. It’s the culmination of a society finally ready to snap and it is displayed so beautifully through a kick ass score that evokes such a frightening kind of emotion. A mixture of fear and pain and loss and somehow, love. Byron calling for Jasper in a desperate attempt at saving the one thing he only truly selfishly cared about gives me chills every time I listen to it. What this song suffers from however is the large amount of instrumentation. Don’t get me wrong, it sounds very good and the way Paul creates the ‘screaming doll’ sounds is so incredibly cool. But this would definitely benefit from having a visual element which is a problem I see across pretty much all the albums. Now that I call it a problem, I feel as though it’s a harsh word to use. I think it’s more like the show doesn’t need such long musical breaks if it’s never going to be staged. Still have the breaks, but perhaps shorten them? My mind can only supply so much imagination before I’m just replaying moments over and over again in my head.

16- The Ballad of the Gambler and the Monk

Full disclaimer I think this song is a fucking bop. I think it’s a certified, fun to sing along to jam. I love how this is the interlude of the story, reminding us of how exactly we got to this point of societal collapse by showing us how everyone was doomed from the start essentially. The music too has this old, nostalgic feeling to it which makes you feel like you’re being transported back to somewhere else, away from the chaos and the death and relentless evolution of New Albion. The only issue I have with this number is that for most of it, we already know the story due to it being explained to us. The opening lines of this show are telling us the story of the gambler and the monk. They only go more into detail about what happened at the end of the game, introducing us to the concept of reincarnation with incredible subtlety, but I really wish we had gotten more of a glimpse into just who these two were, and more importantly, who they were to each other. Now that’s a big wish considering it might’ve been difficult to have some establishment for these characters before Paul knew he was going to make Janissury, but some more detail to an already known story would’ve been nice considering a whole song was dedicated to it.

15- Edgar Gets His Heart Broken

Oh Edgar. Edgar you silly stupid bitch. You silly stupid bitch baby boy. Your song is objectively hilarious to listen to and I enjoy hearing your heart get broken every time. Although his incel anger does backfire on…well, New Albion for the rest of its existence, it was pretty funny watching it happen in a musical number. Lime pie//dying inside? Instant classic. Also the origin of the ‘one day you will learn’ theme and it’s honestly one of the best motifs Paul has ever written. It’s a perfect reprisal line and can be interpreted in so many ways, it just open to possibility. I don’t really have any critique for this one, it’s a concise and well paced story that gives us exactly what we need to know about gen 2 and it’s a bop. There are just better songs that come before this.

14- Annabel Raises the Dead

God damn does this song kick. These cats are cookin. When that piano/xylophone/I don’t even know what fuckin instrument barrels in with that tight ass arpeggio. The instrumentation is gorgeous, it’s evocative as all hell with its frantic nature and atmospheric sounds. The sole reason this isn’t further down on the list, is because I have this (most likely) singular issue with the actual notes themselves. Specifically the notes Annabel sings. Now, we’ve heard Laura Osnes sing, and I mean sing but what I can’t figure out is why despite everything being so incredibly frantic and high energy, are the notes she singing fall so…flat? And I don’t mean flat as in pitch I mean flat as in it just doesn’t match the energy. Annabel is a mad isolated scientist, why wouldn’t her melody line be an insane roller coaster? Why does it continue on in this sort of monotone way? It does get better at the end, with the bridge giving us insight into what the actual fuck is going on. But overall it leaves me wanting more in regards to a dynamic musical experience. Annabel’s part in the song holds the whole thing back with its sort of awkward melody where she’s singing these low, honestly uninteresting notes when the music is kicking all kinds of ass. Love this song, but I wish it was different.

13- Fay Considers Edgar's Proposal

Get his ASS Fay, make him eat shit. With his own musical motif of course. This song gives me chills when I listen to it, never a skip. For this entire time Fay has been living outside the main narrative, the sole reason why our easily corrupted protagonist gets…well, corrupted. To many, some may resent Fay in the beginning of gen 2 due to her somewhat vague couple sentences of break up. We have no context for how she feels or what her motivations are besides finding someone in a better financial/status position in life- but then this song comes on. Then we understand Fay really and truly did love Edgar. Filled with school-girlish, young love, Fay was head over heels. She fell in love with a young man who was most likely just as much in love with her. And during this song, Fay no longer sees that young man anymore. She feels betrayed, wondering how exactly she became a piece in Edgar McAllistair’s game of business and commerce. Wondering where the young man went and when he got shot out the back and replaced with the miserly and revenge ridden capitalist sitting before her, having taken everything from her. And then to top it all off with offering her late father? Her explosive ending is a stroke of genius and my only complaint is that this song is too short.

12- New Albion 4

This is the first instance of us hearing a more dieselpunk sound, the roots of Radio Hour beginning to grow into the cobbled ground of New Albion. It is haunting to listen to the second time around and frightening the first. Times are changing and by the sounds of it, for the worst it seems. Kate introduces us to a new kind of city and paints a very geometric and drab image in my mind where a dark cloud looms over a frightened and paranoid people. We are introduced to Soldier 7285 and the origin of one of the slappiest songs Paul has ever written, ‘the day we come’ motif. It is evocative of Javert from Les Mis, a solid and clear cutting tune that constantly comes in like a thick wall, impenetrable. You can basically hear the brainwashing going on and it’s honestly a great example of police/authority indoctrination. The words are empowering 7285, making him feel like he is justice, he is an important extension of the law and the law is just. It is unwavering. It’s an incredible piece of music and it was really difficult to decide to put it at twelve.

11- We Bid You All Adieu

There’s something about this number that breaks my heart in the best way possible. Like the way you felt when the children accidentally left Narnia or seeing Frodo Saul away to the Lands of the Undying. There’s still more story to be had, peoples lives still go on, but we are no longer viewers. The characters will live on as will we and…that’s that. The song is a perfect button finish to the mad and frightening escapades of the McAllistair family, bringing us not a sense of closure but drawing us in even more as to wonder what happens next in and to New Albion. I love the way it makes me feel, the only reason it falls here, just short of the top ten is because at this point we have heard this musical refrain many, many times and while that isn’t necessarily bad, repetition isn’t always the best choice, though perhaps in Paul’s case, the easiest when creating a new show every year.

10- The Suicide

Coming in at number ten we have our girl Amelia signing out! I have very similar thoughts to this as I did with Fay, getting the context of Amelia’s life is extremely heartbreaking. Also the discordant, chaotically violent way Paul displays abuse from a father is unfortunately accurate and phenomenal. Every time I listen I get so incredibly uncomfortable and displaced when that part comes and that to me is what makes this song a success. And then the twistingly sad nature of Elysium getting a reprise through Amelia’s epic goodbye to life just ties the whole thing together so neatly. Amelia is also a huge perpetrator, much like my blorbo Annabel in creating a chain reaction of events that will eventually lead to some crazy ass shit. I admire what this song contains and what it does.

9- New Albion 2

Full disclaimer, I love all of Kate’s parts and solos. I adore this one because of the charm we still have with this narration convention as well as development of the background characters! I want to hear more about the two women, the albatross Simon and the brilliant mouse Sam! It gives the city so much more life whereas the first one is an intro to help us build the world and the others lose a bit of charm after a while. This one I think is the most fun and I really enjoy listening for what are essentially clues/future callbacks for the future albums.

8- Priscilla Contemplates

I had no idea what Miss Priscilla was saying the first time around and if I didn’t take the time and effort to really listen to the words, this song probably would’ve been in the twenties. But after thinking it through and really tasting the words, I think this is one of the best poetically written songs Paul has ever wrote. It’s gorgeous in writing, describing such an odd and strange feeling from a girl who is living such an odd and strange life. And the way it ends with the phone call? Chills. Can you imagine being Jasper in that moment? This is a scene I would kill to see staged because of just how raw it can be. Priscilla is the best of the McAllistairs- as though reincarnation finally got it right this time.

7- The Day They Come

Not a ton to say about this one other than the fact that the rising panic is kick fucking ass to listen to. The way the music portrays Jasper and Priscilla arguing yet still desperately trying to be quiet. The inevitable way Soldier and the others are proudly and dutifully singing their vows. It’s short but it’s a riot, also RIP Byron and his trophy wife I’m pretty sure they die in this one if not died way before.

6- The Old Trunk in the Attic

I don’t know what the wide, general opinion is of this particular song but it, to me, absolutely belongs in the top ten. It’s strength is that it completely stands out from the rest of the discography. When Paul takes that moment to just create music from poetry, evoke feelings from us that we’ve never felt before. The delicate way the melody and instruments are done, the nostalgic yet unfamiliar list of items we all have a collective (but not real) memories of seeing going through our relatives belongings before. It’s what is a great representation of what makes the Shaperaverse so special. Just these moments of singularity, of importance when to the characters it’s just a Tuesday night. There’s so much gravity in this one song, I think we all forget just how much the rest of the discography relies on this specific moment- save of course for Annabel’s breakthrough. It’s beautifully sung by Kate and I put it on loop all the time.

5- Annabel's Lament

Humanizing our mad scientist with a ‘where did it all go wrong/how did I get here’ song is brilliant. One could argue it’s a verse too long, but to that I say the word ‘opera’ is in ‘pulp opera’ which is how Paul describes his works so. Yeah it sounds like a verse too long cause it’s opera. Anyway Annabel, like the logical thinker she is, lays the map of her life bare as she is finally ready to face the grotesque music she has composed entirely for herself. She’s trying to find the source, the answer as to why, why she cannot seem to escape this deep pit of loneliness she has been stuck in ever since her father set the high expectation of ‘be a success, then you’ll be happy’. And y’know what the crazy part is? I don’t even think she really figures it out in the end! Isn’t that wild? Yes she sets Jasper free because she loves him and on some level realizes his suffering- but the main reason she lets him go is because HE was supposed to be her success and, confoundingly, she still. Isn’t. Happy. Annabel doesn’t understand why this didn’t solve all her problems, why despite having worked for years and years, pushing everyone and every opportunity for social interaction away she still can’t get what she wants and this is the beauty of Paul Shapera’s works, but especially highlighted in his first. Annabel is trapped in a cycle, a circle. And the great tragedy is that she is the first act- there was no way her story was going to end happy. Instead she begins (or if you think about it, just another in a long line) a curse which takes four generations for her lineage to break. But the greatest tragedy of them all is that Annabel didn’t just curse her family tree, but the entirety of New Albion as well. Or perhaps- it was already cursed from its conception? I could keep going about Annabel and her lament, but overall this song feeds the story and lore part of my brain that is never satiated and the music has the intensity that I was looking for in Annabel Raises the Dead. It builds and builds until Annabel is screaming at an inanimate object, tragically missing the point of her own sad story as her ax flies.

4- New Albion 1

Where it all begins. The set dressing done in this song is brilliant in two ways. The first being that as just a listener, it’s like a pop-up book is opening and unfolding in your brain. Like a DM just before the beginning of a long, long campaign setting up the most intricate and alive world you’ve ever had the pleasure of stepping into. This is how musicals should be (something I’ve noticed is that immersion is distinctly lacking in modern day mainstream shows) where they entice you, guide you into a story before plopping you right down into the action. It’s exciting to hear what’s around every corner of this intensely strange city. The second is that when this is staged, despite imagination not being all that necessary, it is as though Kate is conducting the city to come to life herself. Set pieces gliding in from stage right, the one eyed red haired dwarf strolling onto stage tossing a pair of silver dice in the air, the city itself rising as Kate builds upon it. New Albion 1 works because it is not complicated, it tells you things as they are because what they are is already a wonder to imagine or see. And the continuous line of ‘and Annabel McAlistair is raising up the dead’? Brilliant intrigue, instantly letting us in on the score. More stories should try this method, after all why do people like Hamilton or Hadestown or Heathers or Natasha Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 so much? Their intros lay it out and we get to sit back and enjoy the spread. Also of course, this is the origin of the New Albion theme, the one all the narrators use. It’s just beautifully simple and strange and it makes me emotional whenever I hear it across the albums. Even when I’m all the way in the future, watching Jane fight for her life and Han Mi struggle with creating her own narrative, I hear that familiar tune and think about where it all began, with a sad lonely blorbo trying to bring back to life her own blorbo.

3- Priscilla and Jasper Play Cards

This song is disgustingly good. It’s a final act showdown, an earned epic moment in the narrative. Finally everything that has happened in this fucked up city is reaching a head in Byron McAlistair’s basement of all places and it is beautiful on delivery. The reprise of so many important motifs, my favorite being Jasper saying ‘be my angel’- the chills I get every time I hear him use that line is outrageous. Now I’m not sure who is right, but my interpretation of Jaspers line in that moment is that he’s asking Soldier to be his ‘angel’ by shooting him and finally, y’know, letting this man fucking die. But then I saw someone else say Jasper is saying this to Priscilla, begging her not to do this for him as he has finally accepted being alive again and doesn’t want her to die due to finally loving a McAlistair. Whatever the interpretation, canonical or not, it is a rip out your heart kind of moment. Sacrifice, duty and love all culminating to finally end the cycle of madness started so long ago in an epic trio of fantastic vocals. And when Priscilla finally can hear the music, the message Kate has been trying to get through, it’s breathtaking. You have to wonder how Kate feels when this happens, when she’s actually listened to. And just when you think it’s over…

2- I Will Bring You Down

…A new hero starts the cycle anew. This song is so fucking dramatic, so very end of an action movie sounding song and yet it works. It works because this is a relatively new character who is now able to think for himself, not just rehash the creed which will haunt this city for generations to come. And his thoughts (the music) sound incredibly unique to everyone else and that is a sign of so much care and attention from Paul. It’s a call to action, a sign of a new age coming whether the city and its people want it or not. It’s the beginning of a new story placed squarely as this shows finale. Finally, when the dust settles it is not a McAlistair who ends the tail in triumph, but a random soldier who kicks of another set of events. Circles really do never stop themselves.

1- Elysian Night

It’s hard for me to express what I feel when I listen to Elysian Night. Usually when I’m talking to people about it I end up struggling and stuttering and start spouting about something ephemeral leaving the person I’m talking to trying to decipher my words. What can one say about Elysian Night that isn’t already felt when you listen? Much like The Old Trunk in the Attic, it stands out amongst the rest of Paul’s works while somehow being the golden center of the sewn together quilt. It’s honest, it’s raw. It’s all the thoughts Jasper has been desperately trying to say after three generations of living. Picking apart other songs on the radio just to craft this one that will hopefully (tragically and inevitably fly over peoples heads) send the message about how he and every other doll in the city has been robbed of something that can barely be described. How do you not love this song? How do you not feel every emotion Jasper has raging on inside the machine that is his body? It’s close to one of the best songs Paul has ever written and I’m grateful to be alive in the time I am to be able to listen.

Thank you so much for reading if you’ve gotten this far! I’ll probably do another one for Radio Hour as it is my favorite of all the albums and we’ll see where this all goes. If you have any questions or would like to share your own opinion about the songs or have a bone to pick with me about the order they fall into, feel free to send me an ask or use the comments on this post. I never really get to talk about the Shaperaverse with people in real life and despite the discord community being amazing a full of incredible people, I find it hard to interact so I lurk most of the time. Thanks again for reading and happy listening!

#the dolls of new albion #Dona #shaperaverse #paul shapera #album review #ranking #song rankings #lady renaissance song rankings

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foxymoxynoona · 6 months ago

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Rant anon here- yes! Thats exactly what I meant. About the attitude that a lot of people in the fandom seem to have whenever the members mess up. It feels gross and it feels like they’d let them get away with murder. It feels like they treat them more like objects or dolls than humans that have flaws and can make bad choices. It feels like the more the fandom tells the company that “it’s ok!!! They shouldn’t have to respond to hate!!” It will keep pushing the boundaries of what they do and do not take seriously enough to formulate a response. The group has mentioned, ad nauseam, their morals and what they want to do in this industry. It feels like they’ve stopped caring and that’s what I feel like grossed me out (other than the weird attitude towards the group I mean).

It just feels like they’re too old and too seasoned to be making these mistakes. They should know better- or at least know that when you hurt people the best thing to do is apologize- regardless of whether or not you felt you did something wrong. At the end of the day you hurt someone (this is all the metaphorical “you”) regardless of intention and that, a lot of times, is enough for some to step back and reevaluate the situation.

Through out this all it feels like there’s a lack of the accountability that we hold more western artists to (this is a research topic in its own right and far more intelligent people than I have written about it and produced wonderful articles and video essays on the subject. I am not one of those people and it’s 4 in the morning where I am and I don’t feel like delving into why we infantilize East Asian pop stars at this hour). Not that the accountability we have here is great, but at least it’s more talked about than suppressed (this can be seen with the growing number of Taylor swift defectors after her recent cease and desist letters)

Hm, it's interesting to talk about cross section between infantalizing and model minority racism overlapping with celebrity halo effect. TBH now that it's no longer directly my job, I don't spend much time paying close attention to music artists unless it's something really within my interest or it crosses into more mainstream attention --so I'm sure about the Taylor Swift controversy you're talking about, and I only have knowledge about a handful of Asian-artist controveries so definitely not enough to talk about that cycle or compare it with western artists in any real way other than to say this is such a rich and complex topic to dig into from the fan side, the consumer side, the partnerships side.

I'm certainly not going to explain away anyone's mistakes, people can answer for their own, I will only say we are never too old to fuck up haha, but yes then you do the learning, growing, and repair process.

Definitely agree that criticism or calling out incorrect behavior isn't hate, it can in fact be a demonstration of love and respect --and also that it's completely and entirely reasonable to take a step away from supporting an artist or group becasue you are not comfortable with their behavior! Not only because it's a way of putting your money and time where you want to endorse but, for the other types of folks you're talking about who see everything with rose-colored glasses, it can help create some space and ability to not only see humans as complex and likely to make mistakes, but also disrupts a hard part of hero-worship that i think may come into play too psycologically: I love this artist and believe they are good so if they screw up, I can't admit that they made a mistake because what does that say about me?

Anyway, I know you probably already know this 1000x over but protect yourself and your heart and your peace. It's ok to need to take a break from things or groups of people or whatever when they are filling you with rage, especially if you feel unable to really fix or change what you're seeing. <3 <3 <3 I'll always be here too!

#asks #anonymous

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youreignhere · 11 months ago

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Mental Health & The Lack of Mental Health Care in the K-Pop Industry

The K-Pop Industry has helped brought forward the Greatest Performers, Dancers, Singers and Groups to this day. The industry is a Billion Dollar powerhouse for South Korea and has boosted the Nation’s connection to the World.

K-pop has played a huge role in Korea’s Tourism boost, the rising love for Korean Dramas and Movies being appreciated by International fans. With the growth of Korean Media, for example Youtube Videos by Korean Content Creators are being viewed by Foreign viewers, all of this contributing to the overall Economy of South Korea. While K-pop has only been around since the early 1990s, over 30 years old and it has changed the entire Music Industry for the better.

While K-Pop may have many great things, there are also a lot of dark sides within the K-Pop Industry as a whole. Today, we’ve decided to write a semi-well-researched rant about some things that we have a problem within the K-Pop Industry. Starting with the Overworking Crisis and the Lack of Mental Health Care in the K-Pop Industry.

Before we begin, feel free to like the blog and lease note, if you want to support or request a Blog Topic, please follow me here and Message us on Twitter. We will link all the sources used within the blog and in a Google Doc visible for all.

This Blog is also supported by affiliates as we’re not in a country that allows Stripe Pay, so Medium can’t support us. We are grateful for any comments, likes and shares even if you can’t support us financially.

Bare in mind, this post contains references to Suicide, Depression, and other Mental Health Disorders with references to Trauma. We will do our best to pay respect to the Names mentioned. May they all Rest in Power. Please continue with caution if this may trigger you in any way. After all, your mental health also matters and I will not fault you for finding something more comfortable to read.

Now, if you are still with me, let’s get into the nitty gritty.

Chapter One: Toxic Productivity in the K-Pop Industry

Before we delve into Mental Health, I would like to start with Toxic Productivity, or in simpler terms, Overworking. From what we have witnessed online and sometimes in person, Idols just collapsing after a performance or when the lights go down. They are so tired that they can barely stay standing or walk off a stage.

But what exactly is Overworking or in other words Toxic Productivity? And how has this become the norm in both Western & Asian Culture, specifically the K-Pop Industry?

Better Up dot com says that “Toxic productivity describes the drive to produce while neglecting other important aspects of our lives. We value productivity over everything else, like rest or quality time with loved ones.”

This has become Hustle Culture or that “Grind” Mindset that many on social media push to their audiences. While there is nothing wrong with working hard, working to the point of exhaustion, to the point where you forget or disregard your own needs or those that rely on you, is Toxic and even Physically Harmful.

Companies and even the media have pushed that “Grind” mindset for years but fortunately Millenials and Gen Z have picked up on the bullshit and many are fighting against the system or simply disregarding that system by refusing to work countless hours for barely minimum wage. But the sad fact is that companies don’t care that the Hustle mindset is Toxic or unhealthy, they only care about the revenue they can bring in the more their employees work and as you can tell, even the K-Pop Industry and Korea as a whole has companies like this.

Better Up goes on to state, “Productivity equals revenue, so companies want employees to value it as much as they do. This frame of mind is considered toxic because it’s culturally contagious. The more a society promotes overworking as valuable, the harder people work. And it can also have negative consequences like burnout and poorer relationships.”

Companies that encourage overworking have a special space in Hell. I am sure most of you guys reading think the same and feel the pain when your Fave rapper, singer, dancer or group is tired and obviously working too much. Especially after learning just how much Overworking or Toxic Productivity can Physically affect a person. Overworking of course leads to burning out- which let me tell you guys, is so horrible- but it is also proven to lead to adverse health problems, neck chest and back pains and even stroke to name just a few. Just take a look at this 2016 article reporting on some Idols who suffered the effects of Overworking.

At this point, I don’t even care if they have to put out that reality series or work on a new song. I’d much prefer if they took a week off, no actually. I want them to take an entire month off. I just want them to visit family, relax, don’t touch a lick of music or choreography. Have the free time to catch up on trends and just sleep. God, some of them just need to sleep for a month, shaking my head.

Sometimes, this isn’t the companies’ fault and more so the Idol/s pushing themselves too much, mentally and physically, all for the sake of their loving fans. Due to Korea and many times, Black & Asian, even Western Culture pushing this “Hard & Long Work Hours guarantees Success mentality”, ignoring the fact that Suicide has become rampant due to the pressure on many Teens or Young Adults in or out of the K-Pop Industry. With the stress to perform well academically starting at the young age of 10, it has been ingrained into many, in or out of the K-Pop Industry.

However, as we know, Overworking does more harm than good and I wish I could just grab certain Idols and just shake them until they see sense. I know at the end of the day, many of them choose the life of an Idol and are adults who can make decisions for themselves. I just don’t agree with some of their choices (that’s pretty fair too, not like they are going to care about what some stranger on a blog says lol).

If you have any experience with Toxic Productivity, please let me know in the comments, I would love to see everyone’s thoughts on this as a whole, because we pretty much see it everyday in our normal lives as well.

But before we head into the next chapter, I would like to take a moment to help you save money on the latest in K-Pop Merch. Please bear with me, as this Blog topic is going to get a bit deeper as we dive into Mental Health and I would like to make this a quick break as well as an opportunity for you, the reader.

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Chapter Two: Mental Health & Mental Health Care in the K-Pop Industry.

Let’s start with, What is Mental Health?

This is taken from our past blog, Everyone has Mental Health; The World Health Organization states, “Mental Health is an essential component in overall Health, as Mental Health decides our emotional, physical and social well-being. This can affect any person’s contribution to their environment and overall life.”

To put it in layman’s terms, Mental Health helps how we handle stress or anxiety, relate to others and topics, and determine our choices or behavior in life. The World Health Organization, or WHO continues to state that, “Mental Health is key at all stages of Life.”

Just like Physical Health, Mental Health is equally important for every person. However, it has been pushed aside in the media, education, and by society as a whole. Mental Health is never brought up when it can decrease your overall health just as much as diabetes or a stroke.

Just like you have Physical Health, everyone has Mental Health. Please feel free to read more about what is Mental Health on our Everyone has Mental Health Blog Here.

Mental Illness or Mental Health Disorders (they can be referred to as both) are classified as a or many significant disturbances in a person’s cognitive, emotional, and even physical behavior. As of a 2019 study from the World Health Organization, 1 in every 8 people globally is affected by Mental Illness. Making that an estimate of almost 1 Billion people worldwide (as of 2021) are directly affected by Mental Health in one way or the other.

Anxiety and Depression are the most common for Entrepreneurs and in this case Musicians or Idols. You can read more about the link to Mental Health Disorders and how it connects to Entrepreneurs from our blog post here. Toxic Productivity and Overworking also connects to Mental Health Disorders, as overworking is known to harm your physical and mental well being. Sadly, many Idols show symptoms of these and other Mental Illnesses and unfortunately, there are many times where no amount of fame or money can help ease that pain.

Remember, K-Pop Idols are many times put on harsh diets, told to look and act a certain way or their real personalities would not be liked. They are constantly put in the spotlight and have to conform to rigorous schedules, while many of them deal with Anxiety, Depression and low self-esteem or Self Hatred. Not to mention the mental pressure that Society and many fans place on them to be “perfect”.

With the fact that many K-pop Companies rarely care that much about Mental Health, much less their Idols’ mental health, not taking into consideration just how much toxic productivity, anxiety and depression can physically affect a human being. Causing them to spiral and fester for sometimes years, in absolute silence. Until they feel absolutely alone, even when surrounded by loving fans and a family like group. Suicide, seemed to be a last and, sadly many times, most pleasing option of a way out of the Industry and pain.

Considering how many Idols we have lost just in the past decade due to the lack of Mental Health Care and Mental Health Awareness in the K-Pop Industry. We may not have been able to save them all, but if at least one or few had the ability to get the professional help they deserved, then we may still have many of our loved ones with us. Mothers, Fathers, Sisters, Brothers, would not have to mourn and Fans would not have to grieve.

Psychology and Psychiatry Professor, Lim Myung-Ho said, “For a long time, celebrities have mostly avoided meeting a psychiatrist or a psychological counselor as they were afraid that their health condition would somehow tarnish their image,”

We have lost brilliant and beautiful Lights, due to the fear that society has put on these human beings, as well as the lack of understanding for Mental Health or the resources to give Idols the help they deserve as human beings.

Thankfully, since the last decade, there’s been a rise in Mental Health Awareness in the K-Pop Industry and Korea as a whole. Many Idols or Musicians in the Industry, like Solo Star, AleXa and Lim Jaebeom, the Leader of Got7, have opened up about his Struggle with Depression and Mental Health. Groups like BTS, Stray Kids and Ateez are known for making music that addresses mental health struggles and societal pressures.

Personally, I think it’s time that K-Pop Companies implement Mental Health days for K-Pop Idols, as well as have some professionals within the company have weekly to monthly mandatory mental health sessions with whoever needs or wants counseling and help. Just like if an Idol was Physically sick and had to go on hiatus, then an Idol should be able to take Mental Health Days for their emotional and mental, as well as overall physical well being.

Professor Lim also thinks that there are easier ways, as in Online Counseling, especially considering how fast paced most Idol’s lives can be, it would make sense to have Online Counselors if Idols simply need to distress or vent on the go.

Cho Jung-Hwa, a Life Coach at Starship Entertainment, home of Monsta X, said in a telephone interview, “K-pop singers have managers, hair designers and makeup artists, but they often do not have any experts to resort to when they feel emotionally taxed,” she said. “If they can get some direct help from a mental health trainer or professional, they would feel much better.”

She made some good points and I would like to stress that for the Idols or Trainees, it should be a safe and open discussion so that they can feel less isolated and have less to carry on their shoulders.

There has been progress, for example, KQ Entertainment allowed Song Mingi, Main Rapper and Co-Writer for Ateez, time off for his Mental Health due to Psychological Anxiety, from late 2020 to 2021 (a total of 8 months). While KQ is still a Family like and small Entertainment Company (that is still flawed), I would like to see this more, from Companies like JYP, Starship, Cube Entertainment and even Hybe.

“Celebrities are generally more impressionable than non-celebrities,” Lim Myung- Ho said. “They often take the brunt of the emotional labor too, because they frequently conceal their genuine emotions in front of the public. In the short run, having a regular mental health check-up may seem unnecessary, but in the long run, it will help the K-pop companies’ financial success by ensuring the mental stability of their stars.”

I would like to mention that SHINEE’s Jonghyun has a foundation in his Memory, created by his mother, that aims to help Idols and Trainees with their Mental Health. I highly suggest checking it out here and seeing how you can support them or even visit if you are going to Korea or in Korea. I have to admit, that is one strong and amazing woman, to take her loss and try and make some changes in the Industry for other Idols and trainees. I wish her the best and all my love to the Shawols reading this.

You can probably tell by now, there’s still a long way to go, but I am glad to see some progress at least. I sincerely hope that those gone too soon are finally resting easy, seeing the growth and recognition that K-Pop has achieved and knowing that their art, their music will live on in the hearts of K-Pop fans worldwide. I just wish that it didn’t have to take, the passing of many amazing beings or the abuse of Idols, as well as countless backlash from fans, for it to finally start to have changes within the Industry.

Chapter Three: What can we do as Fans?

Kpop fans hold a lot of power; We can literally make or break an Idol’s or Groups career. I would honestly prefer to use that power for advocacy.

You have the power to raise awareness for these topics in the K-Pop Industry. Your favorite Idol is overworking and the rest of the group is tired but they continue to put out that reality show. Start a hashtag, bring up the topic to other fans or members of the community. Discuss it in groups and forums.

Remember Toxic Productivity does more harm than good so remind Idols that they are human too and not just a form of entertainment to us. Raise Awareness in respectful ways like starting a Twitter account and sharing your ideas or events with like minded individuals. Check out the Shiny Foundation, in honor of the late Jonghyun from SHINEE. Do your research and advocate for Mental Health Days or Mental Health care as a whole for Korea and Kpop Idols.

Raise Awareness in respectful ways like starting a Twitter account and sharing your ideas or events with like minded individuals. Do your research and advocate for Mental Health Days or Mental Health care as a whole for Korea and K-pop Idols. Support Idol from Companies like KQ or Starship Entertainment, that allow their Idols the time & resources needed to mend their mental state.

Highlight Speakers on the topic of Mental Health in Kpop, like BTS, Jay B and recently Beomhan the Ex-F M Trainee that Spoke up on his own Mental Health Struggles.

Show support to content creators that touch on topics like this. Follow and share their content to bring more eyes on the issues. Share this blog with your friends and fellow fans to help bring more eyes and start discussions. Try making your own content, be it blogs on Tumblr, Tweets on Twitter (yes I am still gonna call it twitter) and Videos on Tik Tok or Youtube to bring more awareness on these less spoken about necessities in the industry.

If you get a chance to meet your Idols at fan meets or on a fan call, quickly speak to them about your own experiences with mental health, how they helped inspire you. Let your fave Idols know that they are not alone. That they and their feelings do matter.

So, what do you think? Should K-pop Idols and Trainees be allowed Mental Health Days and have access to mental health care? Did anything else I mentioned stand out to you, tell me what in the comments.

That was probably a lot, but this will be separated into more parts because I would like to talk about homophobia, racism, abuse and other issues in the K-Pop Industry soon!

If you like how this sounds so far, please feel free to check out my blog on Medium or Tumblr and follow for more. If you’d like to get more information on Mental Health you can read my post here.

That’s all for now, I will see when I see you. Remember, you can always, Reign Here.

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#kpop blog #kpop #kpop stan #ateezatiny #got7 #bts #mental illness #mentalheathawareness #gidle #dreamcatcher #shinee #kim jonghyun #ateez mingi #fx sulli

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struggle-but-its-all-ocean-floor · 1 year ago

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I’m sure jungkook already had ideas about this going in, but I can’t help thinking about how much better all of the rappers in bts are compared to Jack Harlow and central cee. It says a lot about who gets elevated in the music industry. Like jungkook was so spoiled with rap line 😭 I wonder if it’s something he noted. Tbh, and I don’t know if this makes sense considering how much more recognized they are, but being a western pop star doesn’t seem like all it’s cracked up to be success-wise. There are a lot of people that make music that’s played heavily on the radio and heavily listened to, like kid laroi maybe, but idk if I’ve ever met a kid laroi ‘fan’ or if people really go to his concerts or physically buy his albums. Most likely he’s taking pennies from Spotify, and that’s probably what most of them do if they’re not Taylor swift. K-pop fan engagement is a different beast bc the fan culture is very much about actively engaging with the artists - going to concerts and buying albums and hyping them. You’ll more directly receive the love from your fans, which boosts you up more. Since most people aren’t going to be successful in either industry, I think I’d rather be in kpop since it might feel more rewarding in the moment

Yeah, the BTS rap line is infinitely superior to Central Cee and Jack Harlow - from flow to lyrics to looks to charm lmao.

It's true that success in the West a lot of times seems to mean people knowing who you are because they heard of you or heard one or two of your songs on the radio and not even by choice. Those artists make money from ads, performances, their label, but may not really have that many real fans. The Kid Laroi is famous, everyone in a given age group knows who he is, but he probably wouldn't fill a stadium in a heartbeat like Jungkook would, no matter how big the stadium. Even in a market like Europe, where The Kid Laroi is way more mainstream, Jungkook would still sell out any stadium over him, even if all the seats were filled with foreigners who flew in to see him. It's a bit unfair that, despite this reality, Jungkook will probably never be mainstream the way a lot of American artists are.

But American artists make a lot more money than kpop artists, work less in general, and often have more creative control and personal freedom. I wouldn't say that it's better to be a kpop artist. If you think The Kid Laroi is being paid pennies, than how much do you think most idols make? And he's just starting out. There's also a question of trainee debt, harsh beauty standards that male pop artists at least can probably evade, a grueling workload, less creative and personal freedom in general, etc. It's one thing to be BTS and another thing to be anyone else. Even Exo are all leaving SM and they're at the top of the industry. The pop industry is also exploitative, full of controlling executives, and ugly inside out, but I'd be willing to bet it gives artists more opportunities in the future. Music wise, I'd rather be an idol, and agree that the bond idols and fans share is much more interesting than what Western artists and their fans have, but I doubt that, as far as personal happiness and fulfillment go, being an American artist, pop or not, is less fulfilling than being an idol. Plenty of American artists have really solid fanbases and It opens a lot more doors too.

I don't know, both industries suck for sure.

Thanks for the ask!

#ask #bts #jungkook #text #thanks for the ask!

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halliescomut · 1 year ago

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V Random SKZ post

I watched a TT, I'm not posting it here, because I already know this person is probably gonna get dogpiled by rabid Stays, and I won't contribute to that, but I have so many thoughts and nowhere to share them. Their TT was about how they feel like SKZ and 3Racha have been coasting the last couple of years and they're not doing anything innovative and that they're not using Seungmin to his full potential, nor IN. But everything they bring up regarding the last couple of years is just their title tracks. Saying that the songs always a have a formula, that they've become predictable, and I do agree with that point...however, I believe it's intentional. Since....I would say Go Live (or God's Menu), I think that their title tracks have followed a formula. It's something I talked about on my own SKZ TT when RockStar, and also maybe 5 Star came out, when I did a first thoughts on those albums. Their title tracks, very much in the last 2-3 years, have felt like they are SKZ sort of playing the KPop game. These are the songs that need to catch a general audience, that's their purpose. They're intended for radio play, they're intended to hopefully win on music shows, to bring in new listeners. That is their purpose. That is the purpose of every title track by every artist in the industry, both KPop and western. It feels, to me, disingenuous to almost write them off because their title tracks don't push the limits enough, while ignoring their B-sides.

You want to talk about how their first few albums were no skips, but it seems like you're not even listening to the full albums they've put out in the last 2 years. I would argue that I think Miroh is one of their most cohesive albums musically and tonally, and it is certainly a no skips album. But I'd say that Maxident is also no skips. And you say they aren't being innovative, when Case 143 is one the most experimental songs they've done in terms of concept. It's a song that was VERY MUCH not the expectation after albums like Thunderous and Oddinary. And setting aside the title track, to look at the B-sides, you have unit songs, some of the most well known and well liked songs of that album, with 3Racha, Taste, and Can't Stop, which also have three DRASTICALLY different tones. Give Me Your TMI is almost the yin to Case 143's yang. Instead of showcasing the disbelief and confusion of falling in love like Case 143, you're instead seeing this full acceptance and desperation. Then look at songs like Chill and Super Board. Super Board's lyrics read like a mad lib, but the point and the purpose are still clear, that if you're focused on chasing them, you'll eventually be left to watch them soar. Chill follows in the proud tradition SKZ is known for of songs whose upbeat tone doesn't match it's devastating lyrics, talking instead about ending a relationship that was already over. Leaving aside Super Board and 3Racha, all of the songs on the albums address and express the varying different aspects and feelings of love that people might experience, giving nearly every person listening an entry point into emotionally connecting with any of those songs. And even if you're not at the level of seeking out the translated lyrics, the songs are still definitely a bop.

In regards to the misuse...or lack of use for Seungmin and IN. They've certainly created opportunities to allow both vocalists to shine and show different aspects of their talent. The SKZ Players and Records offer a unique opportunity for all of the members to showcase they're abilities and to experiment musically in a way that doesn't have to be 'approved' by JYPE the way that album tracks do. Is this the perfect solution? No. Wouldn't it be better/preferable for them to be able to showcase their skills on their regular albums? Absolutely. But they still have to play the game. I truly feel that only NOW, like right now, has SKZ reached a level of success where they have the leverage to take risks creatively. I think after their Kingdom win the reins were loosened a smidge, but they still had to tread carefully, and toe the company line. Following the records they were able to break this year and the opportunities and recognition they've received globally, I think they're now in a position where they have the leverage to start taking more risks. They've proven themselves. I really think this coming year we'll start to see even more creative risks being taken. And I think we'll see a different utilization of their vocals. We've seen them disregard their established positions, essentially since Woojin left, and maintain that type of mindset ever since. And when given the opportunity they do work outside of the 'established norms' of KPop. Look at their most recent album, Rock Star. You have Cover Me, a song that fully utilizes and embraces Seungmin's vocal abilities, as well as showcasing rarely seen sides of Changbin and Felix's vocals. I could literally go on for hours about how well thought out and constructed that song is as a vehicle for showcasing all of the member's vocal abilities. Hyunjin created such an elaborate and seemingly simple song, that effortlessly blends together the voices of the members in a way we hadn't seen before, something I truly believe only Hyunjin could imagine. You have Megaverse, where Chan very particularly wanted to have IN to show a different vocal style than he's had before.

You have Leave, which not only offers a 'softer side' of the member's who normally would rap, even in slower/more heartfelt songs like Winter Falls or Scars, but also Comflex, which gives Seungmin a chance to do something in a melodic rap style. To hear Chan talk about the skills the IN and Seungmin have, while he may not be able to provide them with the perfect vehicle to show case that, I believe he's trying and he wants to. I do not doubt for a second that he's working on tracks that would showcase different sides of their voices in particular, but it takes time, and humans aren't a bottomless creative well.

I feel like it is easy to 'expect more' from SKZ because we know that they are self-produced, and that very little of their work is done by outside persons (and those that are credited appear over and over again in their discography, which indicates to me that their input and skill is respected by 3Racha), but they are still under one of the big 3 idol companies. The truth of it is that the larger the entertainment company, the less likely they are to take risks creatively, because they have more to lose. That's why you see indie artists able to take some of these bigger creative risks, they don't have a lot to lose. And if you're a big fish in a small pond, like Ateez under KQ, then you're gonna have more leverage because those corporations are smaller, and they won't risk their largest moneymaker choosing to break their contracts over creative differences. But SKZ isn't that under JYPE. While I can imagine them not choosing to renew their contract and separating as a group or 3Racha/Chan potentially starting their own production company once their contracts expire, it would take an egregious breach of trust on JYPE's part to make them leave that company now, when their contract is literally due to expire in March of 2025 at the latest. So it's also entirely plausible that at this point they're biding their time, especially if they do plan to continue as a group post enlistment. But circling back to my point, to believe that because they are self-produced and they write their own tracks (almost 100% at this point) does not mean that they have full creative control over every aspect of their work. They have a say, and a level of input, but they also still have to submit their albums for review and approval just like every other idol group under JYPE.

i don't know if I have a way to sum all of this up, but I guess the easiest way would be to say "Don't Judge a KPop Group By Their Title Track."

#Stray Kids #Bang Chan #Changbin #Lee Know #Han Jisung #Hyunjin #Felix #Seungmin #Jeongin #Stray Kids Stay

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dearweirdme · 1 month ago

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the day you people realize that taennie wasn't a cover for tk or tae but it was just to destroy his career and image in Korea it will be a good day

Hi anon!

No need to ‘you people’ me here I think, I don’t feel I’m some sort of enemy. There is actually a huge history of queer artists being closeted by means of fake dating. However, I’d agree that things are more complex in Tae and Jennie’s case. South Korea cannot completely be compared to more western countries and their music industries.

I think Taennie is many things in one. It has all the makings of a pr stunt.. but, mostly for Jennie. I don’t think Tae needed this for pr and I think it did him more harm than good. Had he not done Taennie he had gotten way less hate and attentionwise it wouldn’t have mattered (they could have just given him decent promo and gotten better attention).

I do think it gives Tae cover for his queerness, I don’t think Taennie was designed for this purpose (I might’ve at one point.. but my thoughts are also always evolving). Tae went through ten plus years without a cover like this, he could have gone ten years more without it. I think the company does like that it gives him cover. I still believe they actively closet Tae and Jk and to them this would have been a benefit of having Tae do Taennie.

The company would also have interest in having fandom chatter. They don’t much care about hate thrown at their members. They care about having an active fanbase.

But perhaps mostly it’s something they used to control him. A ‘Do this or else’ situation. The way Tae’s album was pushed back while ready and then he made a whole new one. Who is to say they didn’t threaten to push the new one back as well unless he did Taennie? Contract negotiations at the same time. A dating scandal to manipulate him. I think Hybe puts money and power above anything else. I don’t think they want to destroy him, I think they want to control him. Destroying him would cost them too much.

So imo Taennie has different levels. Gurumi made it possible for the company to look at fandom responses and to think about how to deal with it all.. and about all the ways they could make this work for them. Contract negotiations were probably hard. Tae’s album wasn’t out yet. It’s not hard to imagine some pretty shitty stuff went down there.

I think it’s highly likely Hybe knows that Tae won’t sign an individual contract with them. I have no doubt that they would actually try and destroy him if they could get away with it without hurting themselves as well. But destroying Tae would taint BTS as a whole and I think the other members would leave with him.

#tae #taennope #i recently had an anon talk about control #they make sense #taennie is complex #because it’s something that comes from different sides

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dahliaduvide · 1 year ago

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This is not an attempt at confessing my life's traumas, as much as examining the cultural themes relating to my experiences.

Reexamining music about violence from the perspective of a survivor.

It is also an attempt at expressing uniquely feminine pain and anguish that has long been ignored by genres that examine male pain, such as metal, industrial, and most all of the *cores that emerged from them, but including blues, country music, and English language folk music. Experiences unique to humans having children, but also those of violation, lack of physical dominance, disenfranchisement, erasure, demonization, stolen agency, navigating narrow social constraints, etc. These experiences are not unique to women universally, but in our culture here in the USA they are had most often by women and other oppressed groups.

I've been fascinated with murder ballads since I was a kid listening to 60s folk revival and country western music with my parents. Fascinated in a kind of thrilled and afraid way.

How many times did I hear the words of Delia's Gone before I realized it held a passive threat?

I wanted to know what kind of power these songs had. I did what I do best, I dug into as many old sources as I could find to understand where these songs came from. I learned about broadside ballads and Child ballads and the Roud folk song index. So there is history, just not mine.

I learned that Delia was a real murder victim.

There was also an Ellen Smith and an Omie Wise. There are two different Frankie and Johnnys. The unnamed shes, hers, hims, and theirs. And of course the victims and killers who lost their names to lyrical meter and are now known only as Molly, Polly, Jenny, Maggie, Margaret, Willy, William, Tom, or Johnny.

Because that's the thing about these songs, a lot of them started as news- a kind of news based entertainment that would of course be hard for any modern person to understand. People who heard them wrote their own versions with different words, different melodies, different rhythms.

My life is a lot, with no break in the storm in sight, but digging through these fragments of pain help me keep things in perspective. I'm lucky enough to have access to meds and a therapist that I really get along well with, but I don't feel comfortable with the kind of raw expression I'm working towards with this project.

Right now I am focused on what I see as the beginning phase: Warming up and refining my musical ideas by performing traditional songs, covering modern songs in a "traditional" style, and rewriting traditional songs to examine them with a better understanding of history.

Some big inspirations for this stage of the project:

youtube

It's been almost a decade since I've been in a band, and I've never worked solo before, so it's slow going to say the least. But I am also enjoying working on this musical project more than any I have done in the past. No matter how many times I move on to work on something else I always come back to this music.

I'll be using this space to gather research materials, workshop song ideas, fuck around posting aesthetic stuff, ramble pointlessly, and share drafts of my songs.

If you are interested in following this project's development, follow my tumblr and whatever social media accounts you prefer.

It may be awhile, but you'll hear from me. 💜

#hurray for the riff raff #rhiannon giddens #amythyst kiah #leyla mccalla #allison russell #project journal

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calvins-dad · 1 year ago

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I love this post. https://www.tumblr.com/drew-marsinvestigations/724745820429320192?source=share

I'm from the south, and I haven't listened to country music in so long because none of it feels authentic to my experience or beliefs. I listened to Tyler Childers for the first time today. I loved it. It makes me so nostalgic for the music I grew up listening to. Do you have any recommendations for more songs/artists with this type of music?

oh boy do i this is like one of my favorite things to talk about

putting this above the cut because they deserve the promotion:

Black Opry Revue is a collective of Black country and country adjacent artists that tours, offers artist residencies for Black artists, and generally does fantastic work promoting Black performers in a really white dominated industry. i've seen a set of theirs live and can't recommend them enough !! they are a great place to start for finding artists that fall outside the country mainstream :)

more specific recs below

i would say that tyler and zach bryan are two of the biggest stars of the country/appalachian revival rn and both deserve the praise they get

a tyler gem i would recommend is follow you to virgie live at red barn (really that whole album, there are no skips on it)

zach bryan's live version of revival on his all my homies hate ticket master red rocks recording never fails to make me want to go to a concert posthaste

orville peck is pretty big on tumblr and is a more country-western sound if you like that better! he has some incredible good music that handles topics like bisexuality and relationship violence with a lot of nuance and grace (he also has plenty of fun ones, but i like that he's not afraid to handle difficult topics too)

hexie mountains is one of my favorites by him because it deals with complications around home and distance in ways i love

ok now for some people who aren't as big on here but deserve all our love <3

adia victoria is FANTASTIC and has some really incredible music with a little bit of a darker, more gothic sound

stuck in the south is the obvious place to start

in the pines is also amazing and follows in the sacred country tradition of talking about the grittier sides of the south and trying to understand where you fit into all of that

valerie june is also a little bit less straight-country but she's doing some really cool stuff and she never fails to make me pull out my most exaggerated twang. her voice is amazing

astral plane is my favorite of hers

shakedown never fails to make me dance

i only recently discovered wyatt flores but i love the rasp in his voice on

please don't go

jason isbell has been around for a while and released music as a solo act and with jason isbell and the 400 unit.

morgan wallen (don't bother with him he Sucks) released a cover of his song cover me up that got a ton of press but the original is lightyears ahead of the cover

the nashville sound is no skips album from him

hope the high road off this album fulfills the niche for me i think this year does for a lot of other people

le siren isn't all county but i love her music

the banjo on yikes! Gets me as a country girlie

i saw kyshona live and her voice is UNbelievable

my own grave is my personal fav

the turnpike troubadors have plenty of bangers including

a long way from your heart which is another no skip album

some other bangers:

jersey giant - elle king

georgia to texas - leon bridges (the only reason he didn't get his own section is he's really more r n b but this song is about being from the south so it counts)

just let go - sturgill simpson (this guy's music is all over the place in the best way, and he produced some of tyler's stuff if you like that)

a life where we work out - flatland cavalry ft kaitlin butts

also everyone above is a modern artist but it goes without saying that classic country is full of people with interesting things to say that isn't the boot-licking-bro-country-sound folsom prison blues, harper valley pta, 9 to 5, the pill, cowboys are frequently secretly fond of each other, etc are all classics for a reason !!

finally rainbow kitten surprise really aren't country, but they are a queer band from north carolina and everyone should watch their hide music video which is about being queer in the south and features several drag queens coming out to their families

in conclusion: yeehaw

#mine #country music

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fayewonglibrary · 1 year ago

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Faye Wong: 'Words often fail me when I talk' (1995)

The singer, who performs here tonight, says she expresses herself better through music.

The 26-year-old Hong Kong based star has become the fastest rising pop phenomenon in the Chinese music industry.

Tonight and tomorrow, Singaporeans will be able to catch Faye Wong's first concerts here at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

With brisk sales for tickets to Wong's two-day concert being reported by Jasper Production, it is ironic that the Beijing-born singer, who has won over most of the region and all of Hong Kong with her silky voice and seamless, emotive singing, once claimed she did not have the confidence of peers like Anita Mui and Sally Yeh to stage a concert of her own.

And yet, her debut in Singapore follows a series of sell-out concerts in Hong Kong, which the organizer had to extend from the planned 10 to 15, and later to 18.

Among the almost 200,000 people who caught her show in the British territory, were peers such as singers Alan Tam, Andy Lau, Kenny Bee, Lau Sung Yan, and other star celebrities.

But Faye Wong who?

For those not yet familiar with the singer whom industry pundits are touting as the next Sally Yeh, the 26-year-old Hong Kong-based star has become the fastest rising pop phenomenon in the Chinese music industry. All in a mere five years.

Today, she is a household name in Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Malaysia and Singapore. Mention "Faye" and images of a doll-like face framed by outrageous wigs come to mind.

Though born and bred in Beijing, Wong's secret is that unlike most of her peers, she is not your typical Chinese pop singer. She has manged to gather a large following among the young, old and even the English-educated Chinese.

Part of her uniqueness is that while Wong admits to drawing inspiration from Western singers such as The Cranberries, Sinead O'Connor, Whitney Houston, and Cocteau Twins, the more popular she gets, the more individualistic and alternative the singer becomes.

Her unconventional dressing and nonchalant attitude often draw extreme reactions from fans - you either love it or hate it.

Besides wigs, she has appeared in see-through outfits on variety shows and clothes worn inside out à la Madonna.

At the 93.3 FM Hit Awards presentation at the Singapore Indoor Stadium last September, she arrived in a pair of white flip-flops.

On a phone interview with Life! from Hong Kong, where Wong was recording, her public relations officer quoted the star as saying: "I do not really give much thought to how I mix and match my clothes. I dress according to my moods. It is not a publicity ploy on my part."

Yet her avant-garde image has certainly spawned copy cats from stars like Sammi Cheng to Shirley Kwan, to even Tony Leung Chiu Wai.

This is a far cry from when she was just an unknown singer dressed in tacky shirts and jackets, until she took a one-year hiatus in New York three years ago, and came back a totally different woman.

Confidence, character, coolness - that just about sums up Faye Wong, especially the latter quality which is a sore point with the Chinese press. Her answers to questions are often short and curt.

Most of the time, Wong would have you believe that she would rather open her mouth to sing than to talk.

But when asked about her cold and arrogant attitude, the singer says that she freezes up every time when faced with unfamiliar people and places.

"I'm better at communicating through my songs than in public speaking," she once told a Hong Kong magazine. "Words often fail me when I talk."

But no matter, she speaks her own mind and her care-less attitude is exactly what keeps her followers intrigued, and radio stations giving her recent hits, such as 'I Am Willing' and 'Sky' frequent airplay.

These songs will be heard once again tonight and tomorrow live in a show that Wong has promised over the phone will be the same format as her Hong Kong shows.

Translated, this means you can expect great singing, but do not expect her to make many costume changes or small talk.

Even her boyfriend, China rocker Dou Wei, who guest stars in the concerts, will provide just music accompaniment. In Hong Kong, he played the flute.

As the star speaks her mind: "It is not a wild carnival, but a music show."

——————————————————————

SOURCE: THE STRAITS TIMES

#1995

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straykats · 7 months ago

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prefacing this by saying i am only a uni student and this is my understanding of the westernisation of the music industry and how that impacts kpop (ie. take everything im saying with a grain of salt, pls dont come for me if im wrong. this is not peer-reviewed work) (has only been reviewed by my tutor and i passed but i dont think that counts)

(edit: peer reviewed by my tutor as in i did a presentation/wrote an essay on this)

ANYWAYS so music and why we cater to the west - so like. europe goes 'wow the rest of the world has pretty shitty music' (by european/western standards.) and does the european thing and decides to 'teach' the world what music is. the western understanding of music is pretty much made global and we have changes in things like scales/modes utilised, instruments, ensembles etc. english is also made popular in lyrics. western music is also kinda mainstreamed through media and other things (like schools and other education institutions for example. we all learn about european classical music etc.)

AND THEN we move to the americanisation of the culture industries in more recent decades

there's this thing called the core-periphery or centre-periphery that kind of explains global economic and cultural flows. before, europe was the 'centre' and now, america is kind of the global 'core' or 'centre'. because the rest of the world had already been Prepped and Primed for western intervention through prior westernisation, the switch from europe as a cultural centre to america was pretty easy (see: cultural imperialism). america has greatly influenced how a lot of things in popular culture is produced - i don't know if this is why they're the centre, or how they've become the centre.

as you and others have noted, this whole "english!!" thing has racist undertones. its... kind of like. ingrained in the system? we see it politically ofc but in pop culture its also very much present. i dont really have research backing this up so this bit is speculation but i dont think its a reach to say that orientalist and other racist discourses are kinda naturalised/normalised in our society and we all say racist things without really realising it. this want for english music and to cater to the west and thinking that performing in the west is a sign of success is due to historical... colonisation, imperialism, etc. the whole orientalist thing about the west being better than the east, the east needing western intervention, the east as being exotic etc etc. and being suborindant to the west.

there's also this thing that i've heard in the context of postcolonial theory about like. speaking in the tongue of the oppressor? and how the only way to kind of communicate to the oppressor is through their tongue. i dont actually know where the quote/saying comes from but i've heard tutors use it in the context of texts written in other languages (as resistance to the oppressor) or in the oppressors language to communicate with them, but it's an interesting way to look at the rise of kpop? artists/companies using english to show that despite different cultural/national backgrounds, they're equally as good, or using korean to show that we can succeed even when we don't speak ur language. both are powermoves in their own way, subversive in their own right.

and then we get fan culture that plays into all of this as well (as you noted in ur original post). the americanisation of culture is SO so popular now and there's an expectation for everything to cater to a global audience (which isnt americanisation, but in my head it ties in somewhat) and especially with anything that becomes popular, it's expected to cater globally. an example is makeup brands and the popularisation of k-beauty and c-beuaty and people being super angry when a brand, catering to east asians, doesn't have an all-inclusive shade range (i understand the frustration but this is, again, a different conversation) BUT I DIGRESS (have always wanted to say that).

point is, there's this expectation from global fans that songs be released in english and members learn english and the pop culture industries pretty much. need fans to consume their products yknow so (where possible) they'll cater to fans' wants and needs, but also for them to succeed in america, they'll need tpo cater to western ideas of music and stuff (kpop itself is also somewhat westernised; its just glocalised pop (genre, not 'popular') music. in this regard, the catering to the west is also more of a business thing?

but the demand from fans for an english album - yes it is/can be a want for their favs to succeed etc but it falls back into this idea that you've only suceeded if you've perpformed in the west, and the easiest way to do that is to release an english song/album to 'solidify' ur position in the western music scene. streaming/charting/voting etc is massive in kpop and american/western fanculture is kinda crazy as well and a massive source of revenue and im trying to say that companies recognise the power of america and american (western) fans and they know kpop is kinda popping off (pun intended) and so they're trying to capitalise on all of it frfrfr

the change in sound that you hear - for example, you mentioned bts' old discog vs their newer ones - is (im mainly speculating here) due to this catering to the west. i cant quite pin point it but i've noticed it with other kr/jpn artists i listen to as well. if i can move away from kpop for a second - theres a japanese band, one ok rock, whos old discog was rock and their new stuff is still rock but you can. hear this westernised, pop-influence in the music now? and ive been trying to properly articulate it (to myself, mainly) but i still cant explain theshift other than it was made more 'western pop-rock' (i also such at genres so ignore me). the same was kinda with bts as well, where there was much more… narrative and stuff in their older things (im thinking of hyyh???) but that aside, the sound of the songs were different too, compared to idol and dynamite etc. There's a kind of.. westernisation of kpop, which was already glocalised american pop, in a way? it's interesting though because you can put a kpop song next to an american pop song and still see the difference, but the newer stuff is also different to older kpop??? you can argue it as just part of the development of kpop, but i raise a potential third space thing of like. a more hybrid kpop sound? BUT IM GETTING SO OFF TRACK RN

(and then we have this whole thing with a lot of the newer groups producing songs with tiktok in mind and how catchy choruses are and how that will help trend but thats ANOTHER different thing)

anyways we see a lot of this - the change in music sounds and language, the focus on the digital aspect of music - emerging in recent years (compared to like. five years ago) and i think that's quite interesting. capitalism is so part of it. capitalism,,, america,,, catering to the west,,, it's all there, i just cant articulate it properly without doing more research.

WHY are the people of tiny twt talking about atz needing to release an eng album...... no they do not!

#this is actually so horribly structured wtf im rereading it now and i cant even be bothered restructuring it #im so sorry i like. don't want to write an actual essay so im rambling and infodumping #but an actual essay would probably be more coherent #tbh i might not have really shed light on anything #what i find interesting about this major/deree is that it just gives me the framework and words to articulate things that we already notice #idk if thats just bc im interested in this stuff already but like when i learn about stuff in class its kinda like ohhh yeah that makes mor #sense now! but when i try to explain it to someone it kinda just like. 'yeah u just elaborated on smth we already knew' HAHAHA #but to be fair this happened when i was in health sciences too so it might jsut be a me thing #if u would like me to clarify/expand on anything lmk 💀 i didnt wanna get too much into theory and stuff #(partly bc most of it wuold be loose/uncertain application. i lack confidence and need someone to validate my statements. this is normally #a tutor who tells me yes thats a valid thesis to explore) (BVFHSJBVHFSJBVFSHBVSF)#ALSO THIS IS *NOT* PROOFREAD IM SO SORRY

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